The Belgian artist Eugène Remy Maes, born in Puurs, painted mainly genre pieces with animals and landscapes with cows, sheep and poultry. He is counted among the followers of the famous Belgian cattle painter Eugène Verboeckhoven. Maes sometimes painted together with other artists, such as David Col and Jan Portielje, where he always provided their landscapes with cattle. At the beginning of his career he often used the pseudonym Ermaes, later he also signed with the name of his cousin: Theo van Sluys. His work was successful, especially by Americans who visited Belgium. Many of his paintings went to collections in the United States.