By Las Vegas PRIDE Magazine Staff
Photography courtesy of Psionic Artworks

Brian “Paco” Alvarez is not your regular “Art Aficionado!” He is more! Much, much more!

He is a living, breathing, walking, and talking art curator, Anthropologist, activist, and creative polymath!

Paco knows art. He lives art. He sleeps art. He is the epitome of the Las Vegas Art scene and that is why we are honored to call him our very own Queer MASTERPIECE!

He states, “There really is no substantive queer art scene in Las Vegas. It is very underdeveloped and still slowly emerging!” I can relate it to coming out of the closet, which for many people takes years, if not decades.

Brian “Paco” Alvarez

Admitting the local Queer art scene is slow as a desert tortoise, he quickly switches the focus to a few notables within the canvas of many. Denise Duarte, artist, sculptor, and founder of the Nevada Women’s History Project, and local sculptor Jennifer Gilbert. KD Matheson with his otherworldly art and pottery, and ceramists Thomas Bumblauskaus and Peter Jakubowski, co-founders of Clay Arts Vegas, to name just a few!

Although the Las Vegas art scene is a wrestling match between the vibrant street art scene and academia, he states, “It is still the Wild Wild West and that’s a good thing for the artist who can still come to the city and are able to create more freely and affordably in comparison to LA or New York. Our art scene is developing and growing, and is still in the formulation phase of a major cultural arts destination. There are still not many for-profits and more not-for-profits in the art arena.”

Paco shares with us a true soul within our LV art scene, Alex Huerta. He was a rising star in Las Vegas, recognized nationally by the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and other media outlets. He was always in his studio, living his passion and creating. In the end, Alex passes (2020) doing what he loved to do – creating art!”

Paco gives credit to many events over the years that have advanced our local Queer art scene. Artrageous, once hosted by the LGBTQ Center and now the Sin Sity Sisters, was precisely as it reads – ART RAGEOUS! Other such representations and Queer Art events and showcases presented and curated by the Clark County Las Vegas Library District and many with City Hall. All these entities graciously giving the Queer artist an opportunity and space to showcase their talents is fundamentally what an art scene needs. But we need more!

“We are lucky to live in Las Vegas. We buck the trends in large part thanks to the fact we have strong LGBTQIA+ rights laws in Nevada that shield many Queer creatives from the chaos in other jurisdictions. Our gay community has always been a part of the fabric of Las Vegas from early on. From the entertainment scenes deep Queer history, Las Vegas has been and continues to be a safe place “sanctuary” for the Queer artist/performer and all that come to live here.”

When not advocating for historic buildings, curating art, or producing the newest mural, Paco constantly stays busy – Downtown, Northtown, or Chinatown!

His Queer picks as of 2025 JUNE PRIDE MONTH!

• First Friday – Best for cultural art
• The Flashlight at UNLV – The most important piece of art in Southern Nevada
• The Neon Museum – Hands down!
• Liberace – (Gone but not forgotten, his influence in Las Vegas Queer Culture is Legendary!)

“Our future is bright in the local art scene. The cultural arts community is very tight-knit, and I am excited for our future!”

Paco can be found at psionicartworks.com, on Instagram, and TikTok @lasvegaspaco.

This article was originally published in the 2025 Arts & Entertainment Issue of Las Vegas PRIDE Magazine, and can be read in its original format here.