The Seven Magic Mountains sculpture will not relocate to Washoe County after the Nevada Museum of Art decided not to proceed with the project.
Washoe County Board of Commissioners allocated $500,000 in funds last September to move the art piece from the Las Vegas area due to planned expansion at Harry Reid International Airport, but the scheduled deadline has now passed without the museum specifying a location as required by the agreement.
As a result, the county says the funds will now be reallocated to support critical renovations at the Washoe County Behavioral Health facility, which will be discussed at an upcoming board of commissioners meeting.
Seven Magic Mountains was produced by the Nevada Museum of Art and Art Production Fund at a cost of $3.5 million and opened on May 11, 2016.
In a statement, the museum tells 2 News Nevada:
"I can confirm that Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone and the Nevada Museum of Art decided not to proceed with relocating Seven Magic Mountains from Las Vegas to Northern Nevada.
"While Washoe County previously approved $500,000 of available ARPA-SLFRF funds for the proposed relocation of Seven Magic Mountains to Northern Nevada, no County funds have been committed or expended to date.
"We are deeply grateful for the County’s collaboration and support over the past year as we have jointly explored the possibilities. As Nevada’s only nationally accredited art museum, the Nevada Museum of Art serves more than 150,000 visitors annually and a statewide population of over three million. We are proud of our track record of delivering high-impact cultural projects that enrich the Nevada community and elevate the region, especially for the citizens of Washoe County."
AUGUST 21, 2024:
The Washoe County Board of Commissioners approved the finances for the relocation of the Seven Magic Mountains located just outside of Las Vegas.
Commissioners voted 4-1 in approving the $500,000 funding at its public meeting on Tuesday. Moving Seven Magic Mountains is required to make way for expansion of Harry Reid International Airport.
“This presents a unique opportunity for the Nevada museum of art to partner with the artist Ugo Rondinone and with Washoe county to identify a new home for installation,” says Claire Munoz.
The sculpture is made up of bright colorful boulders stacked on top of each other creating the Seven Magic Mountains, but as of now they have not decided on where they are going to put it.
The sculpture should be located to Washoe County by the end of 2026.
Seven Magic Mountains was produced by the Nevada Museum of Art and Art Production Fund at a cost of $3.5 million and opened on May 11, 2016.
Funding comes from the American Rescue Plan Act, which was signed into law on March 11, 2021 and established the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund and Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund.
