Art is everywhere, American sculptor Louise Nevelson once said. Even in a shopping center in suburban Anne Arundel County.

Steps away from a Burlington clothing store and a Medieval Times dinner theater is an unexpected oasis for art lovers: the Cordish Collection, housed in Hanover’s Live! Casino & Hotel.

Amid a sea of flashing slot machines and busy card tables are paintings, sculptures and mixed-media works by renowned artists such as Andy Warhol, Damien Hirst, Jennifer Steinkamp, Nick Cave and others. They fill the walls of the roughly 330,000-square-foot entertainment destination, which opened 13 years ago this month. While visitors must be 21 to enter the casino floor, nearly all of the art is displayed in areas open to the public, regardless of age.

The collection is the passion project of Suzi Cordish, whose husband, real estate mogul David Cordish, is CEO of the Cordish Companies, which founded and operates the casino. The company also owns the building where The Banner’s newsroom is located.

Determined to elevate the typical casino experience, Cordish kicked the collection off with a head-turner: “$(9): one plate,” a screen monoprint Warhol made in 1982, which now hangs in an administrative office near the check-in desk. The nine dollar signs look like they’re vibrating against the red background in Warhol’s trademark pop-art style.

Cordish called Warhol the “most significant” 20th-century artist, in part because his work was direct and could connect with any viewer. The dollar signs made the print the “perfect piece” for the casino, she said.

“He truly understood the importance of art for all, for the world,” said Cordish, who previously served as chairperson of Maryland Art Place in Baltimore and on the Smithsonian Institution’s national board. “You don’t have to be a historian to understand his messaging.”

Inclusivity drives Cordish’s approach to collecting for the property, emphasizing bright colors and upbeat sentiment — a natural inclination for Cordish.

It’s seen in Sylvie Fleury’s neon lighting installation that reads “YES TO ALL” and the embossed monoprint by New York artist Mel Bochner that displays rainbow-colored text like “I can’t thank you enough!”

She regularly attends auctions in pursuit of her next find. “I just bought something yesterday,” she said with a smile.

A crowd favorite, Cordish said, sits near the front entrance, ripe for an Instagram backdrop: South Korean artist Byung-Jin Kim’s ”LOVE-Love,” a huge stainless steel heart, coated in deep cherry-red automotive paint, made up of hundreds of duplicates of the word “love.”

“It’s just such a wonderful message,” Cordish said. “And people don’t realize it until they get up close.”

While the 41 works of art help create a sense of welcoming, there’s no forgetting you’re still in a casino. A threat of overstimulation looms around the space, as roughly 4,000 slot machines flash with animation and bright colors to win attention — not to mention the cacophony of blaring chimes and digital beeps that fill the air.

There’s also the Sports & Social area, sort of a sports bar on steroids with its 100-foot wall of TV screens and kiosks where patrons can bet on live games. The quality of the collection, however, largely elevates the art above the noise.

For many visitors, the artwork is a pleasant surprise. Ed McDonald said he was shocked to see museum-level pieces inside the Live! casino.

“I wouldn’t think people would come here to see art,” the Rosedale resident said, “but having seen it, maybe it makes them pick this casino over another one for a future trip.”

His sister didn’t realize at first she was passing highly coveted works but appreciated their presence nonetheless.

“I think it’s great, but I honestly had no idea there was an art collection,” said Eileen McDonald of Baltimore.

One of the delights in taking in the Cordish Collection is the element of surprise awaiting around the corner. In a setting with such an unabashed emphasis on commerce, it’s refreshing that the art can be enjoyed without spending a dime.

Tucked away near a doorless entry to a men’s bathroom is “Nūr Jahān,” a glittery kaleidoscopic print of red and black butterfly wings by Hirst, once described by critic Jerry Saltz as “the Elvis of the English art world” and whose works fetch millions at auction.

Arguably most striking is Steinkamp’s “Botanic 3,” a horizontal video installation above the check-in desk. Its rotating bouquet of brilliant flowers slowly builds, filling up the dark background until the arrangement blows up and then reassembles to restart the cycle.

Cordish said it was also important to include artists with Baltimore ties in the collection, including Michael Owen, Chul-Hyun Ahn and Mary Ann Mears. She also keeps an eye on emerging local artists, which fueled a recent art competition.

To celebrate Black History Month, the casino hosted a pop-up exhibit of works by local Black artists and asked guests to vote for their favorite piece. After roughly 12,000 votes, the winner was Brandon J. Donahue-Shipp, who dissected abandoned basketballs and tied pieces of them together with shoestrings to create an explosion of petal-like shapes. His “Basketball Bloom (AD)” earned him a $25,000 prize from the casino and now hangs in the collection permanently.

Donahue-Shipp, who’s also an associate professor of art at the University of Maryland, College Park, said he was blown away when he first saw the casino’s art collection.

“I’ve never really spent much time in a casino, especially to look at art, so this was an eye-opening experience for me,” he said. “To have my works in the same conversation as those listed in the collection is an honor.”

The plan is to host more contests in the near future, Cordish said.

Art is ingrained in Cordish, who grew up in Guilford. She’d regularly walk to the Baltimore Museum of Art and fell in love with its vast trove.

“It was always exciting and revelatory, so it’s been my passion for a long, long time,” Cordish said while giving a tour of the casino.

Her lifelong enthusiasm for art shows no signs of slowing down, and the casino — along with the Cordish Companies’ five other U.S. casinos — still has space on its walls for more.

“I think that art elevates every experience that anyone can have, and I am such a proponent of putting art in unexpected places,” Cordish said. “It brings so much joy and so much curiosity.”