April 06, 2023
Provided Image/Otherworld
Otherworld, an interactive exhibit with more than 55 unique rooms and installations, opens in May at 2500 Grant Ave. in Northeast Philly.
A sprawling, interactive art exhibition with more than 55 rooms will open next month in Northeast Philly, bringing primordial monsters and dazzling light displays to a family-friendly venue near Grant and the Boulevard.
Otherworld, which opened its first exhibition in Columbus in 2019, will debut the new 40,000-square-foot facility in May at 2500 Grant Ave.
The self-guided tour at Otherworld features the work of more than 100 artists, modelers, animators, fabricators and creative technologists. Colorful light displays, crawlable tubes, holograms and projectors bombard the senses as visitors travel through various rooms. Motion sensors and projectors respond to the presence of guests, creating a cinematic narrative.
“Our original Ohio location has become a destination in itself, and we’re excited to present a new space on a much larger scale with ramped up production quality in Philly,” Otherworld founder Jordan Renda said. “We’re confident that consumers in the city and our neighboring communities will enjoy this new, reimagined experience — something that has never been seen before in Philadelphia.”
In a teaser offering a glimpse of the new venue, Renda describes Otherworld as a combination of a museum and a large-scale art installation.
The Otherworld in Columbus is about 32,000 square feet with 40 or so rooms. The larger space in Philly creates more opportunities for partnering with artists to flex their skills and the utilization of more than ten kilometers of LEDs.
"We're definitely ramping up the world-building," Renda said. "We basically have the pre-production process of a video game, but then we're bringing that environment into a three-dimensional space that you can explore and become a part of."
Ahead of the opening in May, Otherworld is offering discounted presale tickets starting at $18.99. The regular ticket price will start at $29.99. Those interesting in planning a visit can follow Otherworld's Instagram for updates on the opening in May.
