The L.A. Rising Fest was held on March 29 in Little Tokyo to celebrate the second anniversary of Robert Vargas’ Shohei Otani mural on the side of the Miyako Hotel.
The block party on First Street included performances by Bando Ryu: Kyo no Kai, L.A. Taiko Collective and Mariachi Lindas Mexicanas. Bando Hirohichiro choreographed a new ondo for the occasion. The celebration also featured food and vendors.
Vargas said in a statement, “I painted this mural with the intention of uniting communities. This event to commemorate the unveiling is truly about bringing that vision to life and creating a space of unity through a festive activation.”
The Boyle Heights artist was joined by actor Edward James Olmos, whose TV and film career spans decades. The two also spoke on March 24 in Torrance when Vargas’ “Samurai of the Diamond” mural depicting Ohtani and fellow Dodgers Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki was unveiled on the side of the Doubletree by Hilton Torrance-South Bay.
Speakers also included David Ikegami, president of the Little Tokyo Business Association, which presented the event, and Ambassador Carlos Gonzalez-Gutierrez, consul general of Mexico.
Since its unveiling in 2024, just months after Ohtani signed with the Dodgers, the 13-story, 150-foot-tall mural has drawn locals and visitors, including tourists from Japan. Those who scan a QR code can see the mural come to life. The Torrance mural has the same feature.
“As I am creating this mural with the Downtown L.A. skyline behind it and framing it, and it starts to become something bigger than Shohei Ohtani or Little Tokyo,” Vargas, who worked on the mural 7 to 10 hours a day for three weeks, said before the unveiling.
“It really anchors Little Tokyo in a way that allows people to want to explore these shops and the small businesses here and to contribute. Little Tokyo is such an integral part of the L.A. fabric and culture. I am humbled and pleased to be able to contribute to this canon.”
Vargas later painted two Ohtani murals in Oshu, Iwate Prefecture, the two-way player’s hometown.
His other recent works include murals dedicated to the Dodgers’ Fernando Valenzuela and labor leader Dolores Huerta.
