Analog & Grit and Barrio Artists Partnership Join Rocco: A Celebration of Life, Art & Friendship
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AN DIEGO, Calif. — September 2026 — The San Diego-Yokohama Sister City Society announced plans for Rocco: A Celebration of Life, Art & Friendship, a special evening at Analog & Grit on Friday, November 13, opening the three-day Yokohama Festival and San Diego-Yokohama 70th Anniversary celebration.
The program is being developed in partnership with Analog & Grit and the Barrio Artists Partnership following a recent gathering that brought together Mario Torero, Josh Sistar of Analog & Grit, DJ Jace the Flying Ace, Sarah Bella Mondragon, Alison Mom of Doors Pomade, and members of the San Diego-Yokohama Sister City Society.
What began as a conversation about honoring the life and work of Yokohama artist Satoshi “Rocco” quickly became an opportunity to revisit a remarkable chapter of cultural history connecting Yokohama, San Diego and Tijuana.
A Creative Exchange Across Borders
During the late 1980s and early 1990s, artists from Yokohama, San Diego and Tijuana developed an ambitious cross-cultural exchange that brought together approximately 125 artists from the three cities.
Among those connected through the movement were Rocco, renowned San Diego artist and muralist Mario Torero, Ruben Seja, and a larger community of artists whose work crossed both the Pacific and the U.S.-Mexico border.
The exchange culminated locally in the early 1990s with The Wave from Yokohama, bringing Yokohama artists and their work to San Diego and Tijuana.
Those relationships extended well beyond the original exhibitions. Archived San Diego Union-Tribune coverage documents Rocco’s later return to San Diego to exhibit at the Japanese Friendship Garden, while Torero continued a career in public art rooted in community, culture and social engagement
Bringing the Story Back Together
More than three decades later, some of those connections are coming together again.
The November 13 program will honor Rocco’s life and work while celebrating the larger artistic movement and friendships of which he was a part.
Working with Analog & Grit and the Barrio Artists Partnership, organizers are developing an evening that brings together Japanese and Barrio art and culture, music and performance, classic Japanese cars and San Diego lowriders, historic artwork and photography, and stories from the people who helped create these connections decades ago.
Rather than simply looking back, the event will bring those creative communities together with a new generation of artists and participants, continuing the spirit of cultural exchange that defined the original movement.
Opening the 70th Anniversary Weekend
Rocco: A Celebration of Life, Art & Friendship will serve as the opening night of the Yokohama Festival and San Diego-Yokohama 70th Anniversary celebration, taking place November 13–15, 2026.
Beginning the anniversary weekend with this story reflects the history behind the San Diego-Yokohama relationship itself. Long before today’s school exchanges, music programs and community partnerships, artists and citizens were building personal relationships across borders and finding new ways to understand one another through culture.
On November 13, that story will continue.
Rocco: A Celebration of Life, Art & Friendship
Friday, November 13, 2026
Analog & Grit | San Diego, California
Additional participating artists, performances and program details will be announced as the event approaches.
About Analog & Grit
Analog & Grit is a San Diego automotive social club and vehicle storage facility founded around a shared passion for cars, motorcycles and the communities surrounding them. Its Commercial Street warehouse has also become a gathering place for automotive, music and cultural events, bringing together vintage and custom vehicles, creative communities and Southern California car culture.
For Rocco: A Celebration of Life, Art & Friendship, Analog & Grit will serve as both a partner and host venue, providing a setting that connects naturally with the evening’s planned gathering of classic Japanese automobiles, San Diego lowriders, art, music and community.
About Barrio Artists Partnership
Barrio Artists Partnership is a San Diego nonprofit founded in 2023 that uses public art, education and cultural programming to strengthen communities and preserve neighborhood history. Its work includes community murals and public art installations, youth arts education, artist mentorship, exhibitions and cultural preservation initiatives rooted in the traditions of the Chicano mural movement and community-based art.
The organization is currently leading projects along the Imperial Avenue corridor that connect artists with neighborhood businesses and community stories. Mario Torero, one of the founding muralists of Chicano Park, is among the artists involved with Barrio Artists Partnership and its community work.
About the San Diego-Yokohama Sister City Society
The San Diego-Yokohama Sister City Society promotes cultural, educational, civic and people-to-people exchange between San Diego and Yokohama. In 2026, the Society is commemorating 70 years of connection between the two cities through educational programs, cultural exchange and the three-day Yokohama Festival celebration, November 13–15.
