Iiris Hälli - in English

Stones do not speak, for they have nothing to hide.

Kivet eivät puhu, niillä ei ole mitään salattavaa.

Put up a low wall of stone, and leave the gate open.

Rakenna kivistä matala aita ja jätä portti auki.

After the rain, every stone is a gem.

Sateen jälkeen jokainen kivi on jalokivi.

 

The philosopher’s stone stays wisely in hiding.

 Viisasten kivi pysyy viisaasti piilossa.

 

I place stones in a row, like words in a sentence.

 Järjestän kivet riviin kuin sanat lauseeksi.

The aphorisms are taken from Iiris Hälli’s book “Akvarelleja ja aforismeja – Aquarelles and Aphorisms”.

“This book opens up the hearts of stones with the painter’s methods. The artist, Iiris Hälli, is an aquarellist who has developed a personal method of painting in this difficult technique. She also wrote about her stone models, and that is how the aphorisms were born.”

Iiris Hälli is an artist living in Helsinki. Her production includes paintings, sculptures and wall paintings. Her works have been exhibited since the 1970s. Nature has a strong presence in Iiris Hälli’s art.

Aphorisms translated into English by Matti Berger, revised by John Pickering