The Sadomasochistic Universe of the British Comic Artist Erich von Götha
09 april 2021 
56 min. read

The Sadomasochistic Universe of the British Comic Artist Erich von Götha

Erich von Götha is the plume de nom of the British illustrator Robin Ray (born November 8, 1924 in Wimbledon), best known for his erotic comic book art exploring sadomasochistic coteries, using various paint and illustration techniques to tell his stories. Despite his shyness from the spotlight and living in puritan England, where censorship laws are so strict that his work is banned from publication, Von Götha is considered one of the greatest English adult comic book artists of the last decades.

Adult magazine Torrent Von Gotha

Cover of ‘Torrid (Vol.1 #4)

Sex Therapist

He developed his realistic style at St Martins art school in London where he studied drawing and painting. Von Götha started his career working for London advertising agencies as a designer, illustrator and copywriter, and then worked as a teacher at Ealing School of Art. The cause of his entry into the erotic genre was a chance meeting with the English sex therapist Tuppy Owens for whom he produced the ‘Sex Maniac’s Diary‘, an unusual but successful publication which was especially popular among women.

Lynn Paula Russell

Now that Von Gotha got the hang of it, he started publishing the pornographic comics magazine Torrid, which appeared irregularly between 1979 and 1986. The early issues of the magazine also included contributions by the extraordinary British fetish artist and former adult actress Paula Meadows (aka. Lynn Paula Russell).

Torrid von gotha adult

Cover of ‘Torrid (Vol.1 #5)

erich von gotha TorridCover of 'Torrid (Vol.1 #1)

Rasputin

Due to the ban on Von Götha’s work, several first saw print in France and Germany (without his knowledge) before they eventually appeared in an English edition. His works were from then on regularly serialized in Bédé Adult and Bédé X, and published in book format by International Presse Magazine (IPM) in France. It was thanks to the publisher of  these magazines, Lionel Roc, whose vigorous efforts caused Von Gotha to make a name for himself and resulted in his first books, the sci-fi story ‘Conte à rebours‘ (1987) and ‘Crimes et délits‘ (1988). Both albums were published by YES Company in France. ‘Crimes et délits‘ was the story of a depraved man who tells his lover about the lives of Charles Manson and Rasputin. Von Götha did the illustrations for the Rasputin section after the original artist Georges Lévis died.

the troubles of janice erich von gotha

The Troubles of Janice‘ (2003)

The Troubles of Janice

His most famous work is The Troubles of Janice which tells the story of a young unfortunate woman called Janice McCormick, falling prey to sadistic aristocrats in the eighteenth century England. From prisons to mansions, she climbs the ranks of society, until she finds herself free. The shadow of the Marquis de Sade hovers around the adventures of Janice and the content of the comics is characterized by extensive sex scenes and makes an effort to bring the time period to life in its splendidly illustrated artwork. A total of four albums were issued between 1980 and 2002.

erotic art by erich von gotha

Janice Unveiled‘( 1999) 

Erich von Gotha illustrator

Page from the comic ‘Twenty 2

erich von gotha janice'Janice Unveiled'

(Translation above image: "Ah! Milord! What pain! You're killing me! I will not be able to take any more! I beg you, stop? But the villain remained deaf to my pleas and continued to beat me until he was exhausted.")

Twenty

Von Götha also made a futuristic version of ‘Janice’, in his ‘Twenty’ trilogy (2004-2008) that was set the (then) faraway year of 2018. It follows the erotic exploits of an 18-year old girl, Twenty, at a special college for adolescent girls. Her education will be finished in 2020: the beginning of a new era of sex, according to the author, Twenty enjoys her libertarian education in sexual freedom and proves to be a brilliant student.

Erich von Gotha erotica

Fanny Hill‘ (2003)

Fanny Hill

Another notable contribution of Von Götha are his illustrations inspired on the controversial erotic novel Fanny Hill (1748) by John Cleland, The story of a young girl trained into sexual service, issued in two volumes, were illustrated by the artist in a noticeable manner including color graduations.

erotic comic von gotha

Fanny Hill‘ (2003)

Continuation

Despite his advanced age, Von Götha is still active and besides commissioned work, he is working on a continuation of ‘Janice‘ and ‘Twenty‘. Over the years his work has been displayed among other in the Mondo Bizzarro Gallery in Bologna, titled Sweat Tears & Reflections and In “Larmes d’Eros” in Paris.

The Education of Sophie erich von gotha

The Education of Sophie

Erich von Gotha marquis de sade

Janice Unveiled‘ (1999)

erich von gotha erotic illustration

Janice Unveiled‘ (1999)

adult erich von gotha

Janice Unveiled‘ (1999)

janice unveiled erich von gotha

the troubles of janice 4 erich von gotha

The Troubles of Janice‘ (Vol.4)’

von gotha sm

The Troubles of Janice‘ (Vol.4)’

Erich von Gotha Twenty

Twenty 2

'Twenty 2' erich von gotha

Twenty 2

'Twenty 2' orgy von gotha

Twenty 2

a very special prison von gotha

Cover art for Very Special Prison (Source: Talisman Fine Art)

Erich von Gotha The Troubles of Janice

Erich von Gotha comic book artist

erich von gotha comic

Lesbian bdsm Erich von Gotha

Very Special Prison

semi nude girl holding an owl

Erich von Gotha threesome with kissing females

sm bondage art von gotha

janice unveiled erich von gotha

Janice Unveiled‘ (1999)

erich von gotha lesbian art

erich von gotha masturbating female on chair

Janice Unveiled

erich von gotha erotic sketch

erich von gotha Devotion

erich von gotha Fellatio two girls

erich von gotha franz von bayros

erich von gotha masturbating female

Le Journal de Sartine‘ (2007)

Erich von Gotha Le Journal de Sartine comic

Le Journal de Sartine‘ (2007) (Source: Honesterotica)

Erich von Gotha lesbian

Le Journal de Sartine‘ (2007) (Source: Honesterotica)

Le Journal de Sartine Erich von Gotha

Le Journal de Sartine‘ (2007)

Erich von Gotha Le Journal de Sartine

Le Journal de Sartine‘ (2007)

Erich von Gotha Le Journal de Sartine: comic

Le Journal de Sartine‘ (2007)

comic Le Journal de Sartine

Le Journal de Sartine‘ ‘ (2007)

Erich von Gotha journal de sartine

Le Journal de Sartine‘ (2007) (Source: Honesterotica.com)

erich von gotha erotic'Le Journal de Jartine' (2008)

Fanny Hill Erich von Gotha'Fanny Hill' (2003)

erich von gotha erotic


Bizarre Acts

The following set consisting of 12 illustrations entitled ‘Le sentiment de la famille (A Sense of Family – 1996) accompanied the crude and humorous text of an erotic unpublished story on a family of theatrical performers specializing in bizarre acts involving the audience in a wide range of sexual experiments…

Le sentiment de la famille

(Source: Honesterotica.com)

lesbian erich von gotha

you know, she gave me a nickel to eat my cunt.

striptease erich von gotha

Shit! What a nice bush!

threesome gay art von gotha

(Source: Honesterotica.com)

Erich von Gotha fellatio

Hey! Foul on you

Erich von Gotha artist

Indeed…

Erich von Gotha adult comic

….Stick your finger in.

Erich von Gotha fingering

Ah! I’m too hard, I’m gonna jack off!

Erich von Gotha British

Come my child, I shall be quite filthy.

Erich von Gotha English artist

Feel me up if you like, but be careful with your nails.

Erich von Gotha art

…we shall have Jules

Erich von Gotha orgy

Fin.

erich von gotha

erich von gotha British artist

erich von gotha sm

erich von gotha tied nude female

Click HERE for an extensive article with 76 lusty pics on the great Italian comic artist Milo Manara..!!

Can't get enough of Von Gotha's enticing bondage illustrations? You can discover over 20 other striking examples in our Premium section. Click here and subscribe to our FREE risk free 30-day trial and check out this and much more exciting content...!!

erich von gotha teaser

Sources: Honesterotica.com, Lambiek.net, Wikipedia.org

What do you think about the sensual imagery of Erich von Götha? Leave your reaction in the comment box below..!!

About the author
Marijn is the founder of shungagallery.com. With more than 20 years of experience within the sensual and erotic art of shunga he is an authority in the genre. During this time he served many customers with complementing their art collection.
Courcelle
By

Courcelle

on 09 Apr 2021

I do NOT like sado-masochism. I do not like webp images. Il prefer jpg png. Regards

Marijn
By

Marijn

on 09 Apr 2021

Thanks Courcelle. I'm sorry to hear that but you can't always please everyone.

Alexandre
By

Alexandre

on 09 Apr 2021

I didn't know the work of Erich von Götha. I notice that there are some references to the cinema. I may be mistaken., but in image 1, the girl looks like Faye Dunaway and in image 2, the man looks like Yul Brynner. I loved it.

Marijn
By

Marijn

on 09 Apr 2021

Thanks Alexandre. Yes, there are movie references. The bald man on both covers is Von Gotha himself. His appearance (uniform and monocle) and name refer to legendary 1920s filmmaker Erich von Stroheim. You could be right about Fay Dunaway although she also bares resemblance to Jane Fonda (Barbarella). Anyway, I'm pleased you like the article!

Lyndon
By

Lyndon

on 28 Apr 2021

I love his work but it’s almost impossible to buy in hard copy without spending a fortune. Is it available digitally anywhere? I’ve looked but cannot find.

Marijn
By

Marijn

on 28 Apr 2021

Thanks for your interest Lyndon. I'm not sure what you mean, you're looking for an eBook displaying his art or are you looking for giclée prints of his original work?

Phil
By

Phil

on 09 Feb 2022

I was fortunate to collect his Janice and Twenty series published in US, as well as Le sentiment de la famille by Editions Astarte in France, at relatively lower cost. All I can say is you need the guts to read Janice and Twenty. They are definitely not for every one. His skills are unquestionable. The details are simply amazing.

Marijn Kruijff
By

Marijn Kruijff

on 09 Feb 2022

Thanks Phil. You're right, just as the content on our site Von Gotha's art is for those who can appreciate daring art. He's among my personal favorite sensual artists.

Place comment

Secrets revealed of an erotic art genius Find out in our free E-Book