'Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy' pop-art exhibit makes grand opening at Hudson Yards
HUDSON YARDS, Manhattan (WABC) -- A unique art exhibit that once was a phenomenon in the 1980s made its grand opening inside The Shed at Hudson Yards on Wednesday.
"Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy", the world's first and only art amusement park, rolled out its traveling exhibition for the public to see.
The exhibit -- a brainchild of artist Andre Heller -- features some of the all stars of pop art. They include gems from fellow artists such as Jean-Michel Basquait.
"He wanted to bring art in the most accessible way with something so familiar to people," said "Luna Luna: Forgotten Fantasy" CEO Anthony Gonzales.
The whimsical and intriguing experience first began in Germany in the 80s, but only lasted about eight weeks. Heller planned to take the show on the road, but didn't have financial backing, which led to a 17-year legal battle. As a result, all of the elements of the exhibit ended up in storage in Vienna.
In 2007, the pieces landed in someone else hands.
"They had no idea of what to do with them at this point, so they sent it to a ranch in Texas," added Gonzales.
Gonzales and his team acquired the containers with all the elements back in 2022.
"Thank god everything was in incredible condition," he said. "We were so lucky."
Gonzales isn't joking when it comes to the incredible condition of the art, He even acknowledged one of the rides from NYC native and artist Keith Haring, Haring's custom carousel, is off-limits because of how old and valuable the elements of it are.
The exhibit will be in New York City through early January.
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