Viktor IV,an American in Amsterdam
by Ad Petersen
From 1961 until his death in 1986, a conspicuous character, an artist who called himself Viktor IV (Viktor Four), lived and worked in Amsterdam.
Amstel River
Viktor IV lived under primitive conditions on an old cargo ship which was moored along the Amstel River in the center of Amsterdam near the Blauwbrug.
The ship became a well-known phenomenon in Amsterdam, as it was covered with wild constructions, rigged up with flags and banners and surrounded by overgrown rafts on which huts and quite a menagerie of ducks, chickens and colorfully painted cats. Texts such as ‘WHO NEEDS THE PACIFIC OCEAN’ or ‘THE SECOND QUALITY CONSTRUCTION COMPANY’ or ‘THE TIME IS ALWAYS NOW’ attracted the attention of passers-by. From the stern of the ship a Dutch flag was flying with the words ‘THANK YOU AMSTERDAM’.
Youth
Viktor IV or Jack Sun, Bulgar or Bulgar Finn (as he later named himself) was born in 1929 in New York City as Walter Karl Glück. His parents were European immigrants. His father was from Germany, his mother came from Greece.
In elementary school Walter was stubborn and disobedient. He was intelligent but had difficulty dealing with authority. He attended college in Florida where he majored in Journalism and Communication, focusing on photo journalism. He supported himself with various jobs. Restlessness and an urge for independence led him abroad. He traveled to Mexico and Peru, lived and worked in Korea and Japan for a while. He roamed around Europe from country to country living in a Renault Estafette (Spain, Italy, Portugal, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, England and the Soviet Union).
More reading: http://www.viktoriv.nl/engels/biografie_eng.html
Amstel River
Viktor IV lived under primitive conditions on an old cargo ship which was moored along the Amstel River in the center of Amsterdam near the Blauwbrug.
The ship became a well-known phenomenon in Amsterdam, as it was covered with wild constructions, rigged up with flags and banners and surrounded by overgrown rafts on which huts and quite a menagerie of ducks, chickens and colorfully painted cats. Texts such as ‘WHO NEEDS THE PACIFIC OCEAN’ or ‘THE SECOND QUALITY CONSTRUCTION COMPANY’ or ‘THE TIME IS ALWAYS NOW’ attracted the attention of passers-by. From the stern of the ship a Dutch flag was flying with the words ‘THANK YOU AMSTERDAM’.
Youth
Viktor IV or Jack Sun, Bulgar or Bulgar Finn (as he later named himself) was born in 1929 in New York City as Walter Karl Glück. His parents were European immigrants. His father was from Germany, his mother came from Greece.
In elementary school Walter was stubborn and disobedient. He was intelligent but had difficulty dealing with authority. He attended college in Florida where he majored in Journalism and Communication, focusing on photo journalism. He supported himself with various jobs. Restlessness and an urge for independence led him abroad. He traveled to Mexico and Peru, lived and worked in Korea and Japan for a while. He roamed around Europe from country to country living in a Renault Estafette (Spain, Italy, Portugal, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, England and the Soviet Union).
More reading: http://www.viktoriv.nl/engels/biografie_eng.html
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