Suromo’s practice was concerned with the daily life and struggles of the people. Pemulung features a group of scavengers against a glorious mountain vista. Suromo’s attention to detail is demonstrated through the careful depiction of the clothing. Upon close glance on the man placed second from the left, one can observe the discreet mended patches on his top. During Indonesia's war of independence from 1945 to 1949, Suromo was active as a revolutionary artist and expressed himself in writing. In the magazine Mimbar Indonesia in 1949, he wrote about the technique of painting as an expression tied to the times. According to him, the important thing about painting is to completely empty out the contents of the artist's heart. Art is not a matter of technical skill in painting, but letting the heart speak fully everything it has held back. Suromo began making drawings for architect Robert Deppe in Batavia (Jakarta) in 1940. He also studied painting under Mas Pirngadie and worked on glass paintings, murals and ceramics. Suromo was a member of Persatoean Ahli-ahli Gambar Indonesia (PERSAGI, Union of Indonesian Painters) in 1937, and took part in an exhibition at the Bataviasche Kunstkring (Batavia Art Circle).