Born in 1931, Choo Keng Kwang is widely recognized for realistic renditions of landscape, animals and nature in the oil medium. Sympathetic to local working classes, Choo features them in many of his works. Graduating in 1953 from Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), he worked as a teacher, eventually returning to NAFA to helm the Art Education Department in 1984. Choo has since held many solo exhibitions and has participated in group art exhibitions in Southeast Asia, Japan, Europe and USA. Since the 1950s, Choo has received many awards for his many contributions to art and education, among which is the Public Service Medal (PBM) in 1976. ‘Durian Hawker’ shows the activity around a street-side durian stall: patrons eating and browsing with the hawkers attending to them. In this painting is the familiar central composition adopted by Choo in his art. In this region, durians are commonly known as ‘King of Fruits’ while mangosteens, always sold alongside by durian hawkers, are known as ‘Queen of Fruits’.
