A peek at coming attractions

Bellagio gallery exhibit showcasing art and design of CityCenter

Leila Navidi

Art handler Brent Sommerhauser plugs in “Four Corner: Truisms, Living” by Jenny Holzer, part of the “12+7: Artists and Architects of CityCenter.”

By Kristen Peterson (contact)

Friday, Sept. 18, 2009 | 2 a.m.

"12 + 7: Artists and Architects of CityCenter" exhibit at the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art

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What: “12+7: Artists and Architects of CityCenter”
When: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday and Thursday; 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, through April
Where: Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art
Admission: $15, $12 for Nevada residents and seniors, $10 for students, teachers and military, free for children 12 and younger; 693-7871.

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Bellagio Gallery of Fine

At the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art an art handler is on a ladder making some final adjustments to a Jenny Holzer installation while colleagues look on with anticipation.

He connects a few wires and the lighted phrases scroll across the screens. A chorus of oohs and aahs erupts from the onlookers.

The scene conjures thoughts of a postmodern Rockwellian Christmas.

To top it off, there are presents galore: a Frank Stella on one wall, Nancy Rubins collages on another and two Peter Wegners waiting to be hung on the wall with care.

Then came the uncrating of Claes Oldenberg and Coosje van Bruggen’s “Ship Knife 1:12,” which had been sitting on the floor throughout the flurry of activity. There was a moment of silence and awe as the crew looked at the sculpture. Holzer’s truisms blinked and paraded in the background — “A little knowledge can go a long way ... A positive attitude makes all the difference in the world ... Even your family can betray you.”

Whether visitors to the gallery experience the same magic remains to be seen.

The “12+7: Artists and Architects of CityCenter” exhibit, opening today in the gallery, is a direct reflection of the $40 million art project at CityCenter.

It includes 21 works by the 12 artists and seven architects of CityCenter, including artists Maya Lin, Nancy Rubins, Richard Long and Isa Genzken, and architects Daniel Libeskind, David Rockwell and Cesar Pelli.

Filled with impressive works by great names in contemporary art, the exhibit bridges the artists and architects by merging preliminary sketches, artistic renderings and models of buildings with artwork by artists featured on CityCenter’s property. It also includes architectural story boards used in presentations to executives.

Call it clever marketing, call it informational. Mostly, it’s a teaser, an amuse to whet the appetite for what visitors will see in December when the $8.5 billion CityCenter opens.

A smaller version of Lin’s “Silver River,” an 84-foot rendition of the Colorado River in the Aria resort, snakes up a wall in the Bellagio gallery. Long’s works on paper emulate his “Circle of Life and Earth” mud drawings, 80 feet high by 50 feet wide works that will be in the lobbies of Veer Towers. Wegner’s stacked paper works, “Red (The Sun as It Sets)” and “Blue (The Moon as It Rises),” are studies of the larger works — one is 45 feet, the other is 35 feet — that will be in the Vdara Hotel concierge lobby. Holzer’s installation in the gallery is only a sliver of a piece in comparison to “Vegas,” a 280-foot LED wall that stands 18 feet tall at the valet exit at Aria.

Antony Gormley’s “Bodies in Space VIII” is a steel molecular sculpture. His “Feeling Material XXVIII,” a reinvention of the human form from an ongoing series created from mild steel bar (resembling sketches in space), will hang from a ceiling inside Aria.

A small version of Oldenburg and van Bruggen’s 19-foot “Typewriter Eraser, Scale X” sculpture is also part of the show.

Michele Quinn, MGM Mirage’s curatorial adviser who manages CityCenter’s art program, said an exhibit of the artists of CityCenter was inevitable, that she’d wanted to expand the concept of what the CityCenter collection is about and that she’s always wanted to do an architectural show.

The art was borrowed from private collections and galleries, and is arranged so that art works are displayed near architectural renderings of properties where the art will be. Francois-Xavier LaLanne’s “Ane Bate (grand)” is placed in the same room that features colored charcoal works of the Crystals retail area. There are interior sketches of the Harmon and a model of what is informally referred to as “the treehouse,” an astonishingly gorgeous organic-like structure by the Rockwell group that will fit inside Crystals and house a bar.

Some might wonder why they should pay — $15, $12 for locals — when they see much larger versions of the artists’ work at CityCenter for free. That depends largely on how interested one is in seeing works that rarely, if ever, come to Nevada.

The idea of the exhibit was to give a broader perspective of selected artists’ work and show the art and architectural process, Quinn says.

It does not go into any great depth, but is a delightful sample platter.

Discussion: 8 comments so far…

By reader1

9/18/09 at 11:59 a.m.

Suggest removal

Cool.
By sportyyetpratical

9/18/09 at 5:59 p.m.

Suggest removal

Sounds like a general lack of imagination and/or planning on the part of the gallery. Does anyone remember when they used to have shows that people actually wanted to see? Why would you pay to see this when you can visit the sales center and see models and renderings for free? Not to mention that come December you can go look at the real thing. Quinn is simply using this gallery to toot her own horn. It's a pity really as there is no other outlet for museum shows in town and the MGM Mirage people could care less. Their focus will now be solely on CityCenter and the rest of the properties will suffer for it. In the end, the experiment of fine art and casinos turned out to be a failure as most casino people can't see beyond the end of their very short noses. Steve Wynn is the last resort developer in Las Vegas with any imagination. He created a gallery brand that once drew millions of visitors and now has become nothing more than some kind of platform to futher Quinn's own art business. What "private collections" did these works come from? That would make for some interesting reading I'm sure. The gallery that once boasted Faberge, Picasso, Monet, Van Gogh and Rembrandt now features four glowing signs that read "Professionals are Crackpots". That really says it all - doesn't it?
By solar

9/19/09 at 12:46 a.m.

Suggest removal

More like sportyyetcynical.
By solar

9/19/09 at 1:19 a.m.

Suggest removal

And what exactly are you talking about? Anyone who has thought to ask about the upcoming shows at the gallery would know that this show has been long planned. It's not about giving people the time-tested easy money-makers. MGM has plenty of works around their properties to give you a show you'd die to see, but it's not about that. It's about giving the public a taste of what they're doing at CityCenter. Who can fault them? It's not like the future of the company is riding on the thing, right? If they didn't promote synergy within their company for their own projects, that'd be pretty dumb I think.

If you actually saw the show, listened to the audio guide and read the plaques, you'd know that these are world-class artists and architects coming together to make something real. Not something made out of foam, or something that supposedly transports you to Venice. Some people find that sort of evolutionary process very interesting. The CityCenter sales center is for SALES. You know, property, retail space? That's where they bring home the bacon. If you actually saw the show, you would have known that much of what's on display with regard to the artist's work is not what is going to be displayed at CityCenter, but merely a taste of what these artists have created thus far.

And why shouldn't Ms. Quinn toot the projects horn? It is quite an accomplishment to convince a corporation to give you $40 million to invest in art that is going to be free to everyone who visits CityCenter. Not to mention coordinating commissions, time-frames, logistics. The works at CityCenter as well as those in the gallery's current exhibition weren't just dusted off in someone's storage and put up for show.

Steve Wynn tried art, sure. When he put up a gallery to show his own collection, it died within... what, three years? If that. Stevesie clearly found that art doesn't make enough money in this town, and moved on. You know what he put in that space? A Rolex shop. How imaginative.

If you have questions as to what collections the art comes from, why not just go check out the show? It says it right there on the plaque for each piece.

Some people think Faberge decorations and all of that other "interesting" Impressionism nonsense is just fabulous. Well, I don't and neither do a lot of the people that still go to the gallery. Is Jenny Holzer for everyone? Probably not. For some of us it's nice to have to think a little about the ideas of these artists. What the piece they've created represents, or hell, can't it just look cool? I'd rather have that than have some knee-jerk 'Lookie! a Rembrandt, I'm sophisticated now' feeling about something made centuries ago. ART IS SUBJECTIVE.

And afterall, it's about what you're doing now, not yesterday, in this town.
By sportyyetpratical

9/19/09 at 5:18 p.m.

Suggest removal

I always love the idea among arty types that if the public at large likes it, it must suck as they're too intellectually inept to understand anything that isn't "tried and true". I would also add that yes indeed it is QUITE an accomplishment to convince a corporation that, at the time, was teetering on the verge of bankruptcy and is now being sued by a number of shareholders for misuse of funds, among other things, to spend $40 million on art that will not generate a dime in revenue. And yes it does matter very much if these things make money as we cannot afford to see our unemployment rate soar over 14 percent. If an institution simply preaches to the elite few it is doomed to fall into obscurity. However, I appreciate the passionate and intelligent response! At least someone is acutally thinking.
By sportyyetpratical

9/19/09 at 5:27 p.m.

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Oh and one other thing - remember when Coca-Cola decided in the 80s to change its formula and almost bankrupted one of the oldest and most profitable brands in the history of the world? Um yeah. Some things work for a reason. The Louvre hasn't been around for centuries because they thought the place needed from freshening up with a few pieces by Jenny Holzer to appease people who despise oil paintings as vapid rubbish.
By solar

9/19/09 at 11:49 p.m.

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I don't think that it is the idea of people that actually appreciate art, in all its forms, that if the public likes it it is garbage. There is a small, pompous minority who believe that Monet and Picasso are for the masses and represent the past. For many contemporary artists, they do represent that and with respect they move and are looking forward. Like I said before, it's about what you're doing now, not about what happened at the beginning of the century or further back. There is nothing wrong with attempting to get the public on board with something new. Parents used to say the Beatles were trash and that Bing Crosby was real music, but you don't hear so much of that anymore. Used to be that people wouldn't dream of buying water, but that's a pretty bygone era. Just because you doubt the weight that something carries, doesn't mean that it's worthless. Can you think it silly? Sure. Doesn't mean it is though. It's about creating something for here and now, not something that's transporting us to Lake Como or Venice or Egypt. I don't see anything wrong with that.

Also, the $40 million for CityCenter Fine Art Collection was set aside WELL BEFORE MGM's financial trouble and the lawsuit of the shareholders of the company. Does the public pay money to see the art? No. Might some people be encouraged to come to CityCenter because of its public art program? More than likely. They may even buy a print when they come and have a look. But once again, CityCenter's art is about creating something new in Las Vegas, not about retreading old ideas. This single thing in the project is not about how quickly they can rack up the millions.
By solar

9/19/09 at 11:53 p.m.

Suggest removal

Oh, and Louvre has been around for centuries for the priceless works of art inside, true. It has also taken some gigantic chances. Even the now famous glass pyramid was controversial. Today, the Louvre promotes all kinds of art. Whether it be music, dance, painting, sculpture, and yes, even Jenny Holzer. I encourage you to take a look at the links below.

-explains the controversy surrounding the creation of the pyramid.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre_Pyra...

-three paragraphs down, read about Jenny Holzer's projection on the buildings, very similar to how her work at CityCenter will appear.

http://www.louvre.fr/llv/musee/presentat...

-And some photos of Ms. Holzer's work at the Louvre:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_bretagne...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_bretagne...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8565118@N03...

-Also, information on an upcoming show of contemporary artists at the Louvre, demonstrating that not only does the museum show the 'vapid rubbish' of the old world masters, but they're also showing the new stuff. Pretty regularly in fact.

http://www.louvre.fr/llv/exposition/pres...