Over the last 25 years Nevada was the fastest-growing state in the Nation, until the Great Recession of 2008 turned the tide on the
urbanized Mojave Desert. Las Vegas was the third-fastest-growing U.S. metro area from 2000 to 2010, but now ranks 151st. The
city continues to suffer the Nation’s highest rates of unemployment and housing foreclosure: properties have dropped an average of
57% in value since 2006.
20 miles East of the Strip lies an artificial 320-acre lake created by damming the Las Vegas Wash, which drains the city’s wastewater.
The surrounding 3600 acres is known as “Lake Las Vegas Resort.” Comprised of 21 Mediterranean-themed communities, many of
them “guard-gated,” three golf courses, a casino, two destination resort hotels, and a replica of Florence’s very own Ponte Vecchio,
this Lake Como amidst the Henderson swamp began its life in 1991. By 2008, however, the entire 1600-home resort was in
foreclosure as its primary developer, funded by the Bass Brothers of Texas, defaulted on $1 Billion in speculative debt from Swiss and
foreign banks. All three golf courses went into foreclosure, and the hotels and casino followed shortly. In 2007 the average square-
foot price of a resale home in Lake Las Vegas was $544; in November 2010 it was $106.
Vultures have moved in, and it’s likely that Las Vegas’ most excessive residential fantasy will eventually bounce back. Metaphorically,
Lake Las Vegas actually means more than its clichéd theme-park lifestyle promises purport, and it might even mean more than the city
of Las Vegas itself. It’s a poignant, lonely American archetype -- however awkward -- that embodies particularly American domestic
dreams: classless classes, endless exuberance, Medici living for the everyday guy, and a castle on the cheap protected from the
politics gathering just outside the gates.
Hand-made book of 22 aerial images photographed by Michael Light from 2010 to 2012. Printed on Epson Enhanced Matte paper using
archival Epson Ultrachrome 3 pigment inks, adhered with archival Gudy 831 double-sided pressure adhesive. Archival stability well
exceeds c-print standards. Custom binding by John DeMerritt Bookbinding, Emeryville, CA. Edition of 10, signed on last image.