Las Vegas Art Schools

With the neon glow of the strip and the whir of the roulette wheels, detractors of Sin City will quickly argue that this is where art and culture is at its worst. For so long the sights of Las Vegas have amounted to gilded thresholds and glittering frescos; however, the last decade saw the city’s population grow by 83%, and with it, so too did the city’s art scene. Though there has always been an art community working and presenting in the city, it was not until Steve Wynn, casino mogul and art enthusiast, opened the Bellagio Gallery of Art that people began to take the idea of fine art in Las Vegas seriously. This idea was quickly trumped by the Venetian’s Guggenheim Hermitage, the first collaborative effort between Russia’s State Hermitage Museum and New York’s Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, and then again by Wynn with a gallery primarily comprised of pieces from his own collection. Although, if the idea of viewing fine art at a casino still seems conflicting, there are also a number of exceptional galleries in the downtown area, which may be viewed on a First Friday outing or any time you need a break from the cacophony of the slots. Galleries of interest include the Dust Gallery, Bluestone Gallery, Godt-Cleary Gallery, and, most notably, Carrara Galleries. Also, the Arts Factory, located in the Gateway Arts District, is a center for studios and a great number of contemporary art galleries. Though, when it comes to the casinos, there is no such thing as a guaranteed win, any art student choosing to attend school in Las Vegas will find it a safe bet.