Preserving an ancient Dutch skill
- Sebastiaan’s mission is to preserve the tradition of gilding leather
- He aims to breathe new life into the art, giving it a contemporary feel
- Restoration of gilded leather objects also forms part of his work
Sebastiaan van Soest was trained by his father, H.A.B. van Soest, who was a pioneer in preserving and restoring existing gilded leather and in making new pieces. “I literally grew up with gilded leather. My father taught me to create it at my mother’s knee. Wherever my parents went to work, they used to take my sister and me along,” he says. This delicate and meticulous technique of decorating leather dates back to the 6th century. Contrary to what one could assume, given its name, gilded leather is not worked with gold leaf but rather with very thin sheets of silver leaf. In order for the silver not to oxidise, layers of natural varnish are applied, lending it its final golden colour.
INTERVIEW
In the 1990s, our workshop created a gilded leather room for a replica of royal palace Huis ten Bosch at the Holland Village in Japan. That was the first time I was actively involved. Since I did not want this craft to be lost, I took it up again a few years after my father’s death.
Cities in the north of the Netherlands, especially Amsterdam and The Hague, were important centres of gilded leather production. In the Netherlands, both in the 17th century as well as the 18th, gilded leather was enormously popular as a wall covering.
The gilded leather in the Netherlands is known for its strong relief. In Spain and France they chiefly used sheep and goat leather. In the Netherlands, however, they mostly used beautiful, smooth calfskin leather.
Restoring three gold leather chairs belonging to the Queen of the Netherlands. And the collaboration with Edward van Vliet, with whom I developed a new pattern that was presented at the exhibition Masterly – The Dutch in Milan in 2018.
Sebastiaan van Soest
Leather gilder
Wateringen, Netherlands
AVAILABILITY
By appointment only
PHONE
+31 610610174
LANGUAGES
Dutch, English
