GOOGLE-EARTH-MODEL.28, Villa Aurora Exhibition "Whispering Bells" at O-Town House, Los Angeles 20. Sep - 25. Oct 2025

The exhibition "Whispering Bells" at O-Town House gallery is the kickoff show for the 30-year-anniversary of Villa Aurora showing works of artists spanning the many years of a special residency program. Achim Mohné will present his GOOGLE-EARTH-MODEL.28, a detailed 3D model of the building in a multimedia installation, bringing Villa Aurora into the gallery space as both a site of memory and projection.

The devastating fires in Pacific Palisades in January 2025 largely spared Villa Aurora, but came within a few meters of the building and destroyed parts of the garden. Unfortunately, the huge eucalyptus tree had to be felled a few months later. As ‘Google_Earth_Tree’, based on data from Google Earth, it will be ‘virtually resurrected’ as part of the exhibition.

Located at the former home of Jewish-German writer Lion Feuchtwanger and his wife Marta, Villa Aurora is dedicated to preserving the legacy of artists and intellectuals who found refuge from Nazi persecution in Los Angeles. For the past 30 years, Villa Aurora has been an artist residence, a place where exile and expression meet, where history and contemporary events converge. During the process of rebuilding, we are working with local partners to present our artists’ work within the city.

The exhibition’s title Whispering Bells lends its name from the drought-tolerant flower species known as fire followers. The dry, bell-shaped flowers play a rustling song when caught in the wind. Its seeds are triggered by burnt material to start a new life cycle.