Back in September of 2017 we took a closer look at the locally created comic book MeSseD, written by Jay Kalagayan and illustrated by Dylan Speeg.
From May 11 to June 16, 2018, the MeSseD Tunnel Tour is on exhibit in Over-the-Rhine. Installed in the subterranean basement of Union Hall, the MeSseD Tunnel Tour is an immersive comic book experience. Attendees will go underground to explore a mixed media experience, including walls of artwork, projections, 3D models and an immersive soundscape.
The aim of the MeSseD Tunnel Tour project is to fundamentally change the way people experience comics by incorporating a physical space with which you can interact. The installation turns the typically solitary experience of reading a comic book into a social “moment” in which people will experience the comic together in a real tunnel. This also gives tour attendees an educational opportunity to learn about the essential services that sewer utilities provide in the real world.
The MeSseD Tunnel Tour “seeks to create a visceral, educational experience at the intersection of science and science fiction,” says MeSseD writer Jay B. Kalagayan.
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Set in the sewers, MeSseD is nicknamed for the Metropolitan Sewer District’s abbreviation, “MSD.” In the comics, the main protagonist Lilliput battles her way through more than just clogged plumbing, as she overcomes fanciful creatures to ensure the city’s wastewater keeps flowing.
While working at the Museum Center, Kalagayan started daydreaming about the Metropolitan Sewer District facility in Queensgate. He liked the idea of building a fictional world based on an essential city service. Thus, MeSseD Comics was born.
The MeSseD Tunnel Tour continues through June 16, 2018 at Union Hall, 1314 Republic Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202. Timed entry tickets are $6 per adult, youth 17 and under are $4 each. Call (513) 300-5669 (KNOW) for reservations or go to: https://www.messedcomics.com/tunneltour
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