Revival of the Downtown

Las Vegas Art SceneJARED UBBEN

Brief History of Las Vegas

1905 - The San Pedro, Los Angeles and Salt Lake railroad arrived in Las Vegas

1906 - The Golden Gate Hotel & Casino opens in downtown Las Vegas

1911 - Las Vegas was incorporated

1931 - Gambling was made legal

1941 - The first neon sign was used to attract patrons to the El Rancho casino in Las Vegas

1966 - Howard Hughes checked into the penthouse of the Desert Inn and never left, preferring to buy the hotel rather than face eviction

1989 - Steve Wynn opened the Mirage, the city’s first mega-resort

First forms of art introduced to Las Vegas

1912 - The Airdome, the first

outdoor theater in Las Vegas,

opened on Fremont Street

1928 - The El Portal Theatre

opens on Fremont Street

1941 – The first neon sign was

installed at the El Rancho

Hotel/Casino

1998 – Bellagio opens Las

Vegas' first art gallery

But isn’t everyone in Las Vegas a tourist? Las

Vegas isn’t know for art, where can you actually

go to see art in Vegas?

Art forms available in Las Vegas???

The art on display in Vegas ranges from fine art exhibits, like those found at the Bellagio or Cosmopolitan, to modern galleries in Vegas' growing downtown district.

That diversity has allowed artists to create what inspires them, as opposed to other big art cities, such as Los Angeles or New York, where the demand for certain types of art is greater.

Tourists in search of art don't have to venture beyond The Strip because museums and galleries are located right on Las Vegas Boulevard.

Jerry Schefcik, University of Las Vegas Art Galleries director, says “Vegas hotels have added the art for culture, and to make money. But the overall art scene in Vegas is growing because it attracts artists who think outside the box.”

"The artists aren't bound by any preconceived notion of what an artist is supposed to be," Schefcik said. "Like, if you go to New York you may have to fit into what they expect an artist to be in New York or L.A. or somewhere else.“

Being a free-formed and independently thinking, Las Vegas is able to successfully display a wide variety of art.

Current Art Scenes of Las Vegas

CityCenter DowntownSummerlin

Summerlin Art Scene

Summerlin Art Group

The Summerlin Art Group had its grand opening the weekend of June 26, 2014 to celebrate the opening of its art school and gallery at 7885 W. Sahara Ave., Suite 108.

More than 40 pieces of framed artwork line the walls of the gallery.

The gallery offers art classes Monday-Saturday to adults and children.

Summerlin Art Scene

Annual Summerlin Art Festival

Summerlin offers an Annual Art Festival located at the Summerlin Centre Community Park.

The Summerlin Art Festival allows artists to display and sell their pieces of work as well as do live demonstrations.

Along with paintings, the festival has live dancers, glasswork, pottery, jewelry, metal works, sculpture and mixed media.

CityCenter Art Scene

CityCenter is located in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip. It consists of galleries and

open-air artwork at the following locations:

Mandarin Oriental

Vdara Hotel & Spa

ARIA Hotel & Casino

The Harmon Hotel

Veer Towers

CityCenter Art Scene

There are art galleries within these spaces as well as works of art that are meant to be stumbled upon while traveling throughout the many hallways and corridors of the massive buildings.

CityCenter presents the first major permanent collection of art in Las Vegas to be integrated into a public space, and one of the world’s largest and most ambitious corporate art collections in existence today.

Jim Murren, Chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International was quoted as saying “The fine art collection is the first initiative of its kind to merge public and corporate interests on this grand scale, and we’re proud to deliver this prominent force in contemporary art and culture to Las Vegas.”

The CityCenter fine art collection features works by acclaimed artists, sculptors and visionaries.

But does CityCenter really have a “scene”?

CityCenter is thought to be more for the passerby’s and the busy travelers. Yes,

there is an abundance of traffic moving through the galleries and the1000’s of

quick glances at the open-air style pieces, but is it really considered a “scene”?

The art displayed throughout CityCenter is the most expensive pieces of art

offered in Las Vegas. Even with its through-the-roof price tags, it fails in

comparison to the re-emerging Downtown art scene.

NEED TO ADD MORE HERE…

The Downtown Art Scene

Local Graffiti & Murals

On just about every corner in Downtown you can find amazing murals and graffiti.

The Life is Beautiful festival sparked some of the first installations of the massive murals.

Street Art News described Las Vegas as “being the hottest city in the United States right now for Street Art”

The Downtown Art Scene

Container Park

The most notable of several public-feeling private spaces the Downtown Project has so far produced.

A variety of small businesses operate in this arrangement of shipping crates.

Centered around a full-featured playground with four-story slide and fronted by a 55-foot-tall scrap-metal praying mantis, originally built for Burning Man, which at night periodically shoots fire from its antennae in bursts audible for blocks.

The Downtown Art Scene

First Friday’s

One of the most popular events in Downtown Las

Vegas is First Friday’s at The Arts factory.

First Friday’s is a monthly art celebration featuring

the work of more than 100 artists, including

painting, ceramics, mixed media, photography,

jewelry, textile arts and sculpture. Located in the

downtown Las Vegas arts district and surrounding

neighborhood, more than 80 indoor arts, food trucks, drink and shop venues open their doors and

50 outdoor artists, artisans and entertainers provide

outside fun each month.

Revitalization of the Las Vegas Art Scene

With the head of Zappos, Tony Hsieh, investing $350 million in The

Downtown Project, it is on the rise drawing more and more attention

towards it and away from the strip.

New modern bars and restaurants are sprouting up and a following

of the younger generation is emerging in Downtown and sparking a

new interest of the “what was”.

First Fridays intends to bring the public to an environment which

turns on the excitement and intrigues the event-goers to dig deeper

into their art community.

More info…

Summary

Because within the last 25 years, 90 percent of the population

arrived, the art scene is still a work in progress.

The Downtown art scene is what is currently blossoming into the

largest art scene in Las Vegas.

Conclusion

There is more to Las Vegas than its flashy lights and high-stakes gambling halls. Las Vegas has a strong up and coming art scene that strives to get more of the residents involved. From its art classes in Summerlin, high-end fine art galleries housed in billion dollar casinos or the old streets in Downtown Vegas.

There has been more opportunity for art to emerge in Downtown Las Vegas than in any other part of the city. It gives you the feel of old Vegas as well as the energy of the up and coming art scene.

By walking the streets of either Downtown Vegas or the strip you are surrounded by different forms of art, whether it be a local graffiti artist or a billion dollar skyscraper, you have no choice but to be engulfed by art.

While Summerlin and CityCenter are … for people living on the east side of town or staying in a casino, Downtown Las Vegas, with its…, is holding its dominance as the predominant local art scene in Las Vegas.

Bibliography

http://lasvegasnevada.gov

https://sites.google.com/site/everythinglasvegas21/las-vegas-history

http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2014/04/30/vegas-adds-culture-with-art-museums/

http://www.reviewjournal.com/entertainment/arts-culture/art-scene-influence-stretching-farther-west-toward-summerlin

http://www.streetartnews.net/2014/12/street-art-and-graffiti-in-las-vegas.html

http://www2.citycenter.com/press_room/press_room_items.aspx?ID=843

http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/nov/20/downtown-and-out-the-truth-about-tony-hsiehs-350m-las-vegas-project

http://www.lasvegas.com/event/first-friday-art-celebration/11674/

Bibliography (images)