Las Vegas Lineup photo exhibit takes on ‘Swinging ‘60s’
Las Vegas Lineup photo exhibit takes on ‘Swinging ‘60s’
LAS VEGAS, Nevada – The collaboration between the Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas and the Las Vegas News Bureau to seek the public’s help in identifying the subjects of vintage photographs in an exhibit called “Las Vegas Lineup” not only proved successful with more than 100,000 people viewing the exhibit, it garnered national awards from historic preservation groups.
Now it’s time for a second act.
The exhibit has been refreshed with a whole new era of Las Vegas – the Swinging ‘60s” – and the two agencies are once again asking for help in identifying the subjects of the photographs. The exhibit opens Nov. 1 at the Nevada State Museum Las Vegas.
“Even if you were not here then, the exhibit shows an exciting time in the history of Las Vegas,” said Dennis McBride, director of the Nevada State Museum Las Vegas.
The Las Vegas News Bureau has been capturing the sights and sounds of the city for more than 70 years. Today, the News Bureau continues to play an important role in marketing Las Vegas as part of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. It has a staff of photographers and videographers documenting Las Vegas and distributing the images to news media around the world. It also maintains an ongoing preservation program to safeguard this rich and living archive of Las Vegas history for future generations.
The mission of the Nevada State Museum, Las Vegas is to inspire and educate a diverse public about the history of Nevada and to preserve the state’s history. The two institutions joining forces for the photo exhibit was a natural fit.
The project was developed with a two-part framework in mind – the first being a traveling presentation featuring a behind-the-scenes look of the respective storage vaults of each institution, with an invitation for attendees to browse binders filled with copies of unidentified photos. The second component was a formal exhibit, which consisted of an array of unidentified photos on panels.
On Saturday, Nov. 23 at 2 p.m., Nevada State Museum visitors can meet the curators of the exhibit and learn what went in to putting the exhibition together, how the community has responded, identifications to date and more information about the photo collection.
The event takes place at the museum, 309 S. Valley View Blvd., Las Vegas (on the campus of the Springs Preserve).
The first iteration of “Las Vegas Lineup” debuted last year and garnered national recognition. The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) conveyed its Award of Excellence to the exhibit. The AASLH Leadership in History Awards is the most prestigious recognition for achievement in the preservation and interpretation of state and local history.
The exhibit also earned the Spotlight Award from the Society of American Archivists and the Special Projects Award from the Conference of Inter-Mountain Archivists, an association of archivist, conservators, historians, and archival professionals in Utah, Nevada, Arizona, Idaho, and New Mexico.
The new exhibit is also fully translated into Spanish for the first time. This continues the museum’s mission to be inclusive of the surrounding community, and ensure its exhibits are accessible to the Hispanic population.