If you’ve wandered down Oxford Street at any point this week, you may have noticed that one particular corner of the central London thoroughfare has transformed into a giant, interactive comic book.
It’s because the Oxford Street gallery W1 Curates has teamed up with Lost Souls of Saturn – a multidisciplinary live project and collaboration between Seth Troxler and Phil Moffa, two in-demand DJs and producers, well-known on the electronic music circuit. They’ve collaborated on the immersive exhibition with the LA-based Abstract Comics and artist RobShields.
Heavily inspired by comic book culture, graphic novels, early rave culture, and sci fi, the Lost Souls of Saturn takeover follows the adventures of John and Frank, “two third-rate reality hackers from Saturn who can’t pay their rent”.
Passersby can enjoy the huge-scale comic with no additional bells and whistles if they wish; but by downloading the Lost Souls of Saturn App, viewers can unlock many new layers to the work, interact with W1 Curates’ screens, and experience what organisers call a “new type of synesthesia” with the help of augmented reality technology.
“Destiny and dumb luck collide as they stumble upon the most powerful artifact in the entire universe, the Dark Cube of Power,” says a press release, giving a few more clues of what to expect.
“Watch and listen as they run from the ancient demonic forces of the Black Sun white trying to make a quick buck. Irreverent and filled with 90s pop culture references, the series will be a blast for fans of retro sci fi including the films of John Carpenter and James Cameron.”
The interactive story also comes with a matching soundtrack album, Reality, which is fully integrated into the AR experience and unfolds as viewers make their way through. It will be released digitally and on vinyl at the end of the takeover.
Lost Souls of Saturn will continues at W1 Curates for the whole of February, with their enormous floor-to-ceiling animated LED screens displaying “augmented visions” from the comic book. It’s free and open to the public every day.
