ART@341FSN

August 3–September 29, 2018
341 E 1st Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012



Little Tokyo is one of three remaining historic Japantowns left in the nation, and the community is continuing to fight for its land and future. As a part of the Sustainable Little Tokyo creative placekeeping initiative, I organized 12 artists to create site-specific community art programs in an unused storefront on First Street North—a block critical to the past, present, and future of Little Tokyo.

Over the course of 2 months, 23 events, 1 exhibition, and 3 pop-up stores, we temporarily imagined affordable arts and cultural spaces that anchor Little Tokyo’s history and culture, and support our local artists, residents, and small business owners. The project refined the community’s vision for First Street North to include:

  1. Flexible art space
  2. Community space
  3. Commercial space

Organized by:
Scott Oshima
Abe Ferrer
Angelica Villegas
Jen Cienfuegos
Jonathan Crisman
Kenji Liu
Mario Correa
Mariko Lochridge
Mitsuko Brooks
Nancy Uyemura
Taiji Miyagawa
Tomi Kunisaki
Zen Sekizawa



Flexible Art Space


Welcome to the Curry House
Nikkei Music Reclamation
Ibasho: Arts Activism in Little Tokyo
Community Photo Booth
Home is in the Heart: Seniors Making Movies screening
Youth Movie Night

Community Space


Youth Art Workshops
Story Quilt Workshop
Mahjong Nights

Commercial Space


Atomic Cafe Revivals
AntenaMóvil
CRFTbyMaki
Shop Tenzo



Sustainable Little Tokyo is a community-driven initiative working to ensure a healthy, equitable, and culturally rich Little Tokyo for generations to come. SLT began in 2013 as a multi-day community vision effort and has evolved into a holistic, neighborhood-wide campaign to promote the environmental, economic, and cultural sustainability of Little Tokyo. A community-wide campaign led by:

ART@341FSN was funded in part of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, ArtPlace America, and Surdna Foundation, with support from California Arts Council. 


S. Oshima © 2019