9 Squares (Dutch work), performance 1980, Festival Works and Words, Amsterdam

He had the floor of the performancespace devided into nine even squares by 24 equal thin wooden sticks which were on the ends connected to each other by strong strings. His performance on the evening of the 30^th of september was the very last action of the International Works and Words Festival, this event took place in Amsterdam. The thin sticks on the floor were painted bright green. The space was light from above by one floodlight. He first walked trough the squares, then picked up one stick by which the whole structure lifted itself, which of course changed the forms from squares into intriguing trapezium shapes. Then suddenly he would let the structure of sticks fall back on the floor and give himself and the public the chance to take in the newly arranged shapes. Unceasingly he repeated the game of picking up the stick-structure and letting it fall on the floor constantly new forms would be shown to the public that was for this performance directed to a high balcony where one could watch the form-play from above. He played so fiercely with thesticks though that soon the first sticks started breaking. This changed the forms from even structures into uneven structures, but it did not make the visuals less interesting. After quite a while of echausting play with the sticks not much more than lots of broken bits and pieces were left.

He however, keeping himself completely under control, first played with the parts, going from one side of the space to the other and putting the bits and pieces in different, always attractive, shapes. Then finally he brouht all the broken parts togeteher and composed a nice bunch of sticks in the middle of the performance platform, which was then the last visual he presented to his public.

Louwrien Wijers, 1980