Iconic Mural to be Restored and Rededicated to the Japanese Community

One of Olympia’s most iconic murals, “The Great Wave Off Kanagawa,” is soon to be restored and rededicated to the Japanese American community. Local artists will complete the restoration work in partnership with the Olympia Japanese American Citizens League and Rainbow Community Arts.

Perhaps the most recognized of all Japanese Woodblock prints, “The Great Wave,” was created by Japanese ukiyo-e artist Hokusai in 1831. It was part of a series of 36 views of Mt Fuji. Shortly after Joe Tougas, Richenda, and Bill Richardson bought the Childhood’s End building, Joe asked a group of his friends to help him recreate this image.

This mural was one of the first significant public art pieces created by artist Joe Tougas. “I basically set it up as a paint-by-numbers outline with each area marked for a specific color of paint,” said Joe. “It took us about 10 days, gallons of paint and a fair number of evenings at the Rainbow Restaurant to celebrate our progress.”

The results of Joe Tougas’s work with friends has been appreciated for decades. According to Stephanie Johnson, the Arts Program Manager for the City of Olympia, “This mural has remarkable staying and is one of the few community murals to have lasted more than a decade and certainly the only one to remain in Olympia for nearly 50 years. It continues to be an iconic entrance to downtown from the West, drawing from one of the most recognizable and enduring images in the world.”

Reiko Callner of the Olympia Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League shared the importance of a public touchstone. “We are surrounded by art and mementos that acknowledge mainstream history. There are, however, few visual representations of the historical and cultural contributions of minorities in the PNW. Pike Place Market, for example, was largely established by Japanese American farmers, none of whom sell at the Market today. http://www.pikeartproject.org/  As with those farmers, our Japanese forbears who worked in the oyster beds and other foundational businesses in Olympia were scattered, some never to return, by their unjustified incarceration during WWII. Like the panel art at Pike Market, the dedication of this mural to the Japanese American community helps to counteract that erasure.”

Artist Austin Davis was selected to restore this mural based on his artistic skill, his experience as one of the City’s restorationists and the cultural relevance of being an Asian-American artist himself, “it was really exciting to be asked to restore this amazing artwork. Having grown up nearby, I’ve seen this mural for years. I had my high school senior portrait taken in front of this mural. And now I have the honor of restoring it and working side by side with Joe, who first painted this mural.”

The funder, Rainbow Community Arts Olympia, is slowly expanding to support public artworks after decades of sponsoring the annual Pride Festival events. According to Anna Schlecht, Rainbow Community Arts Coordinator and major donor, “We are dedicated to supporting artists of color who work on public art projects that lift up our diverse communities. Rainbow is keen to expand our public arts landscape to celebrate the communities that have often been erased from public view. This and other murals help to bring that diversity back into focus.”

The mural will be rededicated in late August of this year to acknowledge the contributions and perseverance of people of Japanese heritage in the greater Olympia area.

Restoration Sponsors:  Rainbow Community Arts, Joe Tougas, Japanese American Citizens League of Olympia and Anna Schlecht.

For more information about the history of the Japanese in the Pacific Northwest: www.densho.org

For more information on this restoration project:  Anna Schlecht  annaschlecht@gmail.com  (360) 402-0170