Luxe Life Blog

Move over, Monet! Park the palette, Picasso! Paint with dolphins at Mirage

Posted January 22, 2013 • 12:03 p.m.

"Painting With the Dolphins" at The Mirage.

Photo: The Mirage

Siegfried & Roy’s delightful dolphins at their Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat in The Mirage have always made a splash in the water; now it’s on canvas, too. Believe it or not, these extraordinary and wonderful creatures will make Monet move over and Picasso park his palette.

The interactive program “Painting With the Dolphins” is producing works of art -- maybe not masterpieces yet, but each hands-on experience with guests is helping them find their inner artist.

Dolphin care curator Phillip Admire commented: “Our primary goal at the Dolphin Habitat is to ensure the highest quality care, which includes high levels of physical and mental stimulation for the animals daily. This program creates another avenue to mentally challenge and engage our dolphins with their trainers while providing guests with an unforgettable experience.”

The experience begins with a brief orientation and overview of the habitat where guests can observe the marine mammals up close while learning about their behaviors and health. After a lesson about the painting process, guests choose their canvas and then three paint colors.

The trainer dips a brush into the first color, and the dolphin begins the illustration. They are ecologically friendly brushes held in a buoy so that the dolphins can hold them safely in their mouths. The trainers have discovered that each dolphin has its own method of painting, so no two canvases ever look alike.

The Dolphin Habitat has played host to celebrities and their families, and Siegfried & Roy can often be found visiting. There are two art sessions each day with a maximum of two guests at each. The 11x14 art piece comes with a certificate of authenticity and a souvenir photo with the dolphin Da Vinci, the mammal Matisse or the bottlenose Botticelli.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.

Follow Robin Leach on Twitter at Twitter.com/Robin_Leach.

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