Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2022 | 2 a.m.
For $3.5 million, Southern Nevada got what is called an art exhibit known as the Seven Magic Mountains.
Now, if you choose to believe that the stacks of different-colored boulders set one upon another is art, be my guest. The way I see it, the exhibit is neither magic nor art.
And from what the July 24 article “Raft of vandalism, graffiti at Seven Magic Mountains has officials seeking solutions” indicated, people from all walks of life make the “pilgrimage” to admire the creative genius of Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone.
It is estimated that 325,000 a year visit the installation. I sure don’t get that. But at least Nevadans didn’t have to fork over any money initially to erect the exhibit in 2016, for it had plenty of corporate sponsors. However, the Clark County Parks and Recreation has allotted $50,000 annually for maintenance of it. Money well spent? I think not.
For decades I’ve witnessed the creativity of craftsmen assembling intricately fitted earth-tone boulders into beautiful retainer walls and other landscape works of art. I look at the Seven Magic Mountains and just shake my head. What am I missing and is anyone else’s perspective like mine) Then I remember the old saying, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”
