Everything I say is not true
1986
Sculpture, 151 x 112 x 240 cm.
Materials: wood, concrete
Collection: Collection M HKA, Antwerp (Inv. no. BK5574_M56).
Everything I say is not true. Utter lie or absolute truth? The title of this work by Thom Puckey is in itself a well-known paradox.
The installation consists of two odd wooden structures, towers, frameworks identical in appearance. They form geometrical stands, each of which encloses a concrete disc. The side panels have been placed so that the gaze immediately falls on the slabs. These cement forms act as a sort of blank or inoperative mirror. They challenge the validity of mirrors as reflections of reality. The claim to veracity is called into doubt.
Mirrors, surrogate mirrors and lenses make frequent appearances in Puckey’s oeuvre. They do not project, but deconstruct projections of reality. In Everything I say is not true the two wooden stands are identical, hence they function as images and reflected images, but the cement mirrors do not work, the real mirror is missing.
In his work, Puckey shows that the things that exist are not always what they seem. The reality of existence can only be depicted through unrealities, tricks and theatre.
