Dynamic rapper and Toronto native Drake is known for his music and unique interests above all else. Regarding the latter, the creator has announced that he is reviving the now-defunct 1980s art amusement park once known as Luna Luna. According to Drake, the star is working with his arts and entertainment company, DreamCrew, to recreate the park and transform it into an immersive art exhibition that will be featured in downtown Los Angeles. The reimagining of the park will be called Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy.
According to Los Angeles, Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy will open to the public in December. As of the most recent reporting, the exhibition will run until spring 2024. Due to the immense nature of the project, it will inevitably require sizable funding, as evidenced by Hyperallergic, the news outlet that last year reported that more than $100 million has already been invested into the transformative development.
Last week, DreamCrew posted a video on Instagram with a call to action for ticket purchasing. The post said, “Tickets to @LunaLuna: Forgotten Fantasy coming soon!” It continued, “Opening in Los Angeles this December, Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy is a spectacular showcase of the world’s first amusement park—lost since 1987. Sign up today to be the first to know when tickets go on sale—lunaluna.com” The brainchild of Austrian artist André Heller, the original Luna Luna was mounted during the summer of 1987 in Hamburg. Heller appointed 32 additional artists to craft various works for the exorbitant park.
The project will stay true to the original park, including creations by some of history’s most prominent and noble contemporary artists. Among the most highly-regarded attractions featured at Luna Luna are Salvador Dali’s mirrored dome, Roy Lichtenstein’s glass labyrinth, Jean-Michel Basquiat’s ferris wheel, and David Hockney’s enchanted forest. Each of these rides and attractions, plus many others, will be on display at the new exhibition in Los Angeles. The massive development will be held inside an enormous 60,000-square-foot warehouse to showcase each attraction properly. Please note that neither the ferris wheel nor the carousel will be operational. Both attractions will be presented for viewing purposes only.
The last time that any of the pieces at the original Luna Luna were made available for public viewing was almost four decades ago. Before Drake and DreamCrew decided to purchase these pieces, all of the work showcased at the original Luna Luna had broken down for years. Amazingly, each one of the pieces that will be restored and displayed at the Los Angeles exhibition sat inside multiple shipping containers in Texas for years. People are already thanking the artist for his venture, which many believe will be well-received in downtown Los Angeles.
DreamCrew provided a statement on the project, saying, “Not only was this a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to rediscover a lost history and the share the story with the world, but it also gave us the ability to work with the most talented partners re-creating the original vision, which still held so much untapped potential.”
