Benne van der Velde is a poet, bad playwright, former rapper/average singer and more. Always needing more. After thoroughly enjoying the Dutch slam poetry scene in the early and mid 2000s (wins in 7 cities + eventually a place in the Nationals of 2012) and performances at the Lowlands- and Parade festivals a/o, Benne successfully made the transition from the stage to paper by signing his first publishing deal in 2005, with 5 volumes of poetry and an anthology of famous Dutch and Flemish sarcastic/cynical/anger/pamphlet poetry published by 5 (2 x kleine Uil, Douane, Nadorst, Stanza and Passage) publishing houses in total as a result so far. 2 years of studying 'Writing for Performance' at the vocational university of Utrecht (HKU) resulted in 3 of his plays actually getting played. As a member of the art collective Het Ongeboren Idee he helped to organize/present monthly poetry events in his hometown of Vlaardingen (Poezie in De Steeg), Rotterdam (De Poetsclub) and Nijmegen (Late Letteren Live). There were a lot of collabs too, for example voice-over work for a Rock Opera, a monumental art project for which he partnered up with the artist Erwin Adema and thrice alongside the R.J.S.O (The Rotterdam Youth Symphony Orchestra). Some of his short sci-fi and fantasy stories have found their way to medium related websites, magazines and anthology’s.
In everyday (some claim real) life he (1974) worked as an industrial tank cleaner, driving forklift trucks, in pest control, on a garbage truck, at a chemical waste disposal facility, on a Ferry and 10 years as a bartender/dealer in a Dutch coffeeshop. At the time of writing this bio he’s recovering from a rigorous throat cancer treatment. He’s been off the herb since 2008, has a wife, 2 dogs, mild anxiety issues and likes to read every sci-fi and fantasy classic he can find.
According to the poet himself rewriting his own poetry, lyrics and prose in English somehow feels like the next logical step in his career, a way to open up to the world at large. Which is both exhilarating and terrifying. So far several of these re-writes/translations have been published in Bebarbar, Hare’s paw, Festivalforpoetry, Punt Volat, The Dewdrop, The Dillydoun Review and Months to Years a/o. He’s been an editor for three Dutch literary magazines (Krakatau, Op ruwe Planken and Renaissance) in the past, and started Double Dutch magazine to immerse himself in other peoples’ work and help him towards getting his own chapbook/volume in English published.
Onno Maat is a multimedia artist; he paints, sculpts, plays guitar, makes videos and illustrations, and ventures often into the digital realm to create his art.
He has made content for videogames, created a ‘digital museum’ and has done various project with art collective Het Ongeboren Idee. Currently living in Leiden he engages with local artists in various projects about sustainability and diversity, always seeking to connect people and cultures.
This philosophy of connectivity and creativity, in the real world or in the digital space, is also what he brings into the classroom, where he teaches art to 12-16 year old high-schoolers.
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