Tom Nakashima visited Japan for the first time in 1988, inspiring the third generation Japanese American to take a deeper look into his heritage. As a form of meditation, painting is a way he explores his relationship with Eastern and Western cultures, conveyed through autobiographical imagery and a fluid use of symbols. A large chapel dominates the scene in Sanctuary at Western Sunset. It is a safe haven, a place of refuge inspired by two of Giotto's fourteenth-century frescos in the Arena Chapel in Padua, Italy. For Nakashima, the structure serves as a path to Japan and a visual representation of safety across cultures. A translucent fish, a self-portrait of the artist, approaches the threshold of the chapel as if embarking on a journey across the sea. Painted in thick, gestural brushstrokes, the fish casts a solid shadow as the sun sets over the mountainous horizon.