Joe Sacco’s drawing toward deadline

Person of the week

By Joseph Gallivan

The Portland Tribune, Jan 18, 2008, Updated Oct 30, 2009

©2008 RYAN WILSON-PAULSE

An exhibit at Pacific Northwest College of Art sheds light on Joe Sacco’s method and work, including this page from “Safe Area Gorazde: The War in Eastern Bosnia 1992-95.”

“I’ve always talked about chaining myself to my desk,” says comics journalist Joe Sacco over lunch at the decidedly retro Country Bill’s on Southeast Woodstock Boulevard. “I won’t say I’m doing that literally, but I really want to finish this book.”

He’s referring to his upcoming history of modern Palestine in comic book form.

When it comes out in 2009, he expects it will be around 400 pages long. He’s currently holed up in his Woodstock home working 10- and 12-hour days hand-drawing the images based on photos he took on several visits to the Middle East. He says, “I’m over halfway done.”

In the meantime, for those who want a glimpse of the Sacco method, he has a show called Graphic Articles opening at the Pacific Northwest College of Art today. It consists of 21 original pages of Sacco’s work, as well as two display cases showing reference materials and two audiotapes.

In the words of curator Mack McFarland, “Graphic Articles seeks to shed light on the power and technique of Sacco’s work by examining the original artwork from published books as well as documents of his process.”

McFarland coined the term “graphic articles” to distinguish nonfiction comics from graphic novels.

Sacco, 47, is a pioneer of using comics for serious reporting. He does extensive research to make sure his stories have authenticity, then draws himself in the frame as narrator to highlight his subjectivity.

For instance, he barely sketches in the field, preferring to take photos. He uses a cassette recorder to tape his interviews. And then he retreats to his study for years to create the finished product.

Sacco draws every panel by hand, including all the crosshatching. There are no shortcuts to be had using a computer, especially when it comes to drawing the human form.

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