The East Coast Vendor by Georgette Chen

In the foreground, the subject matter portrays the happy locals living along the coastline. The mother and her two daughters are wearing traditional attires, the baju kurung. The background consists of the beach, the sea and few fishing boats. The orangy sky and the direction of the boat, sailing towards the shore, tell us that it is in the evening where the sun sets.

The colours used are warm and bright, mainly red and orange. The colours are flat. Outlines are thick, obvious and drawn with earth tone colours like brown and red. The texture is a little bit like impressionist, the effect created is like ripples on the canvas. It makes the painting look like water colored. The brushstrokes are clear with depth of colours. 

The painting tells us the relationship between the natives' lives and the sea. The sea is the place providing them with resources like food and incomes, thus their lives are very much dependent to the sea. The relationship between the mother and her daughters are close. The basket supported on the mother's head symbolizes that their lives are supported by their hard work and the smile on their faces tell us that they are contented with their simple life. 

The painting is not effective in portraying the life in Southeast Asia because it does not show all the aspect of their life. And also, the picture portrays only females. However, on the other hand the painting is able to portray clearly how the people dress, where they live and what they live off. Hence, the effectiveness of this work in portraying life in Southeast Asia to a certain extent only.