What gave Th Tjong Khing a youthful demeanor was not the lack of wrinkles or his thick wavy hair. It was his sprightly, sure-footed stride.

He sighed when queried about his work as an illustrator. "I'm unable to draw pictures at night. My eyesight is failing me. I can't perceive colors without natural light," Khing, 82, told Tempo at his home in Haarlem, the Netherlands, early this month.

Khing, the youngest of five, was born in Purworejo, Central Java