Sound Installation, 2007, Speakers, DVD players, Amplifiers, Installation Variable

“I know what you’re thinking…” is a sound installation that examines the very act of judging others. From the endless comments and quips on any number of topics, to the anonymous protagonists in the work, all expose society’s dual fascination and revulsion with others. When people are not constrained by expected politeness and sensitivity, we are all, potentially, the subject of someone else’s prejudice.

“… [in] I Know What You're Thinking, [Goodman’s] interrogation of bigotry is formally expanded to include the voices of a diverse range of actors, and maintains its edge because it allows the inflections of these voices to colour its content. So, voices that sound variously Black, so-called 'Coloured', White, European, and even camp, speak reverbed phrases of shocking yet not entirely surprising generalising intolerance. Urban legend-style ideas, like 'coloured women have their front teeth removed so they can give better blowjobs', 'prostitutes are responsible for the spread of HIV in the world', 'German men want to fuck black chicks', softly fill this space from different directions, at any one moment competing for one's attention.

The sounds emanate from craftily unassuming white canvas pillars, specially made to mimic the structural pillars of the gallery; yet it appears to come from nowhere, as if one had entered a realm where one is privy to the most private thoughts of other individuals. Goodman speaks of these sentences as the kinds of things many people in the contemporary moment do actually think but would never publicly own up to. One phrase ties many of the rest together, indicating a deep resistance to change and skepticism about social integration: 'I'm trying to be a good New South African, but it's really hard...'. The mix of voyeurism and implication in this work is powerful because it is at once amusing and unsettling.” 

Quoted from Michael Smith’s Review on Artthrob.  Issue #118_06.07 www.artthrob.co.za