Louis van Soest is Dutch painter who was born in Poerworedjo, Dutch East Indies.
Louis van Soest worked and lived in many cities throughout his life, such as Amsterdam, Aken, Den Haag, and Wassenaar. He lived in Paris and Wiesbaden for a long time. Initially studying chemistry at the University of Aken, he dedicated the rest of his life to art since 1910. He made paintings, watercolours, and especially wintery landscapes.
He honored the masters of the Hague School by working with the same motives and subjects, such as typical Dutch landscapes with sheep, painted very meticulously and precise. In 1891, Van Soest settled in The Hague where he entered the inner cercle of The Hague School, befriending painters such as Weissenbruch and Maris. He is part of the last time that Dutch Impressionism flouirshed and experiences how the masters put their heart and soul in their work.
Louis van Soest became an important man in the art world of The Hague, occupying important executive functions in the Haagse Kunstkring and The Committee for Royal Grants, a fund that payed for young artists in order to encourage them to work carefree. Some of his collegues were renowned masters such as Louis Apol, Willy Sluiter and Piet van der Hem.
His work can be seen in multiple museums such as the Boymans-van Beuningen in Rotterdam and the Gemeentemuseum Den Haag.