What Things Are True

What things are true? This is what Jackie Hinkson has been asking himself since his early introduction into art and, more so, since completing his studies at the University of Alberta whose motto is "Quaecumque Vera" (Whatsoever Things Are True). In 2012, the year of his 70th birthday, he is still searching for the answer in his work. In this memoir, Hinkson tells of the experiences that helped to shape his vision as an artist; his early family and community life in "Cobo Town" in the heart of Port-of-Spain; his introduction to painting while a student at QRC and his crucial friendship with Peter Minshall there; the influence of the Central Library and the Art Society on his early formation; his doubts and his single-mindedness while furthering his studies in Paris and Canada; his marriage and the birth of his first child; his return to Trinidad in 1970 where he immediately faced challenges as an artist in a rapidly changing society, and his critical decision to live the rest of his life as an artist working in and inspired by his native land.