OBSERVATION AND POWERLESSNESS , by Peter Spaans for Unlimited.nl/2, in De Appel, Amsterdam (1999)

My work is to wander through cities such as New York, Berlin and Amsterdam, exploring the streets, neighbourhoods and buildings.
At certain moments I make photographs of what I see. My point of departure, the spot from which I view and investigate the world, is the Netherlands. I observe those developments taking place in urban districts in which past and future are clearly visible. The particular functions of site, location and building pass away and change. Large cities impress us.
They are made by human beings, but they manage to escape our human grip. The city reflects this powerlessness. It's like a labyrinth, an opaque structure and a beacon for the future. Photography makes it possible for me to record my interaction with this contemporary urban environment. I place the chosen photos in a pre-planned layout -- a cinematic framework; a series of images that refer to urban planning and complexity. My work can best be seen as a large work in progress. Each and every image is part of a single continuous report.

But whereas the photo ends, the city is endless.

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