Jenny Holzer's One-Liner (2012) is a 25-minute digital artwork created exclusively for Sedition. A selection of 20 phrases from Holzer's series Truisms (1977-1979) play across the screen in a loop, approximating the appearance of the LED displays that have long been associated with Holzer’s work.

Holzer’s interest in the LED medium resulted from her awareness of the power of mass media and a subsequent desire to ask how this mode of communication affects perception, knowledge and truth. The Truisms series is comprised of over 250 single-sentence declarations, which Holzer wrote to resemble existing maxims or clichés.

Privileging no single viewpoint, the Truisms examine the social construction of beliefs and mores. The Truisms first were shown on anonymous street posters that were pasted throughout downtown Manhattan and have since appeared on t-shirts, hats, electronic signs, stone floors and benches.

The Truisms are deliberately challenging and often contradictory. Holzer has expressed a desire for the texts to "sharpen people's awareness of the usual baloney they are fed." ACTION CAUSES MORE TROUBLE THAN THOUGHT, CHILDREN ARE THE HOPE OF THE FUTURE, A LOT OF PROFESSIONALS ARE CRACKPOTS, MONEY CREATES TASTE, and ABUSE OF POWER COMES AS NO SURPRISE are only some of the dicta that Holzer decided to include in this exclusive Sedition piece.

Note: This artwork is optimized for viewing on smart phones, tablets, and connected TVs through our supported apps. It is created in 60 fps (frames per second) and the playback may vary on some computers.