The Gamblers

Inspired by Dave Hickey’s essay A Home in the Neon, this project looks beyond the clichéd veneer of Las Vegas to the people and places that labor to create the facade and the glamour machine that we see from the outside.

Las Vegas exists with its own set of paradoxes.  With all of the possibilities that it offers, it’s a mirror reflecting the aspirational version of America, while it simultaneously falls short of the limitless opportunities that America promises; the odds are stacked against you, but that doesn’t stop you from playing. Originally built as a destination for entertainment in the uninhabitable environment of the Nevada Desert, the city has become a caricature of itself; cartoon-like buildings illuminated by the sparking lights of casinos with shows on every corner are stark contradictions to the barren landscape that surrounds it. Las Vegas is an unlikely city in an unlikely place. 

Rich with opportunity, however, it’s a destination for people, specifically performers and service workers, with a dream. In this work, performers and casino workers are captured within the history and against the backdrop of Vegas; a female Elvis impersonator, an abandoned motel, and the deep lines in an aged showgirl’s face ask the viewer to search deeper beneath the city’s neon and sparkly surface. Decay and rebirth are constantly present and extravagance exists alongside destitution. “America is a very poor lens through which to view Las Vegas, while Las Vegas is a wonderful lens through which to view America. What is hidden elsewhere exists here in quotidian visibility.” – Dave Hickey, “A Home in the Neon,” Air Guitar, 1997

Inspired by Hickey's essay, this project looks beyond the clichéd veneer of Las Vegas to the people and places that labor to create the facade and the glamour machine that we see from the outside. Vegas is honest about the facade of what it is; it’s dressed up for you and invites you along for the ride and even though the odds may be against you, you always know the odds, and hope is always in play.