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Read article written in Las Vegas Weekly by Amber Sampson

Oscar Gonzalez looks very comfortable over an open flame. When we meet the neon bender of 30 years in his YESCO workshop, he seems wholly within his element. He rotates a piece of glass tubing between his fingers, the flame catching and licking at it until the glass begins to yield like rubber. Gonzalez blows into a hose connected to the tubing to keep it from collapsing. The material dances under the heat, be-coming so pliable Gonzalez has to move with it to keep it level. When he’s ready, he bends it into its desired shape.

“Definitely, it’s an art,” Gonzalez says of his trade. “Art is something that gives you that kind of peace of mind.”

The neon bender started working at a neon shop in Guadalajara, Mexico at 14. Enamored by the flames and the neon lights, he’d collect pieces of discarded glass and practice. His first sign spelled out the word “vino.” It took him eight hours to make.

At YESCO, a sign and lighting company that’s helped illuminate Las Vegas for more than 100 years, and his previous role at Hartlauer Signs, Gonzalez has been essential to restoring historic signage like the 24-foot sign for the Debbie Reynolds Holly-wood Hotel and one from the Moulin Rouge. A father of three, Gonzalez says his kids are equally as interested in his craft, to the point where “now, they think I make all the signs in Las Vegas!” he laughs.

Gonzalez hopes to pass on his knowledge, as many of the old guard have either retired or died. And with more energy-efficient LED starting to replace traditional neon, Gonzalez admits he has reservations about the future of his craft. “Is this thing really gonna die? I’ve been hearing that since I started. … I don’t know what’s gonna happen in 10 years,” he says.

Whatever may come, he says there’s always a place for neon in this city and in his heart.

(Photos by Wade Vandervort/Staff)