Art in America: More Art for the Vegas Strip - Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, New York

When the Mirage/MGM Grand merger some months ago led to the closing of the art gallery at the Bellagio resort and casino and the dividing of the collection between the corporation and former chairman Steve Wynn, it seemed that the honeymoon was over for Las Vegas and fine art [see "Artworld," June '00]. But on Aug. 1, the casino and the Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., announced that they had worked out a deal that has the museum lending 20 to 30 objects for each of a series of exhibitions in the casino's gallery. The first exhibition includes 26 works by such artists as Picasso, Degas, Cezanne, Monet and El Greco. It is on view Sept. 1, 2000-Mar. 4, 2001. Admission to the gallery is $12 for out-of-state visitors, $10 for Nevada residents.

It also appears that the Guggenheim Museum may do its bit for culture in the city of sin. The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times and other sources report that the museum is working out a plan with the Venetian hotel and casino to construct an adjacent facility that would host traveling shows from the New York institution. The 35,000-square-foot, concrete-and-steel building would be designed by Pritzker Prize winner Rem Koolhaas. It has also been reported that the Guggenheim plans to bring its hugely successful "Art of the Motorcycle" exhibition to Las Vegas later this year or next. The Guggenheim would not confirm these reports, but a source hinted that the Venetian has plans to build its own exhibition space and that the museum's role would be more of a consulting one. The casino could not be reached for comment before we went to press.