Robert Hannant

I Don’t Understand is a digital video installation by multi-media artist Robert Hannant. The single projection made up of multiple videos, each with its own significant soundtrack, symbolizes the fractured environment of a stranger’s mind. A young woman appears at the center of the projection in profile, a personified Rorschach blot that beckons the viewer to lean in, to look closer, to bear witness to her stunted personal narrative. Her questions and statements equally reveal strength, weakness, certainty and doubt. Surrounding her are the fantastical distorted reflections of the complexity of the inner workings of the mind. These are represented by pulsating, amorphous shapes evocative of blood flow and firing neurons; painted faces much like contrasting masked muses; a monochromatic, palliative rain storm; a sensual drift over a woman’s body; a face reflecting a summoning radiant light; galloping horses at a racetrack. Each “window” of this mind laid bare is relatable on some level, forcing viewers to find themselves simultaneously caught in the uncomfortable role of both voyeur and object of scrutiny. The installation invites a personal experience, allowing each viewer to control his/her engagement.