On the eve of International Women’s Day, a forgotten chapter of Barcelona’s clandestine resistance returns to the public sphere through voices, memories and lived experience. The conference The Oasis: Women, Resistance and Anti-Francoism invites audiences to step into a hidden apartment in the Barceloneta neighbourhood that, in 1941, became a refuge, a meeting place and a centre of resistance led by four women: Soledad Real, Clara Pueyo, Isabel Imbert and Maria Salvo.
The event will open with speeches by historians Mary Nash and José Luis Martín Ramos, leading figures and pioneers in research on the role of women in the resistance to the Franco dictatorship and on the role of communist organizations in the underground struggle against the regime. This first block will offer a rigorous and contextualized historical perspective on repression, political activism and the active participation of women in the defense of freedoms during the early years of Francoism.
After a coffee break, the activity will continue with a testimonial discussion led by relatives of Soledad Real, Clara Pueyo and Maria Salvo, who will provide a direct and intimate look at their life trajectories, the context of underground life and the legacy of resistance that they have transmitted to this day.
The event forms part of both the public programme of the exhibition The Oasis and the EUROM programme for International Women’s Day, which will be complemented by the theatre performance Dones del 36 by Nan Valentí at La Model on 4 March. It is also the result of a collaboration between EUROM and Casa de la Barceloneta 1761 within the framework of Women Against the Current, a programme promoted by the History Museum of Catalonia to highlight women who defied the established order in the fight for freedom and democracy.
Programme
5:00 pm – 6:15 pm
Round table with Mary Nash and José Luis Martín Ramos
6:20 pm
Coffee break
6:45 pm – 8:00 pm
Discussion with relatives of the women of The Oasis—Soledad Real, Clara Pueyo and Maria Salvo—who will offer a direct and intimate perspective on their life trajectories, the context of clandestinity, and the legacy of resistance they have passed down to the present day.
Both the round table and the discussion will include a Q&A session open to the audience.
The conference is organised by the Museum of History of Catalonia, in collaboration with Casa de la Barceloneta 1761, the Associació Conèixer Història, and the European Observatory on Memories (EUROM) of the Solidarity Foundation of the University of Barcelona, and is co-funded by the Barcelona City Council and the CERV programme of the European Commission.
Related exhibition
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- Reference of the Project: 101236354
- Type of activity: Awareness-raising
- Title: Networking
- Date: February 18, 2026
- Physical event
- History Museum of Catalonia