Local Artists Celebrate Las Vegas’ Iconic Defunct Motels in ‘VACANCY’ Exhibit | Las Vegas Weekly
Written by Tyler Schneider
When he was just a kid growing up in Las Vegas, artist David Cooper temporarily lived at the Desert Inn hotel while his family’s home was under construction.
“On my way to school in the morning, I would drive by all these motels all the time and thought they were hilarious. They’d be all lit up again at the end of the night, and have been visually imprinted in my mind ever since,” he says.“They were once a defining part of the Las Vegas landscape and now they’re all gone.”
Cooper’s ink and mixed media drawings of those vanished hotel buildings are on display through April 24 in the exhibit Vacancy: The Dead Motels of Las Vegas at the Charleston Heights Arts Center.
In addition to the Desert Inn, the artwork is inspired by iconic, defunct properties like the Blue Angel Motel, which was known for its angel statue created by Betty Willis, designer of the famous Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign. That one has already sold, with proceeds set to benefit the Shine A Light Foundation and Kline Veterans Fund. Others, like the Orbit Inn Motel—the site of a mysterious bombing in 1967—carry an aura of antiquated intrigue.
The frames for the drawings were created by local woodworker Korey Replogle, who first met Cooper years ago through mutual friends in the Vegas art scene. Already a fan of Cooper’s work, Replogle asked him if he’d paint something “Vegas nostalgic” for a pop-up party he was organizing for his neighborhood in 2023.
Cooper chose to depict the Glass Pool Inn, a historic motel on the Strip that featured an above-ground pool with large porthole windows that allowed bystanders to peer inside. After opening in the early 1950s, the 48-room structure went on to become a pop-culture touchstone, appearing in films like Casino and music videos by Bon Jovi, Robert Plant and ZZ Top before it was demolished in 2004.
Replogle bolstered Cooper’s piece in that first collaboration by crafting a custom frame from a combination of chakte viga and leopard hardwoods.
Cooper says the goal of Vacancy was to capture the essence of these primarily demolished sites to preserve and celebrate the “goofy and weird” era that led to their creation. Replogle elevated the collection with unique frames that complement the vibrant colors and quirky character of each illustration.
“Woodworking isn’t always considered art, and framing is usually an afterthought,” Replogle says. “I wanted to try and bring that up and make it part of the show.”
Their efforts shine through as a 14-piece love letter to Las Vegas’ flashy and ever-changing history.
“Somebody loved these hotels, man,” Replogle says. “They were people’s homes, they were where kids partied and the people who owned these places really cared for them. They were just so wonky and weird, and that’s kind of beautiful to me.”
VACANCY: THE DEAD MOTELS OF LAS VEGAS Thru April 24, Mon.-Sat. 8 a.m.-7:30 p.m., free. Charleston Heights Arts Center, 800 S. Brush St., lasvegasnevada.gov.
READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE: https://lasvegasweekly.com/ae/fine-art/2025/mar/27/local-artists-celebrate-iconic-defunct-motels/
