Giovanna Casotto - Illustrator

Our first interview for Fetishnale Berlin could only be for a cartoonist, as we have a Thursday column on fetish and erotic comics.

Our choice immediately fell on one of the most important and well-known in the world, in her drawings we recognize the passion for drawing and the female body.

Giovanna Casotto was therefore our initial choice.

During her long and popular career she drew for the erotic monthly magazine Selen, later she moved to the monthly Blue and published erotic boards for the English magazine Desire.

In 2014 an exhibition was dedicated to her works at the WOW Spazio Comic museum in Milan and she published several comic books.

Last but not least, she drew a much appreciated line of wallpaper depicting drawings of women.

Hi Giovanna and thanks for your availability, let's start with the questions right away.

You are one of the most famous Italian erotic cartoonists in Italy and also abroad, your drawings are iconic and recognizable. But when was your passion born? And above all, what pushed you towards this genre?

"The story is a bit funny: my ex husband was an avid comic reader. One day, out of pure curiosity, I wanted to leaf through some of those publications that absorbed all his free time and I was struck by the drawings of Franco Saudelli . Up to that moment I had painted the usual things in oil (boats, flower pots, etc.) and suddenly I realized I wanted to draw like him .. I went to the school of comics in Milan (actually I would have preferred to enroll in the design one, but it cost too much!) with Saudelli's comics and I asked "Can you teach me to draw like him?" and they smiled. However I started attending the courses and, shortly after, I published the first things. At the time I was the only woman drawing porn (my classmates were stunned). The craziest thing is that a short time later I met Saudelli and started collaborating with him. I will reveal, however, a little secret: my real passion is to design chairs. I "invented" and designed a mig liaio: one day, who knows, I'll do something with it. "

Over the years, the relationship between people and sexuality has certainly changed. How did you see this evolve over time?

"I swear to you that I have absolutely not noticed. I have always felt free to express myself without paying too much attention to the social contexts and opinions of others. Otherwise I would never have decided to draw eroticism and pornography ... also because the thing, on a personal level , actually gives some trouble. It would be absurd to deny that some kind of repercussion comes up, sooner or later.

In your opinion, now, thanks to the fall of so many sexual taboos, is it easier for this kind of comics to be known and above all to be appreciated?

"Surely today it is easier. There is always a need for someone to break the ice ... When I started drawing eroticism (even quite strong) there were no other women who did it, at least in Italy (apart from one ). Now there are many girls who draw porn very well and they do it with an ease that was unthinkable thirty years ago). Maybe some of them took courage also thanks to my work ... or not, who knows. "

Now many taboos have fallen, it is true, but how difficult is it for a woman to work in this very male-dominated sector (especially in Italy)? And how do you keep the "vultures" at bay?

"I think it's actually easier now, above all because a woman who draws sex is no longer alone. There is more possibility of confrontation. There is male chauvinism in this area: it is undeniable. However, I have never been the victimization type, I've always gone straight on my way.In any case, I don't frequent the environment, even if two or three erotic artists are among my closest friends.

Ps. The vultures with me have a hard life! "

What are the subjects and scenes that you like most to represent in your drawings?

"The female body, of course!

Not necessarily during sex. I like the woman who plays, who makes faces, who teases and laughs. I love people who laugh and I surround myself with them. "

From which countries do you feel most appreciated and recognized both on a personal and professional level? In which countries do you currently work the most?

"I would say that the French love my works very much, but they are also appreciated in the USA and Brazil. In Italy there is a good deal of attention at the level of collectors, but it still remains a niche consumer."

Let's talk about fetish: do you have your own fetish?

"I would say no ... apart from the 50s-style clothing. For the rest, I'm not a fetishist at all."

In your drawings there is a lot of space for representations of women with bare feet, or with high heels, to the delight of foot fetishists. Their representation is very precise, almost maniacal. Was this wanted?

"I'm afraid to disappoint those who think they see a fetishistic passion in my drawings. I know, of course, that those who love the female foot particularly appreciate the accuracy that I dedicate to the feet. And basically I've always played with this type of foot. I recall, also because I started inspired by the poses of women designed by Saudelli and I often posed for her works too. For me the question is another: before I finding my own style, I noticed how the other designers neglected the definition very much. In short, in the face of perfectly defined faces, accurately drawn breasts, perfect asses, I noticed sketched feet or, in some way, hastily "pulled away". even the little finger, the same care. It is for this reason that my feet have, in my portraits, the same centrality as a face or a breast. "

The Fetishnale Berlin staff would like to thank Giovanna for her availability and for the time she dedicated to us.

Credits images: Giovanna Casotto https://www.facebook.com/marka.ginny

Ghost writer: https://www.instagram.com/darksideofbarbie/