By Jordan Queira
Las Vegas might be known for bright lights and high-stakes glamour, but there’s another kind of creativity reshaping the city-one spray can at a time. At the centre of this movement is Dana Anderson, co-founder of ISI Group (Industry Supporting Industry), a visionary art collective transforming Vegas, businesses, and entire buildings into living, breathing canvases.
It all started with skateboards and ink. “Skateboarding, graphics and design,” Dana says, tracing his roots. A love of tattoos evolved into a deep appreciation for visual art. “I started taking interest in getting tattooed, then started filling my house with paintings that made me care about the art world.”
A turning point came during Las Vegas’ iconic First Friday through a visit to Cornerstone Art Gallery— one of the few spaces at the time blending tattoo and graffiti art. Dana, who was then working in nightlife promotions at the Palms, saw an opportunity. “I had the idea of integrating art into nightlife. Never really seen a showcase, or live painting in a nightclub,” He recalls. “how do I take artists and put them in a place where no one would expect them?”
He wasn’t aiming for fine art. His focus was clear: lowbrow art.Tattoo artists, graffiti artists, and independent underground creatives. They weren’t looking for the gallery elite. They wanted to put raw, self’taught artists in the spotlight.
A mutual friend introduced Dana to Phil Limon, who was then running Conerstone Gallery. The two instantly clicked. “ It wasn’t planned.” Dana says. “But we hit it off and started throwing events together
at the Beauty Bar on Fremont Street.” What began as a casual monthly event with live painting and a pop-up gallery wall quickly grew into a consistent and energizing part of downtown’s creative landscape. “We did this event for two years.” Dana says. That project eventually evolved into The ISI Group Auction, a mobile show that now travels across Las Vegas.
Anderson and Limon launched ISI Group in 2011. the name Industry Supporting Industry reflects their core belief: that creatives across different fields thrive when they lift each other up. “People are supporting each other doing what they love, what they’re passionate about,” Dana explains, “whether that’s being a DK, in a band, a chef or running a food truck. I consider everything to be art.”
From there, the collective branched out— fusing hip hop, breakdancing and street art into unexpected places. “We would build galleries in bars.” Dana says, “pop-up galleries. We’ve done a lot of different avenues of art.”
The group’s defining leap came in 2014 with the Linq Mural Project. While showing work at Brooklyn Bowl, an executive from Caesar’s approached Dana and Phil about integrating art into the Linq Promenade. “We noticed there was an abundance of empty walls. What about instead of doing art on canvas, why don’t we lhave a live painting of these walls?” Dana recalls.
At the time, ISI’s only outdoor mural experience had been Beauty Bar. “This was the beginning of curating murals around Las Vegas.” He says. They started with four artists. Live painting, and drew a crowd of over 200 people. “That was really eye-opening to us. It was a game changer. There was nothing like this happening in Las Vegas.”
ISI ended up painting one mural a week— for two years straight.
“We didn’t know what we were getting ourselves into,” Dana admits. “But we integrated so many different artists. We flew in artists from different places like Russia.” It also marked Dana’s first major role as a curator, matching artists and styles with specific businesses. “It was about making murals make sense for each space.”
These days, Dana focuses on the consulting side of the company—working with clients on creative direction, curating artists, and tailoring murals to the tone of a space. Phil Limon leads the event and production side, ensuring the logistics and energy of ISI’s shows stay sharp. “We didn’t think this would be a career, but it blossomed into something great.” Dana says.
“Most of our murals are not even outside,” Dana notes. “Most of them are inside businesses.” He reflects on the difference between the Vegas scene and what he’s seen in Europe, where creativity feels less constrained. “Places like Europe you’d see full giant murals that are just art, nothing to do with the business. It’s just art. We’re not there yet,” he says. “I hope we get there, ‘cause I think it would be so great to enjoy art for art, and not, ‘Hey that’s a coffee shop, we better put some coffee beans on the side of it!’”
One of ISI’s largest and most visually striking partnerships is with Area 15. Dana and Phil’s crew have completed about 90% of the mural work there, including a massive ground piece designed for drone-shot marketing. Currently, they’re working on Zone 2, one of Area 15’s most immersive new districts, anchored by Universal Studios and a year-round horror experience. “We’re doing a total of 14 murals… most of them being 60 feet tall and wide,” Dana says. “It’s an execution job—Area 15 designed everything, and we’re bringing it to life.”
While that project showcases ISI’s technical precision, it’s their upcoming creative-led collaborations that Dana is most excited about—especially Society, a cannabis consumption lounge located at The Grove dispensary near the Virgin Hotel. The project launches the first week of June, and it’s an opportunity where ISI Group has full creative direction.“We’ll be painting the entire building inside and out—fully curated and designed by ISI Group,” Dana says. “All designed and hand drawn by us and our artists.” From concept development to final execution, every detail reflects ISI’s voice.
Other must-see spots? Atomic Golf features 30 murals across four floors, all custom-designed by ISI Group. “They had nothing but a name before we stepped in,” Dana says.
But perhaps one of the most meaningful projects ISI Group has ever completed is at Brenden Theatres inside the Palms Casino. What began in 2019 was put on pause due to COVID, then revived with even more passion post-pandemic. The entire movie theater has been transformed into a living graffiti gallery—an unprecedented move in a commercial casino space.
“Every wall in the theatre is actual graffiti,” Dana says proudly. “There were 42 graffiti writers involved in this project. All of them are illegal taggers—none of them had muralist backgrounds that came from the ‘official’ art world. The emotional weight of this project is palpable for Dana. “It was amazing to be able to call people from L.A. that are homies with us, like, ‘Hey, you wanna come to Vegas and paint in a casino—and write your name?’ That’s just unheard of.”
The logistics were just as gritty as the art. “They didn’t close for us,” he says. “We set up after their last showing and would work through the night until 6 a.m.” The effort speaks to ISI’s roots in hustle and hustle alone—building something powerful without compromising authenticity.
For Dana, championing self-taught and underground artists is more than aesthetic—it’s a mission. “I’m gonna be honest. It’s a choice,” Dana says. “It’s our personal belief that these are the best artists out there. That’s just our goal, our background. It’s what we care about and what we found love in.” “Self-taught, underground artists that go the way of graffiti and tattooing are extremely valuable to our culture. They are the modern renaissance of our time,” he continues. “These artists put in for their culture and make a mark in society. They get out of the galleries and showcase themselves, push themselves. And that’s what it’s about. Especially if you want to immerse a city in art, you’re not gonna do that in a gallery.”
