Michael Manning profile picture

Michael Manning

The Erotic Art of Michael Manning

About Me

I am the creator of THE SPIDER GARDEN graphic novel series (The Spider Garden, Hydrophidian, In A Metal Web I+II), TRANCEPTOR (with Patrick Conlon), and a few others. My latest book is INAMORATA: THE EROTIC ART OF MICHAEL MANNING - a hardcover collection of erotic portraits from Last Gasp. I also do gallery shows, design tattoos, and have done live light/film projection, posters, and graphics for various bands including HELIOS CREED, TOTIMOSHI, and the MARS BONFIRE...MUCH OF MY WORK combines elements of science fiction and fantasy with surreal and explicit eroticism. One of the main reasons I create erotic work is because I find most pornography to be ugly, boring and misogynistic and I hardly ever see anything that explores the themes that I find interesting (SM, B&D, androgyny/polysexuality, radical body modification) with any sort of intelligence or skill. I like black & white images - AUBREY BEARDSLEY and YUKITO KISHIRO are two of my favorite artists. While my work is well known in fetish, comicbook and goth/industrial circles, I don't really feel much affinity for any of these sub-cultures as their taste in art and music is often horrible...IF YOU'D LIKE TO CHECK OUT MY WORK, there's a lot of it on my web site (adults only please): http://www.thespidergarden.net/IF YOU'D LIKE TO BUY MY BOOKS, please go to: http://www.nbmpublishing.com/eurotica/emanning/mannhome.html or http://www.lastgasp.com/d/26057/FOR UPDATES ABOUT MY CURRENT & UPCOMING PROJECTS as well my periodic ramblings about music I like and live shows I've gone to, check out my LiveJournal: http://www.livejournal.com/users/metalweb/There is also a fan-based YAHOO GROUP dedicated to my work: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/spidergarden/

My Interests

comix, graphic novels, manga, anime, erotica, fetish art, tattoo art, symbolist art, flyer + poster art, photographing bands + models, live + recorded music, swimming, bicycles, altered/expanded states of consciousness, creative sexuality, staring back at the abyss

I'd like to meet:

PEOPLE who like my artwork....OTHER ARTISTS who think I might like theirs....BANDS/MUSICIANS who would like to hire me to do cd/lp covers, posters, logos, etc. Sorry, I don't do trades or freebies - that is, unless you're one of the bands on my Music list and then I might think about it.... Contact me through my web site for rates....BANDS/MUSICIANS who would be interested in doing soundtrack work for an animated/live action film version of THE SPIDER GARDEN (currently in development). I'm leaning towards ambient/electronic/environmental-type soundscapes but am very open minded musically. See my Music List if in doubt....MODELS (preferably Los Angeles area or willing to travel) who would be interested in shooting photo reference for portraits or characters in my graphic novels. For samples of my art and photography, check my web site........and just so we're all on the same page: THE COMMENT BOX IS FOR COMMENTS. It's not free advertising space. If you post an image (yours or someone else's) that I like, I may leave it up. If I don't, I'll delete it.... PEOPLE I KNOW PERSONALLY - meaning those I communicate with on a regular basis or have looked in the eye in real life on multiple occasions - and BANDS THAT I'VE INCLUDED ON MY MUSIC LIST are always welcome to post information related to their art or music....

Music:

The Agriculture (label), Amon Düül I+II, AMP, Aphex Twin, Atari Teenage Riot, Atom Heart/Atom TM, Syd Barret, Bauhaus, Black Flag, Black Sabbath, Boredoms, Boris, Byzar, Can, Chrome/Helios Creed, The Clash, Comets On Fire, Conjoint, Cornelius, Miles Davis, DJ Me DJ You, DJ Olive, DJ Spooky, Mikey Dread, Dr. Octagon, Brian Eno, The Fall, Faust, Flipper, Funkadelic, Gravediggaz, Guam, Harmonia, Hawkwind, High On Fire, High Rise, High Speed + The Afflicted Man, Holy Mountain (label), Ishq, Joy Division, Killslug, Kinski, Kompakt (label), Kraftwerk, Languis, Laudanum, Luscine, Main, Medicine/Electric Company, Monoshock, Mouse On Mars, Mushroom, My Bloody Valentine, Neu!, Nobody, nullspace, Om, The Orb, Oxbow, Panda Bear, Lee Scratch Perry, Plug Research (label), Popul Vuh, Prefuse 73, Prince Jammy, Pussy Galore, Residual Echo, Steve Roach, Royal Trux, RZA, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Ulrich Schnauss, Scientist, The Sea + Cake, Seefeel/Scala, Sleep, Sly + Robbie, Sofa Surfers, Sonic Youth, Specula, Stars of the Lid, Steely Dan, Stereolab, Mark Stewart + Mafia, Submarines, Studio Pankow, Tangerine Dream, Tipsy, Totimoshi, WE, Wire, Wooden Shjips, X, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Yoko Kanno

Movies:

Aguirre: The Wrath of God, Holy Mountain, Dangerous Liaisons, A Clockwork Orange, The Good The Bad and the Ugly, Blade Runner, Repo Man, Freeway, Akira, Princess Mononoke, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, Porco Rosso, Ghost In The Shell, Tokyo Godfathers, Destroy All Monsters, Fallen Angels, In The Mood For Love, Gun Crazy, Chungking Express, 2046, Videodrome, Scanners, The Fly, Existanz, Eastern Promises, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Nosferatu, Alien, Ninja Scroll, Taxi Driver, Mean Streets, Raging Bull, Good Fellas, Stranger Than Paradise, Ghost Dog, Matewan, Walkabout, The Last Wave, Performance, Ringu, Dark Water, Evil Dead II, Matango, You Only Live Twice, Doom Generation, Mysterious Skin, The Proposition, A Tale of Two Sisters, Children of Men, Ratcatcher, Morvern Callar, Lord of the Rings trilogy, Spirit of the Beehive, Pan's Labyrinth, Forbidden Zone, Psychedelic Glue-Sniffin' Hillbillys, Control

Television:

It watches me...um... I don't have cable so I usually watch dvds: Mushi-shi, Ergo Proxy, Samurai Champloo, Cowboy Beebop, FLCL, Paranoia Agent, GANTZ, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Rahxephon, Samurai 7, Serial Experiments Lain, Basilisk, MPD Psycho, Forbidden Love, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld, Pee-Wee's Playhouse, Lost In Space, Outer Limits, The Office (UK), Extras, Rome, South Park, Simpsons, Venture Bros.

Books:

Gene Wolfe, J.G. Ballard, Russell Banks, Fritz Leiber, Lucius Shepard, William S. Burroughs, H.P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, M.R. James, Robert Girardi, Haruki Murakami, Paul Bowles, China Miéville, Richard Price, Philip K. Dick, Ramsey Campbell, Ursula K. LeGuin, Tim Powers, Rudy Rucker

Heroes:

KILL YR IDOLS

My Blog

Nibelungen Sketches - Part Two

The second round of sketches for The Nibelungen illustrations has been uploaded: http://www.myspace.com/thenibelungen FYI - The profile for The Nibelungen project is moderated by publisher Sum Legio ...
Posted by Michael Manning on Mon, 29 Sep 2008 01:23:00 PST

Michael Manning’s THE NIBELUNGEN

Coming soon from Sum Legio...http://www.thenibelungen.com/The first round of sketches has been uploaded here:http://www.myspace.com/thenibelungen Enjoy ..::MM::..
Posted by Michael Manning on Wed, 24 Sep 2008 12:50:00 PST

Interview in "Art by Design" issue of artMatters

Lyn and I were interviewed for the "Art by Design" issue of artMatters, the alumni magazine of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. The primary focus of our section of the article was our design/ani...
Posted by Michael Manning on Fri, 19 Sep 2008 08:19:00 PST

MM at Comic-Con - Friday, July 25th

I'll be signing at Comic-Con in San Diego for one day only - Friday, July 25th - at the NBM Publishing booth.Booth 1528-1530-15321:00-2:30 & 4:00-5:30Stop by and pick up a signed copy of Tranceptor: I...
Posted by Michael Manning on Fri, 18 Jul 2008 10:56:00 PST

Spider Garden & Tranceptor Comix Pages For Sale

The first 14 pages from "The Spider Garden" and the first 14 pages from the "Tranceptor: The Waystation" graphic novels are currently available for sale. For thumbnails and prices, please go here:http...
Posted by Michael Manning on Sun, 29 Jun 2008 01:18:00 PST

New MM web site

At long last, after much work on my part and a whole lot more on Lyn's, my freelance commercial site is finally on line. You'll need Flash 6.0 or better to view it:http://www.dreamsequence.org/MM_art....
Posted by Michael Manning on Wed, 25 Jun 2008 01:01:00 PST

New MM Artwork For Sale

I've added three new Illustrations to the Artwork For Sale section of my site. Also, some previously listed pieces are now available framed. Enjoy the new work...::MM::..The Spider Garden: The Erotic ...
Posted by Michael Manning on Fri, 23 May 2008 01:25:00 PST

Introductions Group Show - March 30th 2008

Lyn and I will have work in a one night group show entitled ’Introductions’ at the home of our friends Alicia and Cooper Johnson. Featuring 16 of the West Coast’s top artists, the sa...
Posted by Michael Manning on Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:17:00 PST

DRAW Exhibit in London extended

After the overwhelming response to the London debut of the DRAW group show, in which over 2000 people were in attendance, the exhibit - currently at the StolenSpace gallery - has been extended for an ...
Posted by Michael Manning on Fri, 14 Mar 2008 12:56:00 PST

Multimedia/Design Award for "Paradise Lost" animation

Lyn and I have won a Garland Award in the Multimedia/Digital Design category for our animation featured in "Paradise Lost: Shadows & Wings".Congratulations to our fellow Paradise Lost award winners: D...
Posted by Michael Manning on Mon, 03 Mar 2008 10:36:00 PST