BOOKS | An interview with Paul Labonté, the artist/maker behind dog photo book Bully: It’s the Pits.

Photo by Lucas Ludwig on Unsplash

The 107 is a bus line in Montreal. It’s also the adopted moniker of Paul Labonté (Paul 107), the artist behind the award winning graffiti book All City: The Book About Taking Space, and the author of the newly published Bully: It’s the Pits, which is a sort of mini-coffee table book (Paul calls it a scrap book) about bulldog breeds, their owners, and why they’re great.

Bully: It’s the Pits is graphic and contemporary, with the flair of a sneaker ad and the disjointed nature of an indie magazine. Sort of like it’s author. Here, I talk to Paul 107 about all things Bully.

Jen Selk for Dose: You’ve said people react badly when they see you out walking your dog. How?

Paul 107: They’ll either say something condescending like, ‘You better be careful with that thing,’ or they cross the street out of fear. Now, I’m far from a thugged-out dude. I’m more like a Quebecois Woody Allen type – not menacing in the least – so seeing people react to me like that in my twenties was a bit much. I have a huge backyard now, so we don’t walk so much anymore. We wrestle and play fetch in the yard.

When dogs do attack, how could the media do a better job reporting the story?

Actually confirming the breed of dog to start off with. It’s convenient for the media to sensationalize – to say something was a ‘Pit Bull Attack.’ I would also report on who the owner was and how the dog was treated. People need to be held responsible for their pets’ actions.

Do you consider yourself to be a writer? A photographer? A super-artist?

I simply make stuff. I just want to tell stories. The medium doesn’t really matter, as long as I can keep making things.

Do you like Bully: It’s the Pits better than your last book?

They are very different but they’re like my kids. I like them both equally. I can see the flaws but I’m still proud of them.

Now that Bully: It’s the Pits is done, what’s next?

I’m making a book that has yet to be titled which is an open love letter to Montreal. That’s with Marco Cibola who designed the Bully book with me. I’ve also been invited to photograph the new Kid Koala Graphic novel. That will be in stores next fall. And I’m working on my first film. It’s a documentary, its music related, and it’ll take three years to finish. Think Ken Burns meets The Who documentary, The Kids Are Alright.

What’s your funniest story involving your dog?

The first time we went to the lake, he walked off the deck and fell in headfirst. He sank and I had to jump in and get him. He only likes to get in the bath now. No bigger bodies of water.

Final note: what would readers be most surprised to learn about you?

That I wish I were a locksmith or a fireman or an elevator repairman with seniority and a union card.

A version of this piece published in Dose, August 8, 2005. See below for clip. More books and authors stuff here. Interviews in general are here.

Published in Dose, August 8, 2005.