Landmark mural in LA now portrays famed Filipino subject's trans identity

A landmark mural in L.A.’s Historic Filipinotown has been updated to reflect the identity of one of its subjects, the singer Jake Zyrus, who came out years ago as a trans man.

The revision follows more than a year of discussions and meetings that involved Filipino-led groups, local nonprofits and the muralist, Eliseo Art Silva, who first painted the sprawling work 30 years ago . Supporters of the changes say it's a joyous moment at a time when trans rights are under legal and legislative attack.

As part of the changes made with public input, Silva replaced Zyrus’ pre-transition image with a depiction of the city’s first Filipino American councilmember, Ysabel Jurado. A new portrait of Zyrus, meanwhile, is located a few feet to the left, framed in an oval.

The new images were celebrated last week in a dedication ceremony falling on Filipino American History Month that included appearances by Zyrus and Jurado.

Zyrus declined to speak at the event but on Instagram stories thanked those who advocated for the change and “for seeing me, even when I’m quiet. For hearing me, even when I’m silenced.”

Zyrus, the first Asian solo artist to reach Billboard’s Top 10 albums chart, publicly transitioned in 2017 and has since continued to perform and speak about his journey of self-discovery and acceptance amid intensifying scrutiny over transgender rights.

“I don’t know what comes next,” he wrote on Instagram. “I just know I’ll never understand why being yourself — freely, quietly, joyfully — is such a threat to others.”

Ysabel Jurado, L.A.'s first Filipino American councilmember, has been added to the mural at Unidad Park in Historic Filipinotown.

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In 1995, Silva painted the 150-foot-wide mural depicting Filipino American history on the exterior wall of a building that now houses Rideback, the film and television production company, and faces Unidad Park.

Named “Gintong Kasaysayan, Gintong Pamana,” which means “A Glorious History, A Golden Legacy” in Tagalog, the mural features noteworthy Filipinos such as labor leader Larry Itliong and apl.de.ap of the Black Eyed Peas.

Updates have been made to the mural along the way, including the addition of Zyrus’ depiction, completed in 2011. Six years later, the singer transitioned, and talk began bubbling up about updating the mural. But it was not until last year, when Filipino American arts organization Sunday Jump posted on Instagram pushing for the change, that the debate burst into the open.

Silva at the time said he was open to an update but also listed a number of considerations, including funding and creative principles.

He said he had placed the original image of Zyrus by Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao to symbolize the first woman and first man from a foundational creation myth from the Philippines, noting both defied societal expectations given their modest beginnings and represented Filipino resilience.

"I cannot just disrupt the narrative,” Silva said last year after the controversy deepened. “It's going to compromise the integrity of the entire mural.”

At the center of the mural are large renderings of labor leader Larry Itilong and musician APL.DE.AP of the Black Eyed Peas.

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Contacted last week via a messaging app, Silva said he was in the Philippines and declined to comment about the redesign.

But after the story was published several days later, he sent a message saying “my voice as the artist had been sidelined” during the process to update the mural.

He chose not to participate in the dedication ceremony which he said prioritized patrons who were not present during the mural’s “formative years” over the artist “who carried the weight of the work." He also criticized what he described as a failure to honor the mural’s 30th anniversary.

Gana said they and others who pushed for the mural update recognized the milestone it had hit and respected the community members who informed past versions of the mural.

“I am happy that the 30th anniversary has been reached,” Gana said. “I hope that this mural exists for 30 more years.”

Gana said the update process was “collaborative but I don’t want to say it was smooth sailing.”

“There were creative differences and ideas of what art is and how it can be static but also how it can change and what does it mean to be a people’s mural,” Gana said.

The most important thing for Gana “is that the mural was done and Jake is happy and having his authentic self there." Gana, who is a therapist, said that when someone is misgendered, chances of depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation increase.

The updates to the mural, which is overseen by the park's steward the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust, was paid for with about $10,000 in city funds, which will also be used to touch up the left side of the mural focused on earlier chapters of Filipino history.

Bz Zhang, a project manager with the land trust, said the non-profit worked with the office of Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez to support the "community-led reparative process to celebrate trans and queer Filipinx community, honor the evolving legacies of past, present, and future in the Philippines and its diaspora within Eliseo Art Silva's incredible work, and deepen our relationships with one another in Historic Filipinotown."

The mural, before the revision, was first created in 1995. It gained Jake Zyrus' portrait in 2011.

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LAist

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Gana said that they hope updates to the mural — and the dialogue surrounding it — will allow for more public art that represents the diversity of communities in Historic Filipinotown. They said that's already begun with the arrival of new murals on Rosemont and Temple, and another on Temple and Union.