A ground-breaking immersive Virtual Reality (VR) experience, The Tell-Tale Rooms, comes to OBX at Hastings Commons in Hastings, from 13 to 18 March. The film and exhibition invite audiences to step into the extraordinary world of visually impaired, neurodivergent Hastings based artist Eden Kötting.
Blending animation, archive footage, and live action, this 360° VR film takes viewers on a journey through Eden’s imagination, revealing a world where art, memory, and dreams collide. At the heart of The Tell-Tale Rooms is a digital replica of a centuries-old farmhouse in the French Pyrenees, a home to Eden and her father, filmmaker Andrew Kötting, for over 30 years.
Inside this world, visitors walk among Eden’s artwork and memories, guided by the artist herself. Edenwas born with a rare genetic disorder, Joubert Syndrome. Though profoundly disabled, here she becomes the mischief-maker and master of ceremonies, offering a rare and uplifting insight into her life. The Tell-Tale Rooms is a celebration of creativity, resilience, and the boundless possibilities of virtual reality. Artist Eden Kötting says:
“The Tell Tale Rooms make me Happy Happy Happy!”
Andrew and Eden Kötting have been lifelong collaborators, Fatherdaughter, a conjoined entity, creating remarkable art from a remote Pyrenean farmhouse and a studio in St Leonards-on-Sea. The Tell-Tale Rooms marks an exciting new chapter in their work, now reaching galleries worldwide.
Eden Kötting was born in 1988. Growing up, she developed a passion for drawing and painting. At a young age she appeared in the film Gallivant in 1996 alongside her great-grandmother. Eden continues to collaborate with her father on multi-media art projects, exhibitions, and performances. She is part of the Wednesday Mentoring Group at Project Art Works and shares a studio with Andrew in St Leonards-on-Sea.
Andrew Kötting trained at the Slade School of Art, specialising in performance and film. A Professor of Time-Based Media at UCA Canterbury, he has made over 100 short films and eight feature films, including Gallivant, This Filthy Earth, and The Whalebone Box. The Tell-Tale Rooms is his first VR project, created with Eden and TYKE Films.
Opening and Artist talk on Thursday 13th March, 6:30pm. To celebrate the opening of the film, Andrew will be speaking as part of OBX Connects, a programme of talks by local and national digital artists on varied topics. The exhibition will then be shown in the ground floor of the Observer Building (access via the Alley, Claremont, Hastings TN34 1DT. The venue is step free).
Friday 14 March, 4-7pm
The Tell Tale Rooms showing at OBX has been supported by funding from the Youth Investment Fund. The film is made through Tyke Films (tykefilms.com/the-tell-tale-rooms) with the support of the BFI’s Film Fund, XR Stories, SIGN and the Arts Council England.
