Daniel S.
Yelp
The Las Vegas Strip is literally a work of art. Between New York-New York and the Bellagio, there are so many works of public art on display that I call it the Las Vegas Strip Public Art Corridor. This public art includes the Bliss Dance Sculpture fronting T-mobile Arena, The Typewriter Eraser, "Reclining Connected Forms," and "A Gift From the Earth" outside the Bellagio. The properties providing the public art include The Park (not Park MGM), Shops at Crystals, The Aria, Cosmopolitan, and The Bellagio. This review focuses on "The Big Edge at City Center" at The Aria.
"The Big Edge at City Center" is the focal point of the roundabout that arcs around the edges of the back of the Aria and front of The Vdara. It is hidden from the Las Vegas Strip and there are zero signs advertising it exists. It is even hidden from the Park MGM to Bellagio Tram that travels directly above it. If I hadn't typed in "public art" on Yelp I would be unaware of this whimsical tree shaped sculpture with canoes and boats growing out of it. Despite the fact that I had passed it by several times on my Park MGM-to-Bellagio Bypass walk, I never caught its name.
Nancy Rubins created "The Big Edge at City Center." It came to life in 2009, the exact year that City Center was born on the land that The Boardwalk and hundreds of acres of asphalt stood on. It stands 75 feet high in the skyscraper shadows of the Aria and Vdara towers. It provides a whimsical contrast to the modern towers surrounding it. This is an open-air sculpture incorporating around 200 full size aluminum canoes, kayaks, rowboats, and sailboats. Each weighs between 60 and 125 pounds. The 200 boats are joined by a steel wire which forms the tree like appearance of the open-air sculpture. If I never found out the name of the open air sculpture, I would be calling it the Boat Tree sculpture. The neat thing about art is that a work of art might look different to different people. Somebody else might see this as "The Canoe Flower." Or because the boats appear to be pointing upward they might consider it "The Optimism Tree."
"The Big Edge at City Center" is impossible to see up close. Unless you are willing to chance being run down on the roundabout roadway. It stands in the center of the City Center roundabout where walkways are lacking. The only way to safely see it is from the far side of the roundabout road along the sidewalk connecting the back of the Aria to the front of the Vdara. This walkway provides a nice yet not so close up view of the sculpture tree. What I appreciate is that it is also a walking view where you see the sculpture from different angles while progressing between The Aria and the Vdara. Throughout the day there are different views including a sundown view, Las Vegas sunny view, and moonlight view. Walking towards the Vdara you can take in the open air sculpture with the Vdara, and the opposite way with the Aria. Looking west there is a neat view where at the right angle the bushes alongside the walkway make it look like a boat tree growing from a field where residential high rises tower in the background. It is a unique view that reminds me of an album cover from the 1970s. A secondary view point is ascending to a lower level by ways of the spur walkway connecting the Aria to Vdara walkway to Harmon Avenue. From Harmon Avenue facing west you can take in an upper view of it. If you are patient or have good timing you can capture a picture of the tram passing over this whimsical boat tree.
The Big Edge at City is evidence that the Las Vegas Strip is also a public art corridor. I am a fan of public art. This fan of public art recommends seeing it as one of the works of public art on a self guided public art tour of the The Park, Aria, Crystals, Bellagio, and Cosmopolitan.
