Heading toward downtown Oakland, California, where the road meets the Interstate 580 overpass, drivers on Grand Avenue are treated to a showcase of the Bay Area’s multicultural heritage. In a mural stretching 140 feet, local figures such as composers John Santos and Mary Watkins, along with author Jack London and other artists, are depicted performing in the clouds above the city skyline and wider views of the area. At the tallest part of the Grand Performance mural is a portrait of Calvin Simmons, who became the first Black leader of a major United States orchestra when he took the helm of the Oakland Symphony in 1978.

“It was meant to have this movement of scale, so when you’re driving by [you think], ‘Oh look, those figures are getting bigger and bigger,’” says artist Daniel Galvez, under whose leadership the mural was completed in 1984. “Before you know it, you’re at the end of the mural, and it’s this big explosion of color.” But without any maintenance in the four decades since, the mural’s vibrancy has dulled and its paint has degraded, landing it on the inaugural list of Endangered Latinx Landmarks released in 2025 by the nonprofit Latinos in Heritage Conservation. Galvez and his co-collaborator, artist Keith Sklar, are raising funds to fully restore the mural, shown above in its current state. Work could begin as soon as this summer.

Galvez hoped the mural would inspire younger Oaklanders to see themselves in the diversity it captured and perhaps find their own place in the arts. Among those who have signed on to help with restoration efforts are local artists who remember coming across Grand Performance as children. They grew up to be muralists.