With the dates of Bali Nine prisoner executions still up in the air, at least Australian Myuran Sukumaran can now proudly say he earned his fine arts degree before meeting the firing squad.
The news of his degree was announced on Friday at Curtin University by mentor and Archibald Prize winning artist Ben Quilty, reports Australia’s 9 News.
The artist even tweeted about it:
The famous Australian artist has been mentoring Sukumaran since 2012 and sees the drug convict as his friend.
In Kerobokan Prison, Sukumaran leads the art studio and works with fellow prisoners in art classes.
According to 9 News, a cohort of Norwegian students who have campus in Bali collaborate with Sukumaran on art and philosophy classes.
On March 7, some of Sukumaran’s painting will be auctioned off, with proceeds returning to the art classes, says lecturer Oivind Klungseth Zahlsen.
Zahlsen is in no doubt impressed with Sukumaran and his rehabilitation work with other inmates.
“Most of all it’s identity creation – they can proudly say I am not a criminal, I’m an artist, or something else,” Zahlsen said.
Photos at the top taken from Friends of Myuran Sukumaran Facebook page
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