Artists to vie for honor of displaying drive-by work

To enter

For a submission packet for the contest, call Diane Bush at 455-8239.

Van-Go. Not to be confused with van Gogh. But catchy.

The Clark County Parks and Recreation Gallery program is expanding its exhibition space to include a white Dodge transport van to bring more art to the public.

Other venues used by the county to display local artists' work are the Clark County Government Center's rotunda, Winchester Gallery and McCarran International Airport.

A contest is planned to determine which piece will be displayed on the metal canvas. Artists and photographers have until Feb. 21 to submit their best -- or most dimensionally appropriate -- works.

The winner's work will be displayed on the sides of the van for a year. It will use the same wrapping techniques as the advertisements on Citizen Area Transport buses.

The artist's name will be on the van with the county logo and the new Van-Go logo. The county may choose to wrap two vans if the entries prove worthy.

"We are trying to provide cultural enlightenment to the valley," Diane Bush, county cultural program supervisor, said.

Those who miss the traveling artwork on the road can see it on Clark County's website. The county also will produce postcards for the artist that feature the winner.

And there may be a ceremony to christen the van, which is shared by county community centers and shuttles children and the elderly around town daily.

There is no theme, Bush said. Entries can be abstract or anything from a landscape to a portrait to a cultural piece. The county will also accept computer-generated art. The work can be created for the contest or a piece plucked from storage.

"We really don't have anything particular in mind. The only real requirement for the artwork is that it is something suitable for all audiences," Bush said.

The contest is open to any local artist, amateur or professional. "It's open to anybody who considers themselves an artist," Bush said.

Dimensions won't be considered in the judging process, but if the work is an odd shape, it may be cut or cropped to fit, Bush said.

The program, funded by the parks and recreation department, costs about $2,000, Bush said. If it is successful, the department plans to hold it annually and possibly expand it to four vans.

It has been more than two years since the county has hosted a competition and displayed the winner's art outdoors. The last winner's work is still displayed on a mural on the side of the Whitney Community Center.

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