Who is Jean Marais from This Earth of Mankind and what is their importance?

Jean Marais is Minke's next-door neighbor at the boarding house. He is a Frenchmen who has studied at the Sorbonne, but who ends up in the Indies. He enrolled in the Dutch Indies Army to keep from going broke, and fought in the wars. In the time of the novel, however, he is an artist who employs Minke to bring him orders for his furniture and painting business. He acts as a confidant and adviser to Minke.