Born in Ginnejen, The Netherlands in 1936, Ben Berns moved to North Carolina to teach at UNC Greensboro in the mid-60s. Awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1971, Berns has exhibited in New York, Denmark, and The Netherlands. His work appears in books and reviews in international periodicals.

Known for his tranquil, detailed paintings on canvas, Berns works on site in the traditional Dutch manner of landscape painting. Selected museums owning his work are the British Museum in London, Brooklyn College, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the High Museum of Art, the Library of Congress, the North Carolina Museum of Art, the Smithsonian Institute, Wadsworth Atheneum, the Walker Art Center, and Weatherspoon Gallery of Art. Corporate Collections of his work include the Bank of New York, Bijitsu-Sekia Company, Burroughs Welcome Foundation, Coca-Cola Corp., Duke University Medical Center, Exxon Corporation, Glaxo Inc., Mitsubishi, Morgan Stanley-Dean Witter, and the Sears Tower

He passed away in February of 2007 after a battle with lung cancer.