Building momentum

Mandalay's Godt-Cleary Gallery invests in burgeoning downtown arts district

By Vince Keenan

Las Vegas artists are grooming the welcome mat for a new tenant they say will lend distinctive pull to their growing colony of galleries and studios in a section of downtown.

Godt-Cleary Projects is set to open with a bang Oct. 1 at 1217 S. Main St. in the blossoming Las Vegas Arts District. The inaugural exhibition will feature art by actor Dennis Hopper, of Blue Velvet and Easy Rider fame. Hours at the exhibition space will be noon-6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and any time by appointment.

"It's a top gallery," said Jack Solomon, owner of S2 Art at 1 E. Charleston Blvd. and president of the Las Vegas Arts District. "They're going to have quality shows."

The new site will represent an expansion of Godt-Cleary Gallery, where acclaimed art from across the globe is displayed in Mandalay Place on the Strip.

One of the new gallery's goals is to connect with a more diverse audience. "I think that it's mainly just to be involved more in the downtown arts scene," explained Ryan Spencer, gallery registrar, adding that by design the new location won't be as tied to tourism as the Mandalay Place gallery. "It's a commitment, as well, to the burgeoning downtown arts scene and becoming a part of the Las Vegas community as well as the arts community."

Godt-Cleary's second exhibition space could help broaden the arts district's base of cultural consumers and add muscle to its grassroots push to become as scene-y as New York City's SoHo, local artists said.

"I think it's going to be great because it's going to bring a whole different kind of clientele," said artist Andre Wilmor, owner of Dray's Place, a fine art gallery at 1300 S. Casino Center Blvd., around the corner from the future Godt-Cleary Projects. "Like me, they see the potential here."

The Godt-Cleary Gallery is owned by Glenn and Renee Schaeffer; Glenn Schaeffer also is president and chief financial officer of Mandalay Resort Group.

"I think it's great that someone with that money and clout comes here," said artist Jerry M. Misko II, co-owner of the Dust Gallery at 1221 S. Main St., two doors down from the new Godt-Cleary Projects. "They show really blue-chip artists--the high-end work and artists who have been shown for years."

The inaugural show, Dennis Hopper: Billboards and Photographs, will run from Oct. 1-Nov. 30. It will display an overview of Hopper's paintings and photographs chronicling the Beat culture in Southern California and the burgeoning art scene of 1960s Los Angeles. Hopper works also will be displayed at the Mandalay Place location as part of the show.

Godt-Cleary staffers said they are working to schedule a visit from Hopper himself. "We don't have a date for him yet," said Spencer.

The new space is scheduled to open in conjunction with First Friday, a monthly arts district celebration that marks its second anniversary Oct. 1.

The arts district, which includes more than 30 studios, galleries, shops and cafes, is quickly growing, said Solomon. "We've got a lot of things happening now. This arts district is taking off," he said. "It's going to be like SoHo, but it's going to be Las Vegas."

He said Godt-Cleary`s new gallery adds fuel to the fire. "It's just one other thing that's going to make it greater and greater and better and better," he said. "The more galleries, the better. People come, they want to go to a lot of different galleries."