Luna Luna

After our Hudson Theater tour Don and I had lunch at a diner on 9th Avenue. As the bitterly cold wind pushed us towards the road, I was grateful our plans called for being indoors. 

I first learned about the Luna Luna exhibit through a Facebook ad. Having been to the Australian Luna Parks in Melbourne and Sydney, I was immediately drawn to learn more about the exhibit. Seeing it contains artwork by Keith Haring was the clincher.

Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy at The Shed is an indoor exhibit of a forgotten amusement park. Back in the 1980s up and coming artists created the worlds first art amusement park in Hamburg, Germany. There were rides, games, and attractions featuring art by Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Roy Lichtenstein, David Hockney, and even Salvador Dali. At the end of the 1987 season, the part was sealed up in 44 shipping containers. Somehow it ended up in a warehouse in Texas where it was promptly forgotten.

The boxes contained the rides, attractions, and even some leftover merchandise, but not instructions on how to rebuild them. There was a treasure trove of photographs, also on display.

Rides deemed more fragile, including the Haring carousel and other carousels, are on display only. The hall of mirrors was set up, allowing us to enter once we stepped on a mat to remove extra dirt. The visually-impaired man ahead of us walking with a white cane made me more nervous than that teenagers working the exhibit. If he can make it through unscathed, so can we!

By going midday on a Tuesday, we practically had the place to ourselves (plus a few other retired couples). I could see where they place switchbacks to control the crowds. I was able to take a lot of pictures, and slow down to read the descriptions. What I did not do, though, was take notes to jog my memory as I write. 

We arrived early and were guided to the Butterfly Bar, thus named after the butterflies that appeared in one of the attractions. From here we had a birds' eye view of a small Ferris Wheel, tiny carousel, and a side view of the Chapel of Love. Near the end of each hour these exhibits light up and costumed people representative of the carnival employees of yore weave around the crowd. That was our cue that it was time for us to enter the exhibit.

The first room has the Keith Haring carousel that features prominently in the advertising. There are also many pictures of it being constructed in the 1980s, and stories of asking artists to participate. Some, like Haring, were all in from the get go. Others, including Andy Warhol, passed. The pay was poor. The experience was still being defined. It wasn't what they wanted to do at the time. The room also has the Hall of Mirrors.

Beyond that room was a small room with some artifacts in glass cases, and the front of a food truck. 

Passing through an archway, we entered the main floor where we could see the carousel and Ferris Wheel up close. In the back a film about building the original Luna Luna was on repeat. 

Another attraction we could enter was a mirrored geodesic dome, which reminded me of Boston's Maporium. I could spend hours inside there and still not capture it well in a photo. The mirrors are mesmerizing as they play off each other.

Then there was the Chapel of Love. We entered as an older couple was set to renew their vows. She a white woman in her 70s who seemed like she would fit in at a Princeton University lecture. He a black man a little younger. I wish I took notes! The Justice of the Peace asked them why they love each other enough to get married again. Admittedly they paused not expecting this question before coming up with sweet reasons. Don and I left without being put in the hot seat.

Following what we refer to as the Disney model, we exited through the gift shop. I was surprised they were selling some of the merchandise they discovered when opening the shipping containers. Instead of selling them for 1987 prices, though, the t-shirts were sold at prices I suspect we will be paying in another 100 years or so -- an archival Keith Haring t-shirt sells for $300. An archival Keith Haring poster for $955. The new Keith Haring plush doll was cute, but at $58 we decided to pass.

The tickets also felt overpriced at $39 each, even with being predisposed to love it.  

Random pictures: