The painter who writes fairy tales

By Natasha van Bentum

"The brightness that leaps from his canvases is that of crystals seen through ha microscope."

TIME magazine in its review of an exhibition of works by Henri van Bentum in Paris, France, asked what happens when you put together:

-a children's story written by an international artist who lives in James Bay,

-four bright young Victoria musicians who perform stories for young children,

-one contemporary composer,

-and a bunch of young children?

You get the world premiere by Music Corner of The Icy Crystal See Through No Name Man, a children's story written by artist Henri van Bentum.

Music Corner is an ensemble of four professional Victoria musicians who perform children's stories for young children.

A musical adventure for young children

Van Bentum calls the Music Corner performances "a musical adventure for young children."

The shows include games, simple songs for singing along, and opportunities for dancing and moving.  This is often followed by an "instrument petting zoo," where children get a chance to try instruments similar to the ones used in the performance with guidance and encouragement from the performers themselves.

"I'm pleased about this collaboration, but am more amazed, considering I wrote this story forty years ago in 1972," says van Bentum, who has lived in James Bay with his wife Natasha since 2004.

Henri van Bentum

Henri van Bentum is the son of a diamond-facetter. He was born in the Lowlands in 1929 and schooldays lasted until age 11 at the outbreak of WWII.  Many of his children's stories are based on his boyhood in Holland before the war.

After the war, Henri found himself working at first-class hotel restaurants in Amsterdam as a dining room waiter. This proved to be ideal training ground for the next chapter in his life, when, at the age of 18, he joined the merchant marine (Holland America Line) in 1948 as a first-class dining room steward.

Sailing with Holland America Line in the late 1940's enabled him to see the New World, doing transatlantic crossings form Rotterdam to New York. He served movie stars such as Claudette Colbert, Robert Taylor, and Barbara Stanwyck.

Early Career

Henri began painting at age 22 during a long period of illness in Holland.  After a three-year convalescence, he regained his health and immigrated to Canada. In 1959 van Bentum found himself in the Canadian Rockies, where he spent the spring and summer field painting en plein air.  He was discovered at Moraine Lake by faculty of the Banff School of Fine Arts and was invited to be the first guest student, where he won several awards.

Returning to Toronto, Henri's career took an upward, spiralling path. He had numerous exhibitions in Toronto, New York, Mexico, and Paris.  Henri's work is represented in private and public collections around the world.

Driven by a deep interest in other art forms and far away cultures, Henri has taught himself to speak six languages and has travelled to every corner of the globe, often by ship.

Van Bentum is also a pioneer in the concept of Creative Artist in Schools programs.  He has made three circumnavigations of the world by ship, as guest artist and lecturer.

Children's Stories

It was during a break from painting that van Bentum wrote several children's stories, The Icy Crystal See Through No Name Man being one of them. 

Note: Tickets for the two performances of The Icy Crystal See Through Name Man on December 8 at 11 am and 3 pm at Victoria Conservatory of Music. Please call 250- 386-5311. Henri van Bentum is a man of many talents. He is also currently collaborating with NASA's Chandra X-Ray Observatory with an online exhibit, "Coloring Space", featuring some examples from his opus work, ORGANIVERSE.  You can see the exhibit here: