Roadside Noodle Seller, by Khoo Tee Seng, Watercolour

Devoid of any context, the seller is identified with his specific wares. On the left is the wooden box with sauce bottles, soup containers, plates and chop sticks. On the right is the basket on which bowls and condiments are laid out. The two customers with chopsticks in their hands immediately reveal the identity of the vendor as a noodle seller. That the artist is keen on presenting a hawker type than painting a specific person can be deduced from the way he poses the seller. Dressed in clean clothing and betraying none of the effects of his labour or the grime of the street, the entire image is a charming vignette.

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