A new community-informed mural is scheduled for installation this summer in Salt Lake City’s historic Japantown. The project aims to bring renewed visibility to one of the city's last remaining cultural corridors as significant changes occur in the surrounding downtown area.
Muralist Cole Eisenhour has been selected to design and install the work, which will be located on the north-facing wall of the Multi-Ethnic Senior Highrise (MESH) overlooking 100 South. The project is a collaboration between the Salt Lake City Community Reinvestment Agency, the Salt Lake City Public Art Program, and a community-led Japantown Art Committee.
Eisenhour has begun engaging with stakeholders as the project enters its final design phase. The mural is intended to reflect input gathered through ongoing community engagement and serves a broader effort to strengthen Japantown as an active cultural corridor.
Mayor Erin Mendenhall stated that the mural reflects the voices and vision of the Japantown community. She noted that it honors a history rooted in the neighborhood that has often been overlooked, while creating space for that story to be shared and carried forward.
The design draws on the concept of kintsugi, which is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold by highlighting cracks rather than concealing them. The mural will feature interconnected visual elements representing generations of Japanese American life in Utah, utilizing flowing gold forms to symbolize connection, healing, and continuity.
Salt Lake City's Japantown was once a vibrant hub for Japanese American life that spanned several downtown blocks. Following urban renewal and World War II incarceration, nearly all of Japantown was demolished in 1966 to facilitate the construction of the Salt Palace.
Today, only a single block remains along 100 South, anchored by the Salt Lake Buddhist Temple and the Japanese Church of Christ.
Marcus Lee, a CRA project manager, said the goal is to create a visual narrative reflecting both the history and ongoing story of Japantown. He stated that each element of the composition speaks to identity, resilience, and community.
The mural installation is expected to take place later this summer. This project represents the first step in a broader initiative to expand public art along Japantown Street.
