Political cartoonists balance conflict, humor at Jerusalem conference
By Associated Press November 9, 2005
Baha Boukhari, a Palestinian cartoonist from the West Bank, flashed slides of his art showing Israel's separation barrier crushing a dove (AP)
Covering the Middle East conflict through political cartoons is no laughing matter, sketch artists told an international cartoonists' conference Tuesday, saying they prefer to provoke rather than amuse.
Riber Hansson, a leading Swedish cartoonist, said his work is about revealing truth in a situation, not making people laugh. If his work evokes anger, then he knows he is getting people to think.
"I just try to hit the nail on the head," said Hansson. "If someone tries to hit me, I take it as a bonus."
The three-day conference, which ended Tuesday, brought 23 artists from 16 countries together to discuss ways to depict conflict while maintaining perspective and balance.
Artistic director Michel Kichka, a veteran Israeli cartoonist, said cartooning is solitary work and the conference was an open platform for professionals to exchange ideas.
Hansson said that as a foreigner, he has struggled to understand the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. "I find that when a conflict never stops, my cartoons get darker and darker," Hansson said.
He said the conference gave him a perspective that he hopes will keep his work thought-provoking and edgy. Hansson is an award-winning freelance editorial cartoonist in Sweden.
Tuesday afternoon's sessions highlighted the somber side of covering the Middle East. Slide shows of Israeli and Palestinian artists' work provoked more thoughtful murmurs among attendees rather than laughs.
Baha Boukhari, a Palestinian cartoonist, flashed slides of his art showing Israel's separation barrier crushing a dove or cutting through a soccer field to depict how the wall has disrupted the peace process and the lives of West Bank residents.
"I try to show how (Palestinians) feel on the other side of the wall," Boukhari said. "We consider this wall to be a jail. It is stopping peace."
Israel says the barrier is needed to keep out suicide bombers. The Palestinians say the barrier, which dips into the West Bank, is an attempt to confiscate land they claim for a future independent state.
Lecturer Avner Avrahami lent an Israeli perspective to the conference and presented cartoons by Amos Biederman critical of settler's behavior during the recent withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
Biederman works for the prestigious Israeli daily Haaretz, and many of his recent cartoons have dealt with reactions to the Israeli disengagement.
Boukhari said the interaction with his Israeli counterparts would help promote public discourse and perhaps even make people laugh.
"That is why I am a cartoonist," Boukhari said. "I'm the kind of person who looks for facts."
The conference also featured presentations from American cartoonists Jeff Danziger, who spoke on American political humor, and Pulitzer Prize winner Patrick Oliphant, who opened the conference with a discussion of life as an editorial cartoonist.
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