Nancy Uscher, dean of the UNLV College of Fine Arts, took the stage first, grounding the 21st Annual Hall of Fame Gala in both legacy and vision. Her remarks carried quiet authority, honoring the institution’s history while pointing clearly toward its future. From the outset, something felt different. This would not simply be a celebration. It would be a turning point.
Having cultivated an ongoing relationship with the Ment’or organization, we witnessed the arduous culinary preparation as young chefs across America competed for the opportunity to advance from Las Vegas to New Orleans and ultimately to the Bocuse d'Or in Lyon, France, for the final international competition.
The night on April 8 couldn’t have been more ideal, with perfect weather by the lake as the intimate setting for a collaborative soiree of art, music, fine libations and delectable food. “Notes and Brushstrokes” debuted as a festive evening to support the third season of the Desert Roots Rising Stars Music Festival and Summer Academy occurring June 6–13 in partnership with the Rita Deanin Abbey Art Museum and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Lisa Vanderpump, aka the Queen of Beverly Hills and beyond, earned a new title when Nevada Ballet Theatre honored the businesswoman, author, TV personality and philanthropist at the 42nd annual Black & White Ball, its largest annual fundraiser. “To be honored by the world of ballet, by an art form that has given so much for so many centuries, I cannot tell you what that means to me,” Vanderpump said.
Beyond Atlanta, I hadn’t explored much of Georgia. On a recent trip, I traveled to Columbus for a couple of days and brought my husband along. We flew into Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport from Las Vegas and made the roughly 90-minute drive south. Once we left the city behind, I-85 to I-185 opened into long stretches of greenery.
The Canyon, also known as the Canyon Club in Agoura Hills, California, was transformed into a celebration of funk, soul and musical history on Saturday, April 4, 2026, as Larry Dunn, a Grammy-winning original member of Earth, Wind & Fire, brought his "Anthology of Earth, Wind & Fire" to a sold-out and electrified crowd.
The Force is strong with the Alexis de Tocqueville Society! Members of the United Way of Southern Nevada's (UWSN) philanthropic group got a special behind-the-scenes look at Hollywood’s most famous film scores as the Las Vegas Philharmonic rehearsed "The Music of John Williams" inside Reynolds Hall at The Smith Center in downtown Las Vegas.
I met Fawnia Mondey at an eWomen Network event I attended recently. She graciously invited me to attend one of the classes she teaches. Her charisma convinced me to take her up on the offer. Now, let me tell you what her class was, and for those who personally know me, here is where you get to have a great laugh … pole dancing!
Sunlight pours through Rita Deanin Abbey’s monumental "Wall of Creation," scattering blues, golds and desert tones across the gallery walls. As the first notes of music rise into the room, the glass-like surface seems almost to breathe, with color shifting gently with rhythm and light responding to sound. There are moments in art when the boundaries between disciplines quietly dissolve.
In a city that has mastered the art of reinvention, memory is crucial in defining the future, a fragile thing. Las Vegas is often described through spectacle — neon glare, desert heat, chance and excess — but beneath its mythos lies a quieter, more enduring story. It is a story written not only in architecture and entertainment but in faces, gestures, storefronts, celebrations and ordinary moments that once passed unnoticed. Few institutions have been as central to preserving this lived history as Cashman Photo.
