NEON MUSEUM CELEBRATES FIFTH ANNIVERSARY
WITH SPECIAL EVENTS, FREE BONEYARD TOURS
Anniversary Events Scheduled for Oct. 28
The Neon Museum turns five years old on Saturday, Oct. 28. In commemoration of this milestone occasion, it will offer the public a variety of opportunities to celebrate its past successes as it looks toward a dynamic future.
1 to 7 p.m.: Free self-guided access to the Neon Boneyard, food trucks, cake, crafts, paper flower creation celebrating the “Day of the Dead.” Flowers will be used to decorate an altar created by artist Favela in memory of prominent sign designer Raul Rodriguez. Rodriguez designed the Flamingo sign that resides in the Boneyard and he earned national recognition for his Rose Parade float designs.
1 to 4 p.m. “Family Fiesta” event presented by artist Justin Favela in the Boneyard. “Family Fiesta” incorporates Favela’s real-life family, food, drinks and music in an unconventional outdoor setting. The public is encouraged to participate in the celebration by engaging in games, dances, music, cuisine and piñata time. In “Family Fiesta,” the event is taken out of its traditional context (a cookout in a backyard or a park) to highlight people’s expectations of a fiesta while, at the same time, dismantling notions of location and institutional inclusion.
8 p.m. Two-Hour Open-Top Bus Tour through Downtown Las Vegas and the northern stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard, highlighting classic signs from the Neon Museum collection. The evening concludes with a special nighttime tour of the Neon Boneyard focusing on the museum’s conservation and restoration efforts ($50 per person).
For more information about the Neon Museum’s fifth anniversary festivities and to make reservations for ticketed events, visit www.neonmuseum.org/happenings or call (702) 387-6366.
ABOUT THE NEON MUSEUM
Founded in 1996, the Neon Museum is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization dedicated to collecting, preserving, studying and exhibiting iconic Las Vegas signs for educational, historic, arts and cultural enrichment. It has been named “Best Museum” by Las Vegas Weekly, one of “Sin City’s Best Retro Sites” by MSN, “No. 1 Las Vegas Museum Sure to Entertain and Educate” by USAToday’s 10best.com, “One of the Top 10 Coolest Things You Didn’t Know You Could Do” by Forbes.com, one of the “Top 10 Historic Spots in Las Vegas” by Vegas.com; one of “15 Most Fascinating Museums in the U.S.” by VacationIdea.com; and earns a consistent 4.5 out of 5 rating on TripAdvisor. On its 2.27-acre campus, the Neon Museum houses an outdoor exhibition space known as the Neon Boneyard (“boneyard” is traditionally the name for an area where items no longer in use are stored); the North Gallery, used mainly for education programs and special events; the new Boulevard Gallery outdoor exhibit and event space; and its visitors’ center, housed inside the former La Concha Motel lobby. The museum collection also includes nine restored signs installed as public art throughout downtown Las Vegas and one restored sign on view at the outdoor Fashion Show Plaza on the Las Vegas Strip. Public education, outreach, research, archival preservation and a grant-funded neon sign survey represent a selection of the museum’s ongoing projects. Both the Neon Boneyard and the La Concha Visitors’ Center are located at 770 Las Vegas Blvd. North in Las Vegas. For tour schedules and pricing information, visit neonmuseum.org.