Kampung (village) dreaming: rural and urban icons of Malaysian modernity in the cartoons of Lat

This article looks at how Malaysian national identity was constructed through the stereotypical icon of the kampung and its urban counterparts, in Lat's cartoons. Lat made significant contributions in portraying images of Malaysia's nationhood through his cartoons, which depicted both nostalgic rural imagery and changing urban life to promote Malaysia in the international arena. The late renowned Malaysian art critic Redza Piyadasa described Lat as having "elevated cartooning to the level of 'high visual arts' through his social commentary and "construction of the landscape" (Lent, 2003). Lat's cartooning work has received international recognition, and he has been rewarded with the highest honorific title possible for a civilian in Malaysia (the title Datuk was conferred upon him in 1994). Accordingly, we privilege Lat in this paper, over other popular Malaysian cartoonists.