ML - Vegas Magazine

Vegas - 2016 - Issue 6 - Winter - #INSTA-Vegas

Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.

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PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF MGM RESORTS INTERNATIONAL OFFICIRES NE VOL- DEL INTO THE- MORE CORUMSUM LO REM VELENIS" "OPTATI BEAQUI OFFICIRES NE VOL- ORUM EXCES UTIUES QUIAM QUOD UT HICIA DEL INTO THE- MORE CORUMSUM LO REM VELENIS" OFFICIRES NE VOL- MORE CORUMSUM LO REM VELENIS" LEGO LOCO! FOUND: THE PERFECT MAN. LEANING IN, LISTENING TO YOUR SECRETS, NOT TALKING BACK… AND COMES IN DELIGHTFUL PRIMARY COLORS. BY KRISTEN PETERSON If "Park People," Nathan Sawaya's human figures made entirely of LEGOs and placed in MGM's The Park between New York-New York and Monte Carlo seem familiar, you may have seen his large-scale works in public spaces around the globe. He's collaborated with Lady Gaga for a music video; made a life-sized LEGO rendition of Stephen Colbert, which he presented to the talk show host on The Colbert Report; and appropri- ated several well-known works: Michelangelo's David, Klimt's The Kiss, and Duchamp's Fountain. In October, an installation of Sawaya's life-sized monochromatic human figures covered the White House's South Lawn for an event focused on science, technology, and climate change. At MGM, the "Park People" serve as secret keepers. [People are welcome to sit with the sculptures and even converse with them," Sawaya says, explaining that he strives to create intimacy between viewers and art by making it accessible. "One of the reasons I use a child's toy as an art medium is to make the artwork relatable, and by placing this installation in the public where they can interact with it, it furthers that goal," he says. The meticulous craftsmanship involving only the toy bricks is so engrossing that Sawaya was able to leave his job as an attorney in 2004 to work as a full-time artist. Have a similar life goal? Tell it to the sculpture. Through January. theparkvegas.com . "ONE OF THE REASONS I USE A CHILD'S TOY AS AN ART MEDIUM IS TO MAKE THE ARTWORK RELATABLE." —NATHAN SAWAYA Lego your ego! These perfect listeners are poised on park benches around the new Park between New York-New York and Monte Carlo in semi-permanently rapt attention. That is, before they move on to their next gig. VEGASMAGAZINE.COM 109 SPACE OUTDOORS

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