DISCOVER 5 MORE MUSEUMS, LANDMARKS, AND MONUMENTS OF AAPI CULTURE IN LOS ANGELES

Totoro Tea painting by Nikki Longfish at Giant Robot
Photo: @drawingnikki, Instagram

Los Angeles is home to some of the largest Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) enclaves outside of their native countries. Generations of AAPI immigrants and Asian Americans have helped make LA one of the most diverse cities in the country. From cultural institutions to landmark buildings, World War II monuments and more, explore the rich cultures and vital histories of the AAPI community in Los Angeles.

1) FOWLER MUSEUM AT UCLA

308 Charles E Young Drive East, Los Angeles 90024
310-825-4361
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The Fowler Museum at UCLA explores global arts and cultures with an emphasis on works from Asia, the Pacific, Africa, and the Indigenous Americas—past and present. The Fowler's collections from Insular Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, and aboriginal Taiwan, are considered among the strongest in the United States. The collections from mainland Asia are smaller but expanding, including textiles from Bhutan, Pakistan, India and Japan; baskets and decorative arts from Japan; puppetry from China, Thailand, India, and Turkey; and art and artifacts from Nepal. View hundreds of objects from Asia and the Pacific at the Fowler's digital collection.
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2) GIANT ROBOT

2015 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles 90025
310-478-1819
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Eric Nakamura opened his Giant Robot store on Sawtelle Boulevard in 2001, and helped jumpstart the renaissance of shops and restaurants in West LA's Sawtelle Japantown. Widely known as a mecca for Asian pop culture, Giant Robot continues to be a popular destination for Asian housewares, gifts, stationery, t-shirts, comics, plush and toy figures.

Two years after opening Giant Robot, Nakamura opened GR2 Gallery down the street. GR2 exhibits AAPI artists like Katsuya Terada, Luke Chueh, David Choe, Mari Inukai, Deth P Sun, Rob Sato, Ako Castuera, Sean Chao, Yoskay Yamamoto, Uglydoll, and many more.
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3) "GINTONG KASAYSAYAN, GINTONG PAMANA"
1644 West Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles 90027
213-485-4833
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Overlooking Unidad Park on Beverly Boulevard, Gintong Kasaysayan, Gintong Pamana ("Filipino Americans: A Glorious History, A Golden Legacy") is the largest Filipino American mural in the country. The 150'x30' mural was painted by artist Eliseo Art Silva when he was 22 years old and a junior at Otis College of Art and Design.

According to the artist, the mural encapsulates 5,000 years of Filipino and Filipino American history. The design is divided into two parts - the first is historical (represented by the outline of a fish at sea), "leading up to the awakening of Filipino national and political consciousness." The second part is dominated by a huge bird with "significant Filipino Americans on its wings, the farm workers on the bottom left, and the youth and community on the right."
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4) GO FOR BROKE MONUMENT

152 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles 90013
213-626-6222
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Located near the Geffen Contemporary in Little Tokyo, the Go For Broke Monument is the first memorial of its kind on the U.S. mainland. The 40-foot black granite circle is engraved with the names of more than 16,000 Japanese American soldiers and officers who served overseas during World War II. "Go for Broke" was the motto of the all-Nisei 442nd Regimental Combat Team, the most decorated unit in the history of American warfare. Members of the 442nd received over 18,000 awards in less than two years, including 21 Medals of Honor.
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5) HISTORIC FILIPINOTOWN EASTERN GATEWAY

1557 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles 90026
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LA's newest AAPI cultural landmark, the Historic Filipinotown Eastern Gateway was installed in April 2022. Formally known as Talang Gabay: Our Guiding Star, the gateway stands 30 feet high and spans 82 feet across Beverly Boulevard. Located on the eastern end of HiFi, the gateway was designed by Celestino Geronimo Jr. and Eliseo Art Silva, who also painted the mural at nearby Unidad Park. The artists incorporated Filipino cultural symbols into the gateway, including a parol (a star-shaped lantern displayed at Christmas), gumamela flower (hibiscus, a tribute to frontline workers), and the Sarimanok, a mythical bird that symbolizes good fortune.
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