VegasChatter

What are they? Retired cigarette vending machines that are re-purposed to dispense art that fits into a box the size of, well, a pack of cigarettes. All are hand-made. All are a mini-mystery, till you pull a lever and take a chance on the contents. And, all are five dollars.

Begin your art collection in Las Vegas and discover a creator that lives anywhere around the world. One box was proudly advertised as originating in Bangladesh. Others may be closer to home. It's a gamble with a 100% certainty you'll receive something for your investment.

With 440 artists contributing, and 90 locations, make it your new hobby to pick up a piece of art on your travels to these venues.

If you get the itch to create yourself, the Art-O-Mat site provides detailed instructions on how to get started. The artist receives $2.50 for every fin pushed into the machine to take their mini-masterpiece home. So it's a real labor of love.

After seriously studying all the selections, we placed our own five dollars into the yellow machine. And, nothing. We pulled again. And again. Every handle. Eventually this drew the attention or the nicest security guard you'll ever meet -- Gina. We were directed to Cosmopolitan's very fancy gift shop, Monogram, to receive help. We both learnt that when the machines don't work, (and they are old-timey, so it happens) visitors can rummage through a box of boxes and take their pick of the litter.

Taking our fine time, we discovered that this writer and Gina were very familiar with the New York art scene and swapped memories of Keith Haring, Kenny Scharf, Basquiat and Warhol. Gina personally knew many of the people in the expensive art books that Monogram sells to the Cosmo's hipster crowd, who are too young to have experienced any art eras first hand. The Cosmopolitan is always full of surprises. (Shame its customers often lack the imagination of the resort.)

And now we are the proud owner of a piece created by fabric artist Nancy Goodman from Mobile, Alabama. Drop her note, tell her where you are in the world, and explain you heard her art was for sale in a Las Vegas casino. Another Cosmopolitan surprise.