For seven consecutive years global creative house Justkids has collaborated with Life Is Beautiful festival to transform the cityscape of Downtown Las Vegas, consistently curating ambitious semi-permanent murals and site specific installations.
The woman-run creative enterprise recently debuted seven new works from artists Ernest Zacharevic, Daku, HOTTEA, Zosen & Mina Hamada, Mantra and AKACorleone, joining an already rich portfolio of works in the festival footprint by artists like Shepard Fairey, D*Face, Fafi, Mike Ross, Felipe Pantone, Okuda, Faile, Andre Saraiva and many more.
“Public art and murals play a prominent role for the revitalisation of Downtown Vegas. It’s great to see that this part is becoming the heart of the city once again, catalysed through our long term collaboration with Life Is Beautiful and the local and international artists alike.” Charlotte Dutoit Justkids Founder and Curator
India’s most prominent anonymous street artist DAKU, created a shadow mural powered by the sun light.
The mural is located on Fremont Street, or writers corner, in homage to the bookstore the building formerly housed. The time and sun sensitive piece quietly activates through the day, revealing to the city dwellers a chant, as though from the heavenly start of time itself…
“Very Slow For Those Who Wait Very Fast For Those Who Are Scared Very Long For Those Who Lament Very Short For Those Who Celebrate” William Shakespeare.
DAKU’s series of text-based works “Time Changes Everything” including light based site installations have gained him global notoriety.
Youri Cansell, aka Mantra painted his signiture trompe l’oeil butterfly on the northeast façade of the F9 residential building overlooking Fremont street.
Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic made his Las Vegas debut with a mixed media site specific public art piece with found wood scraps, re-imagining the city centre’s façade as an unexpected space for play. The infinite loop represents the childhood fun to be had in Downtown …
USA contemporary artist and Emmy award-winning artist Eric Rieger, aka HOTTEA, produced a site specific textile installation made with colourful yarns that towered over spectators commuting through 7th street parking / crossover area.
Portugese and swisss artist Pedro Campiche, AKACORLEONE partnered with Justkids and Stella Artois to create a public art visual takeover including a new mural and installation piece drawing inspiration from his hometown to turn the former Las Vegas Motel on 7th St in a whimsical provincial market.
Barcelona based artists Zosen (Argentinian) and Mina Hamada (Japanese) brought a rainbow of colours and free forms to Downtown, creating a playful mural that lights up the corner of 7th street and Stewart avenue.
“Life is Beautiful exists to aid in the positive transformation of communities and perspectives by collectivising, inspiring and empowering through creativity and the arts…The art program continues to play a critical role in that transformation, leaving the city better than we found it throughout these past 7 years” Justin Weniger Life is Beautiful CEO
Justkids and Life is Beautiful continue to elevate the festival art program every year, setting the bar high by providing unparalleled access and experiences from some of the world’s most sought-after
visual artists and offering a new perspective to enjoy the city and its people.
Life is Beautiful’s open-air gallery is a scene to be seen. When visiting Las Vegas, make sure to visit the downtown.