Sex and Horror ─ The Art of Alessandro Biffignandi

Between the late 1960s and the early ’80s Italy went crazy for the “fumetti sexy," a home-grown genre of exotic comics with a unique brand of twisted humor, violence, and up-front sensuality. Wilder and weirder than you can imagine, they were some of the most outrageous and shocking comics ever produced, and their highly erotic covers were seen on every news stand and kiosk across the country. One of the most accomplished and prolific fumetti cover artists was Alessandro Biffignandi, whose artworks often featured horror, fantasy and sci-fi elements. This book collects some of the sexiest and most provocative examples of his work, which is highly coveted by collectors today.

Alessandro Biffignandi was born in Rome in 1935, and later attended the city's Favalli studios, where he learned the finer points of drawing. After graduating, he spent the late 1950s and early ’60s working via Milan’s art agencies for the French market, painting covers for various pocket comics. He also drew comic strips too, includingRombo Bill (Rodeo 1959), Flambo (Flambo 1959), Antonin (Nevada),Agent Special K3 (Special Rodeo 1966), Sergeant Fury (Zembla) and Peter Berg (Hondo 1964). Throughout the ’60s and ’70s Biffignandi painted hundreds of pulp comic covers, but in the ’80s he left the comic world behind and started book cover illustration working in the horror, spy, war, and science-fiction genres. His designs have graced books published in the UK, United States and Italy.