What is the defining shape of Las Vegas’ skyline? Is it boxy or curvy? Slim or thick? Rectangular, triangular or (recently) spherical? Owing to our city’s relative youth and enormous cultural footprint, it’s all these things, thanks to the ambitious developers and marquee-name architects who, over the years, have one-upped each other in creating buildings that Las Vegas—and America, and the world—have never seen before. Some are enormous monoliths intended to humble us, while others are warm, pedestrian-scale buildings meant to reassure us—and we kinda love them all. Here are a few of the Weekly’s favorite Valley buildings, captured in all their glory.
1972: Flora Dungan Humanities Building at UNLV
UNLV’s Flora Dungan Humanities building—named for the Nevada assemblywoman, activist and general boss—has buttress-like columns at her foundation, making the seven-story building appear as though she’s on stilts. Look up when stepping inside, and you’ll see a strong use of negative space—a hollow center contained by concrete pillars and stacked balconies. She’s a brutalist beauty with midcentury modern flair.
Fun fact: Flora Dungan was designed by modernist architects Walter Zick & Harris Sharp. Their firm made their imprint on Las Vegas with their designs of Union Plaza, the Mint Hotel and the Moulin Rouge. –Shannon Miller
1996: Observation Tower at The Strat
Observation Tower at The Strat
The 1,149-foot observation tower formerly known as the Stratosphere was designed by Ned Baldwin, who was the supervising architect on Toronto’s 1,185-foot CN Tower, and willed into being by Bob Stupak, easily one of the most unique figures in Vegas history. Stupak wanted an Eiffel Tower or Space Needle for Las Vegas, and while it falls a bit short of that lofty ambition, it is as unique as the man who built it, with its swooping pillars and jewel-shaped observation pod topped with thrill rides.
Fun fact: The tower, while structurally sound, does have a pronounced bend in one of its legs, the easternmost one. After receiving assurances that its foundation was still stable, Stupak fired and replaced his original construction team. The bend is about 200 feet up. –Geoff Carter
2023: Sphere
Many different architectural styles have impacted and influenced the look of the Strip, but the ground-breaking Madison Square Garden Company entertainment venue Sphere can’t be categorized; there is no building like it anywhere in the world, at least until recently announced plans lead to a second Sphere in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Kansas City firm Populous was behind the overall design of the world’s largest spherical object at 366 feet tall and 516 feet wide, –Brock Radkecreating a striking departure—and that’s truly saying something—from the towering buildings along Las Vegas Boulevard. As soon as that vast, mind-boggling LED exoskeleton switched on, a new conversation about physical spectacle began, and the exploration of those ideas is just getting started.
2010: Veer Towers
Las Vegas’ skyline wouldn’t be complete without the awe-inspiring and anxiety-inducing Veer Towers leaning in such a delightful way. These 37-floor Strip high rises, designed by the architectural firm Murphy/Jahn, tilt five degrees in opposite directions through a feat of engineering that provides a sturdy framework and a gorgeous, unobstructed tenant view. The condos reflect sunlight through their huge glass panes and yellow fins, effectively saving energy. As off-kilter as they are, we can’t help but appreciate them. –Amber Sampson
Veer Towers and The Shops at Crystals
2009: The Shops at Crystals
Architectural master Daniel Libeskind defines the shape of luxury with The Shops at Crystals, starting with a jagged exterior of angles that sharply contort and compete for the viewer’s eye. Like the retail district’s name suggests, they appear like natural crystals, channeling a bit of deconstructivism for which Libeskind has become known. Natural light pours in through several skylights to brighten up the mall, while interior designer David Rockwell brings the attention back to architectural statement pieces with his grand bamboo staircase and 70-foot-tall wooden treehouse, a dining area at Mastro’s Ocean Club. –Amber Sampson
2010: Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health
Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health
When Larry Ruvo enlisted Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry to design the Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, he ensured that the medical research facility would have a memorable form. The gleaming, curvilinear Ruvo appears like a faraway city glimpsed through a heat mirage—melting, folding in on itself. It’s also one of the most distinctive buildings Gehry has conceived—and considering that Gehry also designed Bilbao’s Guggenheim Museum and LA’s Walt Disney Concert Hall, that’s no small thing.
Fun fact: Gehry initially refused to design the center, only agreeing after he got Ruvo’s agreement to expand the center’s research mandate beyond Alzheimer’s to include Huntington’s disease. –Geoff Carter
1992: Luxor
A palatial relic of Las Vegas’ themed attraction past, the Luxor stands as a postmodern, pyramidic marvel, ominous in size and baffling to observe once the sun strikes its capstone. The pyramid, constructed out of reinforced concrete and dark reflective glass panes, holds a 30-story atrium within, showcasing the impossible scale of this steeply built replica of ancient Egypt’s Great Wonder of the World.
Fun fact: Charles L. Silverman, of Yates-Silverman Inc., the casino interior design company behind Luxor, journeyed to Egypt several times to study its landmarks and culture. Egyptologists were also brought in to work on the theme in an effort to keep it as authentic as possible. –Amber Sampson
1963: Guardian Angel Cathedral
What do you get when you combine Catholic with Googie architecture? Guardian Angel Cathedral, a one-of-a-kind building east of Las Vegas Boulevard and just north of Desert Inn. Triangular shaped niches along the long, A-frame building create space for the Stations of the Cross. Like other works by architect Paul Revere Williams—the La Concha Motel lobby currently serves as the Neon Museum’s visitor center—Guardian Angel looks like it could’ve come from outer space. –Shannon Miller
2012: The Smith Center for the Performing Arts
The Smith Center for the Performing Arts
The decades-long development to create a true home for arts and culture in Las Vegas couldn’t yield something simple or generic—or a building that didn’t represent the Valley. David M. Schwarz Architects, which had completed the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville and the American Airlines Center in Dallas, found inspiration in Hoover Dam, adding exquisite details to the Art Deco theme while building the first performing arts center of this size to obtain a LEED Gold rating. The Smith Center was built to look timeless and last forever, perhaps antithetical to the very idea of Las Vegas.
Fun fact: The 19-foot-tall chandeliers in the Smith Center’s Grand Lobby are roughly the size of George Washington’s nose on Mount Rushmore. –Brock Radke
1930: Academic Building at Las Vegas Academy of the Arts
Academic Building at Las Vegas Academy of the Arts
Our Valley doesn’t have many buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places—about three dozen all told. (By comparison, LA boasts nearly 300.) That fact alone makes this Art Deco charmer, designed by Reno firm George A. Ferris & Son, an absolute standout in a city of disposable artifice and a perfect inclusion for the National Register. The Academic Building’s elegant façade, with its Aztec-inspired elements and graceful filigree, does the rest.
Fun fact: The Academic Building is just one structure in the “Las Vegas High School Historic District” that enjoys National Register inclusion. The school’s gymnasium (built in 1930) and Frazier Hall (1949) are on the list, too. –Geoff Carter
1944: Huntridge Theater
Built at the height of World War II while materials were scarce, the Huntridge Theater doesn’t have a lot of fancy flourishes. Today, its Streamline Moderne tower sign, with its marquee base and strip of neon lettering at the top, is really the only thing identifying it as a classic movie house. But when you dig into the work of its architect, S. Charles Lee—designer of LA’s Max Factor Salon, Fox Wilshire Theater and Los Angeles Theater, among others—its Tinseltown charms begin to emerge. Nearly all its sibling structures are on the National Register of Historic Places for good reason.
Fun fact: An effort continues to restore the Huntridge to its past glory. Its current owner is currently engaged in a lawsuit to relocate a cellular tower that needs to be moved before redevelopment can begin. –Geoff Carter
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