The Tell-Tale Rooms

The Tell-Tale Rooms is an interactive 360 VR piece that leads us on a journey into artist Eden Kötting’s fantastical world. Blending immersive animation, archive and live action it celebrates the wonders of the human condition and opens the fusty doors of perception into a world of virtual reality.

Story:
The Tell-Tale Rooms is situated inside a VR replica of an old farm-house deep in the French Pyrenees. The real house has been home to Eden and Andrew Kötting on-and-off for over 30 years but once we enter the house, compiled using photogrammetry and into The Tell-Tale Rooms, Eden takes us on a journey into places that we have not been before.
 
In this world you walk amongst the artworks, memories and dreams of Eden Kötting, a visually impaired, neuro-divergent artist. Although Eden is profoundly disabled, here she is the mischief-maker and mistress-of-ceremonies. She leads us on a journey that celebrates the wonders of the human condition and offers a rare and positive insight into her life.
 
In addition, our interactions with the Tell-Tale Rooms are guided by floating animated 3D Tell-Tale heads that appear adrift, tempting us what bits of Eden’s back story. Particle effects in conjunction with randomizing code adds an element of unpredictability and chance to the proceedings; one minute a room might be huge and another it might be miniscule, one minute there might be snow outside and in the next minute glorious sunshine.
 
Guided by Eden and the Tell-Tale Heads, we encounter a series of Tell-Tale Rooms: The Room of Memory, The Room Of Nostalgia, The Room of Make-Believe, The Room of Hope, The Room of Forgetting, The Room of Confabulation…. In these rooms there are trace elements from Eden growing from a baby, through adolescence, and into adulthood.
 
Texts written in Eden’s handwriting drift within the space, offering translation for her limited speech patterns, advice for the future, or quotes from the past. The voice of her Great-Grandmother Gladys reminisces about their time together making their film Gallivant.
 
Snippets of antiquated public information broadcasts and mysterious voiceovers help contextualise how far society has come when dealing with disability and diversity.
Eden’s story is memorable, playful and hauntological. Hope is in the air and everywhere you look around…