PETALING JAYA: Taylor’s University today honoured Malaysia's Datuk Mohd Nor Khalid or Lat with a doctorate.
The internationally renowned cartoonist was awarded with an Honorary Doctorate in Arts during the university’s 18th convocation ceremony at its Lakeside campus, here, today.
Taylor's University Vice Chancellor and President Professor Michael Driscoll said Lat was awarded the doctorate in celebration of his enormous contribution to the development of the visual arts genre in Malaysia.
"The impact that he has had among Malaysians can't be denied and the depth of his work is to be admired as he is able to shed insight into different cultural traditions via his black and white drawings. Lat is, undoubtedly, a cultural icon of Malaysia and we hope his work will continue to impact Malaysians for years to come,” he said.
Lat, famous for his "Kampong Boy" comic strips, was grateful to receive the award from Taylor's University, the fourth such honour for the Perak-born cartoonist.
"I'm glad that more Malaysian universities are realising the impact and importance of graphic and visual arts," he said.
"Kampung Boy was a way for me to immortalise my childhood and share it with the world. I hope youths from across the country will try to do so too, as it would be nice to learn more about the lifestyle of someone from Melaka or Sabah, for example," he said.
This is the second time Taylor’s University has accorded an honorary award to an icon from the local arts industry.
Last year, they accorded an Honorary Doctorate in Arts to Datuk Faridah Merican for her significant contribution in nurturing interest in the nation’s theatre arena.
Driscoll said Taylor’s University and The Actors Studio have since formed a partnership to establish Malaysia's first Performing Arts Conservatory Degree.
"The Bachelor of Performing Arts (Hons) is part of Taylor’s commitment to further the reach of the arts sector in the country."
Taylor’s University offers a myriad of courses in tertiary education, from diploma, to degree, post-graduate and professional programmes.
The quality of the undergraduate teaching and learning at Taylor’s garnered a "Tier 5: Excellent" rating in the Rating System for Malaysian Higher Education (SETARA) by the Ministry of Higher Education in all four audit exercises and was voted the best private university in Malaysia for the graduate employment rate indicator under the QS Graduate Employability Rankings 2020 exercise.