Las Vegas Set to Gain First Stand-Alone Art Museum in 2029
Las Vegas is poised to become the latest major U.S. City to establish a dedicated fine arts museum, with the Las Vegas Museum of Art (LVMA) slated to open in Symphony Park in 2029. The project, a long-held ambition for many in the city, is moving forward after decades of planning and fundraising.
The museum is envisioned as a legacy project spearheaded by the late Elaine Wynn, a prominent businesswoman, philanthropist and arts advocate who passed away in 2025. Wynn, a long-time donor and board member of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), enlisted LACMA’s support in developing the Las Vegas institution.
Heather Harmon, the LVMA’s executive director, explained the collaborative nature of the project. “The project really was galvanized in the end of 2022 where LACMA was accomplishing such major milestones, including fundraising milestones, that it just felt like now is the time to advance the Las Vegas Museum of Art,” she said.
Despite initial concerns from some LACMA patrons about potentially diverting funds and artwork from Southern California, Harmon emphasized that the LVMA is an autonomous entity. “We’re not taking funding. We’re partners,” she clarified. “The Las Vegas Museum of Art is autonomous. It has a separate board, a separate governance structure. We fundraise for our efforts.”
The partnership with LACMA will primarily focus on programming, allowing the LVMA to leverage LACMA’s extensive collection of over 140,000 works of art. Harmon explained that LACMA’s mission includes expanding access to art, and this aligns with Wynn’s vision for the Las Vegas community. “And that means that we can design exhibitions that are specifically for our community. And in addition to the programmatic threads, we can also learn from their guidance on educational programming. We can adapt programs to our community.”
Harmon also highlighted the importance of outreach, noting that LACMA recognizes the need to bring art to the community, rather than solely relying on people to visit the museum. “And something they do very beautifully that I think is important for us to recognize is not everyone can come to you. And so how do you go out in the community? And how do we, as an institution, partner with schools, educational institutions, and bring the museum to a classroom?”
Addressing potential skepticism about community support for an art museum, Harmon expressed confidence in Las Vegas’s growth and evolving cultural landscape. “I think that the Las Vegas community has expanded well beyond anyone’s wildest dreams. We have accomplished so much. I think one of the things that we don’t yet do in the way that we can is celebrate. We are a young city, and everything we’ve done as a young city is extraordinary.”
The museum’s location in Symphony Park, alongside the Smith Center, the Discovery Children’s Museum, and the Philharmonic, was a deliberate choice. “That is a perfect space to have a museum to complement the cultural amenities that are flourishing in our community, and we should be bringing more,” Harmon stated.
Wynn’s vision for the museum extended to the architectural design. She selected Francis Kéré, a Pritzker Prize-winning architect from Burkina Faso, to design the building. Kéré’s work is characterized by a focus on sustainability and community-centered spaces. According to Harmon, Kéré’s design is a direct response to the Las Vegas environment and its history.
“He had this amazing sense of absorption of Southern Nevada, and specifically Las Vegas, because it was his intent to build a building that we would feel we could see ourselves in,” Harmon said. Kéré’s initial visit to Las Vegas included explorations of landmarks like Hoover Dam, Valley of Fire, Red Rock Canyon, and the Guardian Angel Cathedral, designed by Paul R. Williams, the first African American architect licensed in the Western United States.
Harmon noted that Kéré was particularly interested in the work of Paul R. Williams, whose modernist designs are represented by the Guardian Angel Cathedral in Las Vegas. “And I think when people see it, they are, it’s unexpected. They get a different perspective of Las Vegas. And Las Vegas is such an image. Everybody globally has an idea of what Las Vegas is. And I think what a cultural institution has the possibility of doing is writing that story for us, is giving us a space and a place where we can message out who we are, and we can start to participate in the narrative.”
The LVMA is currently planned as a 59,800-square-foot building, a reduction from earlier conceptual designs of 90,000 square feet. The project has an estimated cost of $200 million, comprising $150 million for construction and operational costs and a $50 million endowment. Groundbreaking is scheduled for 2027, with a grand opening anticipated in 2029.
