Robert Mars’ portrait of old Las Vegas
This insightful and striking series of artwork by Robert Mars looks at an ‘old Las Vegas that is being replaced by corporate themed mega-casinos’. Of this series, he says: ‘My work is a chronicle of Americana. I am determined to capture the independent aesthetic of the not-so-distant past that has been replaced by homogenized corporate culture and standardized cityscapes. Industrial design, graphic design, architecture and vintage neon all render important roles in my work.
My paintings employ layers of color, subtly collaged printed matter from the 1950’s and 1960’s, and stark, black imagery. Remote, indistinct landscapes capture the once poetic, and now nearly lost highway strips of the American past. Formerly the promise of hope and prosperity; these icons are now a sign of desperation and ruin.
This group of work embodies the past 12 years of my experiences in and around Las Vegas. I wanted to document the fading icons of “sin city”, and in the process, capture the sexuality and decadence that pulses just under the surface of the desert oasis. The flamboyant colors that separate old and new Vegas inspired my palette. The vintage cars, timeless neon, and motor hotels became the primary images.
Las Vegas is a city of extremes. The big time winners share a green felt table with the down and desperate. Cigarettes and alcohol are common vices that fuel midnight to sunrise marathons. Daybreak brings air-conditioned tourists blinking into bleak, 120 degree waves of dry desert heat. Stark contrast is the norm.
I’ve always had a love and hate relationship with Las Vegas. Multiple two week stays over the years proved too long for a visit, but allowed me to absorb the city and all that it has to offer. I miss the vestiges of old Vegas that clung to the strip when I started visiting in 1995. The demolition of what made it great in the 50s, and transition to its current “theme park” vibe seemed to happen overnight. These works are my tribute to the old sin city. Viva Lost Vegas!
Tagged: colourful artwork, Las Vegas, vintage
RELATED
Alien-themed brothel coming soon in Nevada
Dennis Hof, the pimp behind the Moonlite Bunny Ranch that was featured on the HBO series Cathouse, apparently is planning to open an alien-themed brothel to cash in on the Nevada Test Site northwest of Las Vegas. Just what this economy needs.
Collaborative collage book project by Jesse Treece
Jesse Treece is a collage artist living in Seattle whose work screams simple yet complex, with interpretations of both the mundane and whimsical facets of life. Read more
Johnny Two Tone Club is a collaborative project between some folks in Perth and Melbourne who like to do hand-pulled screen prints. International Walkman Day is the second installment in their ongoing Public Holiday Project series, which seeks to celebrate the anniversary of significant cultural events that don’t get the attention they deserve. Read more
Also by ZOLTON
Maths explains the origin of superhero characters
I love the colours and simple reasoning in this clever series by Scottish illustrator Matt Cowen, which uses basic maths equations to explain how certain pop culture icons came to be. Read more
Star Wars Uncut: a fully crowdsourced version of Episode IV
The project of creative technologist, Casey Pugh, this full length version of the George Lucas masterpiece was created from multiple 15 second segments recreated from the original movie and submitted by thousands of Star Wars fans, which were then spliced together by editor Aaron Valdez to form the final product. Genius, as both a commentary on contemporary pop culture trends (there are references to LEGO, stop motion, memes and the like) and on the power of tapping your audience for quality material.
Filmmaker creates LEGO stop motion to propose to girlfriend
Now, this is one for the ages: back in 2010, Atlanta film-maker Walter Thompson created a jaw-dropping LEGO stop motion to propose to Nealey Dozier, his girlfriend of four years. The video took 22 hours of shooting and some 2,600 pictures to splice together, a small sacrifice to pay for years of happiness together. Right? Right! Oh, and she said yes. Bonus.
YOU'RE SAYING (1)
HAVE YOUR SAY
Denver-based artist Max Kauffman has been productive, despite the finger numbing winter weather. In the last couple of months, he’s taken part in the successful group show, West vs. Middle (worth leaving the heater for, but be quick, it ends in February) and produced dreamy new watercolor and gouache pieces for his solo show, Ghosts of Industry.
Ring the bells, we’ve recently launched a Facebook Fan Page. So now you can get your daily fix of cultural goodness and continue to make Mark Zuckerberg rich in the process. So please become a fan, then let us know which of the friends above you’ll be [psst, we bags the Tiny Dangerous One]
The Liars were in the Netherlands recently and we came across some kids doing this dance. It’s really bizarre to watch. Read more
Fitting Forward is a new Hamburg based Concept-Store which shows what simmers secretly behind the scenes. Every two months a new headstrong theme world will evolve out of a composition of fashion, product, accessories and illustration. The platform of the shop is a deep black lacquered room-in-room installation. Read more
I don’t know how I missed English Russia before, but I’ve always found parodies of Soviet culture hilarious, so it really punches me right in the funny bone.
A broken snare drum rolling gently over a scratchy acoustic guitar; a deep lyrical catharsis smothering a melody which is predictable but endearing. Your Rocky Spine by Great Lake Swimmers is a magical song; all wrapped up in three and half minutes of lustful introspection.
If you’ve ever wanted to work your alter ego’s dark side without looking like a total emo, now’s your chance. New kid on the block Ben Pollitt is shaking things up with his label Friedrich Gray. And the best part about it? Pollitt’s androgynous range has a little something something for everyone. Read more
WE'RE POSTING / SOME OF THE BEST
Matthew Dear’s Black City album totem
Our friends at Ghostly International are releasing Matthew Dear’s Black City album as a limited edition ‘totem’. A what? A totem – a limited edition metal bar used to access a private music chamber. Cool! Read more
Honest Food Preparation Instructions
Yes, we’ve all been there: the chinese food from last week that still looks edible amongst the bare surrounds of an empty fridge. But really, we shouldn’t. Just let it be. Or College Humor will expose you! Read more
Francoise Nielly’s Yellow series
Parisian visual artist Francoise Nielly brings technicolour to the forefront in her latest series, Yellow. Featuring thick impasto palette knife strokes and trippy neon hues, Nielly captures the vulnerable expressions of her muses to a tee. Read more
Mathematics? Leave me out. Fashematics? Now you’re talking! This gem of a site is a runway equation that adds up to a whole lot of wonderful.
Michelle Blade’s psychedelic artwork
Michelle Blade’s washed out paintings are deceptively simple, her washy acrylics creating psychedelic textures and conjuring ghostly figures from the past. Read more
Fourth is King make limited edition unisex t-shirts, printed on 50 percent polyester and 50 percent cotton construction, with custom embroidered tag on the left sleeve. Read more
If you have a Twitter feed that focuses on cool pop cultural things and you’d like to swap Tweets with Lost At E Minor and other like-minded Twitterers, drop us a note (with Tweet Swap in the title). We have a system in place and we’d like to have you in on it! [illustration by Brad Fitzpatrick]
FOLLOW US
DISCOVER MORE
SO...
SEARCH: Can't find what you're looking for? Do a search..
IS IT GOOD FOR YOU TOO?
We hope you're enjoying your time on Lost At E Minor, but it's not over yet. Got something to share? Tell us about it and we'll look to publish it. If you want to have your work featured on the site, we'd love to hear from you. Pssst, we also have an online store stocking some of the goodies we feature on the site.
If you're a media agency and want to use this platform to connect with our readership, then drop us a line and tell us about it. Oh yeah, and we do digital consulting for cool brands that want to reach the sort of demographic that visits this site.
Gary said | 21 May, 2008
The composition is exquisite. It would look great mounted on my featured wall.