Milo Manara, the well-known illustrator of adult graphic novels, began
his career working on "fumetti", the cheap illustrated paperbacks
popular in 1950-60s Italy. In 1976, his career took off after his work
for the illustrated magazine Pilote. He also became known for his work
designing posters for the films of _Federico Fellini_. The two later collaborated
on comic books versions of some of Fellini's films.
In the 1980s, Manara turned towards the field of erotic graphic novels,
writing and illustrating such titles as "Click!", "Butterscotch", and
"Gullivera", (an erotic version of "Gulliver's Travels"). Manara's work
is characterized by a playful (some would say juvenile) approach to sex
- his women are almost impossibly sexy and their relationships are
guilt - and attachment-free. While some of the scenes can be quite
graphic, they never cross the line into hardcore pornography. Manara is
still active and drawing in Italy.