Dado @ Walsh Street will present a screening of Sanatorium (2025) directed by Gar O’Rourke.
On the shores of Odessa in Southern Ukraine lies the imposing Kuyalnik Sanatorium, a crumbling Soviet era health facility that’s part hotel and part medical retreat. Each summer, the ever-dwindling guests come here, drawn by Soviet-era therapies and the chance to relax beside the salt lake. The biggest attraction though, is the mysterious black mud, said to cure infertility, physical disabilities and various other ailments.
Sanatorium takes us through a summer season at this unusual place, following the staff as they work hard to provide care, comfort and entertainment for visitors – even with the war continuing nearby. For the guests, it’s a time to seek healing, love and renewal.
Despite the airstrikes close by, there’s something about the pastel pink and lime green halls of the sanatorium that keeps pulling people back. Maybe it’s the hope of rejuvenation or maybe it’s something hidden in the mud…
Prior to the film, we will be joined by artist Eva Heiky Olga Abbinga. Abbinga is a cross-disciplinary artist whose practice spans painting, textiles, large-scale soft sculpture, and photography. Her work engages with cultural heritage, mythology, and the resilience of identity, often drawing from ancestral traditions to create contemporary narratives. Rooted in research and collaboration, Abbinga’s practice explores the power of symbolic imagery, particularly in times of displacement, and collective struggle.
Booking: https://fareharbor.com/embeds/book/robinboyd/items/728439/calendar/2026/06/?full-items=yes
This event is generously supported by Konpira Maru Wines and Yumbo Soda.
Evenings with DADo offer an intimate commingling of film and dialogues centred around diverse historical and contemporary stories of architecture, design, landscape and urbanism. Feature-length films, documentaries, shorts and animations all find a home in Robin Boyd’s living room at Walsh Street. Guest speakers contribute unique perspectives on the various film subjects, kicking off the conversation in a home that decidedly sought to reject convention.
Thandi Lane, Andrew MacKinnon, Tom Hibbert, Jasper Caverly and Sushma Prabhu present DADo’s 2026 program.
Image: Still from ‘Sanatorium’, photography by Denys Melnyk.
*** During May, June and July 2026, the Robin Boyd Foundation will engage in a significant project restoring the Boyd House II/Walsh Street facade and front staircase. During this time scaffolding will be present in the front garden and access may be diverted via the side entrance. The residence’s interiors and courtyard access will not be affected by the works. ***