Customer Reviews

Lumenagerie

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Lumenagerie is a showcase of various drawings but Michael Manning. He has sections on avian dominatix's, a tranditional female domme, canine submissives, strap one service, maids/sissy maids, ponies and finally a variety of bestial beings engaging in sex.

Michael Manning is famous for high quality, imaginative erotic illustrations with BDSM and pansexual themes. This particular book is a catalog of various themes that repeat themselves in his other novellas. Interesting if you already like Manning. Otherwise, start with Tranceptor (mainly hetero stuff) or Spider Garden (more pan sexual - i.e. if you are homophobic it might bother you).

I am not sure if I was looking for a graphic novel with a story, versus a book of individual illustrations, or what... but once I eagerly tore the book from it's brown amazon box and opened it, I was fairly dissappointed. The art is exceptional.... it is rare to see black and white ink drawings that are so elegant in the use of line... but I was hopeing for a little more meat. A little more intrigue to pull me in, be it a story, or more unusual looking art. I found many of the drawings to be flat and elementary in their dipiction of crude sex acts and S&M... whie others were amazing... a few fluid strokes of ink produced a horse that is twisting and turning in different angles, or a man who is reaching up, and dispite little to NO detail in his arms and muscles, you precieve depth... amazing. Overall, id you are interested in line art, or S&M, this book is worth a look.... but if you are looking at something that will draw you into erotic graphic novels then I suggest any book starring Druuna (such as Morbus Gravis, or, my favorites: Creatura and Aphrodisia), or Girl by Kevin Taylor. For a better Manning book, check out Transceptor. This book is worth a look, but may not be worth the money.

The books by Michael Manning...the ART...is stunning and beautiful...each picture is a story in and of itself and they pull you in...capturing your imagination and, for a moment, alter your reality. This reveiw isn't just for Lumenagerie, but for all of Manning's books. The simply black and white drawings leave the viewer/reader wanting more...and I truely hope Michael Manning will be producing more books in the future...they are simply amazing.

Lumenagerie is a compendium of some of the finest, and most graphic yet, art by Mr. Manning. Within you will find statuesque dominatrices, women & men turned into birds, dogs, horses, and weirder things, and force dinto positions both painful and erotic. If you enjoyed his graphic novels, you will enjoy this work- with the caveat that there is no plot here, these are just freestanding works of art on the themes of BDSM and transformation.

Best known for his series of erotic graphic novels beginning with The Spider Garden, the brilliant artist Michael Manning here showcases his stand-alone work in this beautiful large-format compilation of black and white line drawings.

Manning's specialty is bondage, and he renders his subjects in a unique style that owes much to the lyrical and elegant simplicity of Japanese prints and Art Nouveau. For all the grace of line he shows, Manning's work is not simple, either in execution, setting, or apprehension. The scenes he depicts are complicated, the rendering simple but lush, and the emotions they arouse are deeply affecting.

Elegant pen-and-ink drawings capture the imagination immediately, and invite the viewer into a world as disturbing as it is beautiful. I felt everything from startled recognition to unsettling arousal. This is art that makes no apologies, needs no explanation, and cannot really be described.

It has become the worst of clichés to laud an artist by saying that their work really needs to be experienced, but in this case it is true. Forgive the cliché, for Manning's work is wholly original and deeply felt. The tableaus he creates stay with you, right under the skin. For those who dare his vision, it is a rewarding journey.

For those not acquainted with Michael's work, this is an excellent place to start. His unique vision is well worth a look.

Most highly recommended. If you're brave, it's an excellent coffee table book.

I keep all of Manning's books inside of a secret library, because they are too risque to keep on my bookshelf. I love erotic art, and this is defintely one of them.

I love the illustrations, the were so raw yet sensual. He so creative, in the way he draws, capturing sexuality at it core.