Las Vegas Museum of Art draws from nature

New look at structure reveals design inspired by Nevada canyons and African savanna.

- BY JESSICA GELT

ARCHITECT Diébédo Francis Kéré is designing the city's first freestanding museum in Symphony Park.

(Rendering from Kéré Architecture / Las Vegas Museum of Art)

The Las Vegas Museum of Art has revealed new key details of Pritzker Prizewinning architect Diébédo Francis Kéré’s design for the city’s first freestanding museum, which is expected to break ground in 2027.

The earthy red structure will feature a facade of locally sourced stone, and was inspired by the canyons and red rock landscape that stretches beyond the brash, man-made playground of Sin City, Kéré said in an interview alongside the museum’s executive director, Heather Harmon.

“How can I use what is surrounding Las Vegas to create something open and welcoming?” he said. “We started to think about the subtle beauty of the nature, and to bring it into the core of the museum.”