Ton van de Ven (1 January 1944 – 16 September 2015) was a Dutch

industrial designer Industrial design is a process of design applied to physical products that are to be manufactured by mass production. It is the creative act of determining and defining a product's form and features, which takes place in advance of the manufactu ...

. He is best known as the creative director at the

Efteling Efteling () is a fantasy-themed amusement park in Kaatsheuvel, the Netherlands. The attractions reflect elements from ancient European myths and legends, fairy tales, fables, and folklore. The park was opened on May 31, 1952. It evolved from a ...

theme park. Van de Ven was born in

Eindhoven Eindhoven ( ; ) is a city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, located in the southern Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant, of which it is the largest municipality, and is also locat ...

, Netherlands, where he also studied at the Design Academy.

Work at Efteling

After graduation in 1963, Van de Ven applied for a job at Efteling in 1965.

Anton Pieck Anton Franciscus Pieck (19 April 1895 – 24 November 1987) was a Dutch painter, artist and graphic artist. His works are noted for their nostalgic or fairy tale-like character and are widely popular, appearing regularly on cards and calendars. H ...

, leading designer at the time, only asked him one question: "Do you master perspective?" Ton bent the truth a little to say that he did. He then started to work with Pieck on various aspects of the park, gradually developing his own style, which never conflicted with the existing styles in the park. Van de Ven's first project was to work with Pieck on the Indian Waterlilies. After a few sketches Pieck was convinced that he could fully trust the park in the hands of Van de Ven. When Pieck retired in 1975, Ton became the creative director of the park. Van de Ven's first "own" ride was the Haunted Castle ("Spookslot") in 1978, the first big attraction in the park. He created many of the current Efteling landmarks, of which Fata Morgana and Dreamflight are considered to be his masterpieces. In 2002 Van de Ven retired from the park, and he could concentrate on his hobby - creating large paintings and sculptures of women. In Efteling, part of the St. Nicolaas square is renamed to Ton van de Ven square in his honor and his portrait appears in Villa Volta.

Efteling Portfolio

Rides

* Haunted Castle (, Haunted attraction, 1978) * Half Moon (, Ship swing, 1982) *

Piraña A piranha (, or ; ) is any of a number of freshwater fish species in the subfamily Serrasalminae, of the family Serrasalmidae, in the order Characiformes. These fish inhabit South American rivers, floodplains, lakes and reservoirs. Although o ...

(

river rapids ride A river rapids ride (or river rafting ride) is an amusement ride that simulates whitewater rafting. History The river rapids ride concept was proposed by Bill Crandall (general manager of Six Flags AstroWorld, AstroWorld in Houston) and develop ...

, 1983) *

Tin Lizzies Tin Lizzies (or Old-timers; "De Oude Tuffer" in Dutch) is a car ride in the amusement park Efteling in the Netherlands. The attraction was designed by Joop Geesink and built by Mack Rides, and started operating in 1984. History and details In thi ...

(1984) * Fata Morgana (

dark ride A dark ride—or ghost train when horror themed—is an indoor amusement ride on which passengers aboard guided vehicles travel through specially lit scenes that typically contain Animatronics, animation, sound, music and Special effect#Live spe ...

, 1986) *

Pagoda A pagoda is a tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Thailand, Cambodia, Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist, but some ...

(

Observation tower An observation tower is a tower used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision to conduct long distance observations. Observation towers are usually at least tall and are made from stone, iron, and woo ...

, 1987) * The People of Laaf (1990) * Dreamflight (,

, 1992) *

Villa Volta Villa Volta is an attraction in the amusement park Efteling in the Netherlands. It is a rare type of ride known as a madhouse, a variation of a haunted house, where the visitors get the illusion that either the building, the visitors themselves ...

(madhouse, 1996) * Bird Rok (,

Enclosed Roller Coaster An indoor roller coaster or enclosed roller coaster is a roller coaster built inside a structure. The structure may be unrelated to the ride, or it may be intended solely or primarily for the ride. Many indoor coasters are custom made and place ...

, 1998)

Fairy Tales

Snow White "Snow White" is a German fairy tale, first written down in the early 19th century. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'', numbered as Tale 53. The original title was ''Sneewittch ...

(revision with Anton Pieck, 1975) * (revision, 1978) *

Hansel and Gretel "Hansel and Gretel" (; ) is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in 1812 as part of ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'' (KHM 15). Hansel and Gretel are siblings who are abandoned in a forest and fall into the hands of a witch ...

(revision with Anton Pieck, 1978) * (1979) * The Gnome Village (extension, 1980) *

Sleeping Beauty "Sleeping Beauty" (, or ''The Beauty Sleeping in the Wood''; , or ''Little Briar Rose''), also titled in English as ''The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods'', is a fairy tale about a princess curse, cursed by an evil fairy to suspended animation in fi ...

(revision, 1981) * (revision, 1987) * (1988) *

Tom Thumb Tom Thumb is a character of English folklore. ''The History of Tom Thumb'' was published in 1621 and was the first known fairy tale printed in English. Tom is no bigger than his father's thumb, and his adventures include being swallowed by a cow, ...

(1998) *

Rumpelstiltskin "Rumpelstiltskin" ( ; ) is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in the 1812 edition of ''Children's and Household Tales''. The story is about an imp who spins straw into gold in exchange for a woman's firstborn child. Plot I ...

(1998) * The Nightingale (new version, 1999) *

Rapunzel "Rapunzel" ( ; ; or ) is a German fairy tale most notably recorded by the Brothers Grimm and it was published in 1812 as part of '' Children's and Household Tales'' (KHM 12). The Grimms' story was developed from the French literary fairy tale ...

(2001)

Other

* Various variants of (1980-1988) *

The House of the Five Senses The House of the Five Senses is the main entrance of amusement park Efteling in the Netherlands. It was designed by Ton van de Ven and went operational in 1996, a year later than planned due to a general strike in the construction sector. Details ...

(entrance, 1995) *

Efteling Theater Theater Efteling (or "Efteling Theatre" in English) is a theatre in the amusement park Efteling in the Netherlands. It was designed by Ton van de Ven and opened its doors in 2002. History and details Theater de Efteling is one of the five big th ...

(2002)

References

External links

*
Ton van de Ven and the Amazing History of the Efteling
(article in Dutch) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ven, Ton van de 1944 births 2015 deaths Efteling Dutch industrial designers Design Academy Eindhoven alumni People from Eindhoven