REVIEW: ‘Luna Luna’ is a forgotten fantasy no more
Photo: Keith Haring, Painted carousel, 1987, in Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy, The Shed, Nov. 20, 2024 – Feb. 23, 2025. Photo: Brian Ferry. Courtesy Luna Luna LLC.
NEW YORK — The new art exhibit Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy is a whirlwind experience now enjoying an extended run at The Shed in Midtown Manhattan. This amusement park created by modern artists in the 1980s was the brainchild of André Heller, and his vision has amazingly come to full fruition in New York City. Some of the greats of the modern-art world, including Roy Lichtenstein, Sonia Delaunay, Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat and David Hockney, among others, crafted these impressively large rides and experiences, drawing inspiration from the entertainment offerings at an amusement park or carnival dedicated to the gods of fun and frivolity. The resulting exhibit is something to behold.
Luna Luna first opened in 1987 in Hamburg, Germany, according to a helpful historical breakdown of the development of this whimsical creation, which visitors can read while they walk through the experience. Heller envisioned a safe space for artists to break the boundaries of their creative process and for audience members to enjoy a day at the fair. That summertime spectacle was extended multiple times and became legendary as a form of experiential appreciation, blurring the lines between visual art and performance art.
After the German festival, the pieces of the exhibition found their way into a Texas storage facility and sat there for more than three decades. Now, the rides and attractions have reemerged, leading first to a Los Angeles display and now the run of dates at The Shed.
There’s truly nothing like the experience of walking through Luna Luna. The lights in the gargantuan spaces at The Shed are dimmed, allowing for the dizzying array of luminescence from the rides to take over. There are carousels, a swing ride, a Ferris wheel and even a chapel where anyone can tie the knot. One of the coolest pieces is a geodesic space designed by Salvador Dalí known as the Dalídom, and it will remind spectators of what it’s like to be on the inside of a geometry experiment, almost like a blend between Spaceship Earth at Disney’s Epcot and a Yayoi Kusama Infinity Room.
Basquiat has perhaps the most meaningful entry in the crazed carnival setting. He’s responsible for the Ferris wheel, which activates every few minutes in the main room of the exhibition. The mechanism and engineering of the ride are impressive (sadly spectators cannot partake in a rotation), but more powerful are the messages etched on the panels lining the amusement park attraction. Basquiat did not create a mere wheel of fun; he also offers social commentary and somewhat hidden ruminations on the history of segregation and racism in the United States.
Haring’s painted carousel, which is likely the first piece that audience members see when entering the exhibition space, is a frenzied, no-holds-barred dreamscape of the artist’s iconic street art. In fact, this first room is mostly dedicated to Haring’s oeuvre, featuring many of his cartoonish figures in various acrobatic positions, like they are stuck in a constant somersault. Visitors should also look closely at the carousel to catch a Haring self-portrait.
Kenny Scharf created a highlight of Luna Luna, to be sure. His swing ride, which also operates on a set schedule, is intricate and magical in its colorful representation. When it’s circulating and sending the swings into the air, there’s a carnivalesque joy that fills the air. When it’s standing stationary, there’s a forgotten, almost ghostly stateliness, as if visitors have stumbled upon a closed amusement park. Helping to complement the mood are various costumed performers who walk throughout the space, some of them interacting with visitors, all of them abstractly designed, like castoffs from a Nickelodeon show that didn’t receive approval from the studio bigwigs.
Heller is responsible for much of this curation, and he’s also represented with a work of his own: the wedding chapel, which is a nice place to sit and take in the sights. And, if one were amenable, it’s a rare chance to cement one’s nuptials in a most unique, no-pressure manner.
Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy is one of the highlights of the artistic calendar, showcasing uninterrupted expression on a massive scale. There are few times one can find these modern art greats all represented in the same space, but Heller’s gift to audience members does just that, combining diverse voices around the single theme of amusement. It’s a marvel that is both educative and fun, and needs to be experienced. These lights, sounds and activations are childhood wonder come to life.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy has been extended until Feb. 23 at The Shed in Midtown Manhattan. Click here for more information and tickets.
