TECH TALES: An immersive storyworld for children of the present
We are delighted to announce the premiere of TECH TALES, an immersive project for children, opening on 25 September as part of Vienna Design Week.
In the Tech Tales exhibition, children meet Alen, Desire, the Frog and the Princess. They listen to their stories and the challenges they face – challenges that may feel familiar: a dream that seems out of reach, a child who is left out, an unexpected friendship, and intercultural differences… At certain moments in their stories, the characters need help. Children are invited to draw, make sounds, or build different elements. Their contributions help the characters continue their stories and find ways to overcome the challenges they are facing.
Tech Tales is designed as an immersive exhibition for children that brings together storytelling, animation, play and exploration. Moving through a series of story worlds, children follow a narrative and emotional journey, while their contributions become an integral part of the experience itself.
The exhibition explores themes of identity, belonging, friendship and embracing difference. Rather than simply explaining these ideas to children, Tech Tales gives them an opportunity to experience them through movement, drawing, building and storytelling. This encourages children’s curiosity and gives them space to see things from someone else’s perspective.
This is how empathy can develop: through interaction and connection, through an interest in other people’s experiences, and through learning to recognise emotions – both in ourselves and in those around us. Tech Tales gives children an opportunity to explore these aspects through their own actions, rather than through instructions alone.
The exhibition also includes a common space dedicated to emotions. Here, children can slow down, take a moment for themselves, create their own stories, explore how different emotions are expressed, and try simple breathing exercises that can help them recognise and manage moments when emotions become overwhelming.
About the Tech Tales project
TECH(ing) TALES WITH A TWIST is a European initiative that explores stigma-based violence through the creative reimagining of classic fairy tales. The project brings together seven partners from across Europe to explore how storytelling, technology and creative participation can help children develop empathy, enhance their well-being and express themselves. The project includes the Tech Tales immersive exhibition, interactive audio fairy tales and environmentally friendly books enhanced with augmented reality, as well as co-creation workshops, digital literacy sessions and public events for children, their parents and caregivers, and educators.
The project brings together the following partners: Institute for Transmedia Design (Slovenia), Art Rebel 9 (Slovenia), Vienna Design Office (Austria), NGO FLUX (Montenegro), ART TRANSPARENT (Poland), IAAC – FabLab Barcelona (Spain), and Group „Let’s…” (Serbia).
The project is co-funded by the European Union.