Read Coffeyville’s Death Alley murals like a comic strip

A single mural can ask you to take in everything at once. Coffeyville’s Death Alley murals offer a sequence instead. Their seven panels invite a reading experience closer to following pages than standing before one large picture.

Seven panels, one historical subject

The directory identifies the Dalton Raid as the subject and describes the presentation as a Western comic-book style. It credits Michael DeRosa, a Coffeyville Community College art instructor, with painting the panels using an airbrush.

Those choices matter to the viewing experience. Dividing a subject into panels creates pauses. The space between images gives you a moment to decide how one scene connects with the next.

Read once for sequence and again for emphasis

On a first pass, follow the arrangement of the panels and note where the story appears to shift. On a second pass, consider which panel feels most prominent. Is that because of its position, its composition, or the information it contains?

You do not need to reconstruct every historical event from the images. Treat the artwork as a visual telling of the subject, then use local historical interpretation to investigate details that raise questions.

Keep the alley in the frame

A photograph of an individual panel can preserve detail, while a wider view explains how the sequence occupies the setting. Try both if the space is clear. Avoid stepping into vehicle access to fit the whole scene into one shot.

For visitors exploring Kansas murals, this is a useful example of format doing some of the storytelling. The panels control the pace; you supply the time to read them.

Explore the mural and its setting

Open the Death Alley Murals mural listing for its photograph and recorded details. Use the Kansas mural map to choose your next stop.

Sources and image information

• Death Alley Murals — Kansas Murals directory

Image: the existing mural directory photograph. This story draws on the linked records; the looking exercises are editorial suggestions, not an account of an on-site visit.