After completing his studies, Ravind moved to Amsterdam, immersing himself in the vibrant early music scene of the Netherlands. For ten years, he performed as a baroque flautist with the Dom Kantorij in Utrecht, participating in weekly Masses, Cantatas, and Passions alongside orchestral and solo performances. His engagements extended across Read more
Australian artist Jenny Dodson, whose family background includes Dutch heritage, has created works that draw on the cultural imagery of the Netherlands. One of her notable pieces is Monochrome (2025): tribute to my Dutch heritage, a painting of a traditional Dutch windmill. In this work, Dodson uses a restrained palette Read more
Early life in Amsterdam Early life in the Netherlands Pieter Robert (Robby) Boele van Hensbroek was born in Amsterdam on 18 October 1920 to André Boele van Hensbroek and Jo Sluiter. He grew up with his sister Elsje in a close-knit family. His youth was marked both by joyful summers Read more
In 1955, the Broekman family became part of the great wave of post-war Dutch emigration. That year, young cook Bert Broekman was working aboard the emigrant ship SS Zuiderkruis. On the same voyage, his older brother Jan, sister-in-law Annie and young nephew Henk were leaving the Netherlands to begin a Read more
The Wynhausen family represents one of the many Dutch–Jewish stories of postwar migration to Australia. Paul Wynhausen and Marianne (Mary) Nathans were both born in the Netherlands and endured the years of Nazi occupation. They met in Switzerland, where many Dutch Jews had taken refuge during the Second World War. Read more
The State Library of Western Australia (SLWA) holds an extensive collection of publications, oral histories, photographs, personal documents and research material associated with Dutch-Australian historian Dr Nonja Peters. The two catalogues presented below provide complementary ways of exploring these holdings. The first is a broad catalogue of material associated with Read more
Lia van Haren Lia van Haren has been a long-standing volunteer at the Dutch Australian Cultural Centre (DACC), beginning her service in 2009. Before this, she had little involvement with Dutch organisations in Australia, having assimilated quickly into the broader community after migrating with her family in 1950. Her family’s Read more
Ian Fairweather and the Netherlands Ian Fairweather (1891–1974), born in Bridge of Allan, Scotland, became one of Australia’s most distinctive modern painters. His path to Australia was long and unusual, and the Netherlands played an important part in it. Wartime and The Hague In 1914 Fairweather joined the British Army. Read more
Christiaan Rudolph Victor Slotemaker de Bruine (born 7 May 1941, The Hague; died 27 August 2024, Canberra) was a Dutch-Australian landscape architect best known as the originator and designer of Canberra’s Floriade, now Australia’s largest spring festival. He conceived Floriade in the mid-1980s, drawing inspiration from the famous Keukenhof in Read more
Dutch footballer Bente Jansen is part of Brisbane Roar in the Ninja A-League, adding a new chapter to the Netherlands–Australia sporting connection. Jansen came to Queensland in 2025 with a strong pedigree in European football. She previously played for Dutch giants AFC Ajax, where she featured in 24 matches, scored Read more