The Hangman at Home

“What does a hangman think about when he goes home at night from work?” is the opening line of American Carl Sandburg’s 1922 poem ‘The Hangman at Home’. The latter is what animators and immersive artists Michelle and Uri Kranot’s eponymous VR installation is loosely based on, and it won them a Grand Major Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival. Users start the story by striking a virtual match. A small room provides access (through door, window, hearth) to spaces with five stories. Five monologues from people at turning points in their lives. These miniature theatres were hand-painted, frame by frame – static, yet lively. Small dioramas that invite you to come closer, but not too close. The work questions sometimes disconcerting human intimacy and the boundary between viewer, witness and accomplice.