Hirst shark—and Venice shipwreck piece—installed in Las Vegas casino

Another shark by Damien Hirst has swum into view. This fishy piece, another of the UK artist’s creations pickled in formaldehyde, takes pride of place in The Unknown Bar inside the revamped Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas (the glitzy refurbishment cost $620m). The 13-foot-long tiger shark—The Unknown (Explored, Explained, Exploded), 1999—is severed into three parts suspended in a trio of tanks. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Palms owners, Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, purchased the shark sculpture directly from Hirst. Sixteen new spot paintings from the YBA’s Pharmaceutical series hang on the walls surrounding Hirst’s shark. But his in-your-face work is not just confined to the bar. Hirst’s Sun Disc sculpture from his Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable project, shown last year in Venice, is on display in the resort’s High Limit Gaming Lounge. Palms’ art collection is extensive and decidedly blue-chip—works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, Takashi Murakami and Christopher Wool are dotted around the casino, providing an arty backdrop for discerning gamers.