In Las Vegas, resources are everywhere; but, connection is everything. It’s that baseline of commonality, nurturing creatives and fueling the city. That connection is the life blood of the art community, flowing through every neon bulb and every inch of room it can. If you’ve ever visited the Las Vegas Arts district and found yourself at a show or some event, you’ve been in these rooms; unknowingly rubbing shoulders with entrepreneurs and opportunity on the rooftop of the Commonwealth or on the patio at Velveteen. Amidst COVID, unfortunately, that connection was hindered. For a lot of the Art District residents, however, it lit something under them.
Among them is TNES, a modern Renaissance man among the art community. He is a creator in multiple mediums at CMXX and Junxion Complex, in lieu of owning a clothing line and running a store. Unfortunately, due to COVID, a lot of his ventures had to take a backseat. Nevertheless, if you could call the Las Vegas Arts Community just one thing, it’s resilient. As TNEs has worked hard for everything in his life, he isn’t letting the situation take away everything that he’s worked for. All the networking and events may have ended but, the connection doesn’t end there. For him, social media was the answer.
Creative Production in 24 Hours
To help with the hindered connection, he looked for other ways to stay connected to the Las Vegas art community. So, he gave himself a crash course on social media. In this new era, everything is evolving the way that we operate. You are forced to adapt or fade. For up and comers, the hand dealt is harder to manage.
While TNES didn’t want to lose opportunities, he didn’t want to see anyone else have to do the same either. He took what the situation dealt him and focused on Waterhole Kingdom. Among the art collective is WORLDWIDE KNXN, a new way for TNES to facilitate collaborations in music, clothing, videos, fashion, and more! The root of it is to nurture relationships in collaboration with the organization’s combined resources. Those rooms may be closed for now but the connection they bring can still be provided with a lot more precision.
The freedom of it all is what TNES loves the most, the ability to envision and produce on the same day. It’s obvious how social media could play a pivotal role. How cool would that be? A creative venture, literally, a phone call away, the years-long process of networking and planning, effectively condensed. TNES has been working for so long in the Las Vegas Arts District that he’s acquired a gargantuan list of fellow creatives. No matter the project, there is someone they can contact to make it a reality. The Renaissance days of royal sponsors is no longer among us; but, the collaborative efficiency that social media provides is a close runner-up. With WORLDWIDE KNXN, they’re bringing that gap and going a little further.
An Oasis of Opportunity
Similar to CMXX’s regular showcase of local art, the worldwide collaborative is looking to operate creative spaces for music performances and recording, small retail outlets, fashion shows, podcasts, as well as photo and video shoots. There will always be a nightlife component like CMXX but the focus has shifted to the creative side instead of the business side of things. The network of resources comes with the space to ensure that creatives have everything they need to succeed. Las Vegas is still getting the ball rolling as the city is shut down. Still, TNES’ expansion of the idea with Tokyo KNXN is his Holy Grail. Connecting an area so obsessed with fashion and artistic culture with the underground art culture in Vegas seems only right.
COVID brought something out of all of us. For us TNES, it was renewed passion for everything around him. Right now, he is focused on finishing things in Japan; but being creative at the moment is enough for him. The freedom that allows him to contribute to something new keeps him ready for everything that is to come. After all, why stop at Japan?
The world around us has lost connection in a certain sense. As a result, resources for -arts especially- have fallen to the wayside. After talking to TNES it seems like the only option is to share what we have to create something even greater. Going back isn’t exactly an option at this point but the risk of something new is too great to ignore.Through music, fashion, film, literature, and more, art is breathing new life into a generation while choking for air at the same time. If sharing is all that is needed to give to relief, I think that risk is worth it!
