One of my favorite things about living near LA is exploring new pop-up art exhibits. Over winter break I saw an ad on Instagram about a new exhibit called Luna Luna, which showcases the rides from an abandoned art amusement park in Germany. I immediately got tickets before they sold out (they ended up extending the dates until the spring, so my rush to buy them was unnecessary. However, now you can also go visit if you’re doing a campus visit anytime soon). 

For a little context, Luna Luna was the world’s first art amusement park, and it had rides, games, and attractions by visionary artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, and David Hockney. It was up and running in Hamburg, Germany, in 1987. Once the park closed, its art and rides were sealed in 44 shipping containers and forgotten in Texas—until now. 

When Drake heard about the Luna Luna artifacts, he simply couldn’t believe that so many interactive works of art were just sitting in a warehouse. Drake thus figured that his creative studio, DreamCrew, would be the best option to restore the Luna Luna rides, put them into use, and “bring people together” — it only cost him (and Live Nation) around $100 million to do it.

Thanks to Drizzy, I was able to go visit this exhibit just a few weeks ago, and it was incredible! 

When you walk in you’re immediately transported to the most beautiful and vibrant theme park you could ever imagine. All I wanted to do was go back in time and ride these rides, but unfortunately, this was not an option. However, the rides were somehow still kept in great shape during their 36 years in shipping containers, so every 10 minutes the rides would turn on allowing you to see the ferris wheel spin and the merry-go-round go round and round. 

Here are some of my favorite pieces: