The Truisms Series | He kōrero pono

by Sonja van Kerkhoff + Sen McGlinn, 2016

Limited edition waterproof paint-print
Each of the 19 different works is either 10 cm or 20 cm in diameter. Edition 99. Printed on dubond. Painted with acrylic and varnish.
Here, detail of an installation of 9 in Galerie Tuinstaal, 2016, Leiden, The Netherlands

Limited edition waterproof paint-print
Busy not thyself | Kauaka koe e pokea
10 x 10 cm. Edition 2/99. Printed on dubond. Painted with acrylic and varnish.
This text is the same as the one in the first image on this webpage so each work is unique.
Each is weatherproof + has a hook on the back. Text is from The Hidden Words by Baha'u'llah.


Each is uniquely painted and each is also numbered and so these an edition of paint-prints.

The play between languages is not just between the the New Zealand Māori and English texts but between the language of abstract expressionism vs the conceptual, in miniature. Some may read them as texts for contemplation while others might read them as provocative. They are durable to withstand the tests of diverse social environments.

Limited edition waterproof print painting
"Justice is | Ko te tika"
Printed on dubond + painted with acrylic and varnish.
Each is water and weatherproof + has a hook on the back.
10 x 10 cm. Edition 2/99.

19 discs in the 2016/2017 Kaipara Coast Gardens Sculpture Trail

19 paint-prints from the "Truisms" series on show at the "Under Kaipara Skies" Kaipara Coast Sculpture Gardens. On show Dec 2016 - October 2017.

  Limited edition waterproof paint-print
Out of the Clay | I te māra, Kaipara Coast Sculpture Gardens
20 cm diameter. Edition 1/99. Print on dubond, acrylic and varnish.
Each is weatherproof + has a hook on the back.

  Limited edition waterproof paint-print
In the Garden | I te māra
10 x 10 cm. Edition 3/99. Printed on dubond. Painted with acrylic and varnish.
Each is weatherproof + has a hook on the back.

  Limited edition waterproof paint-print


One of the agreements of the New Zealand 1840 Treaty of Waitangi was to preserve and respect the Māori language as an asset for this land. When I first started to learn Māori in 1986 it was as if a light had been turned on. I understood my country, Aotearoa, much better and the spirit and interconnectedness of things made sense to me. Language is a key into a culture and today New Zealand English is influenced by Māori just as Māori is influenced by English.



Limited edition waterproof paint-print
Thy heart is My home | Ko tō Ngākau Tōku kāinga
10 x 10 cm. Edition 3/99. Printed on dubond.
Painted with acrylic and varnish.
Each is weatherproof + has a hook on the back.

Limited edition waterproof paint-print
"Justice is | Ko te tika"
10 x 10 cm. Edition 2/99. Print on dubond.
Acrylic and varnish.
Each is weatherproof + has a hook on the back.

Limited edition  paint-print
"Veiled | Āraia"
20 cm. Edition 1/99. Print on Aluminium.
Painted with acrylic and varnish.

Index of the Truisms series
Related Work

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