According to two national newspapers, she is considered an Italian sex symbol. AskMen named her the number one most desirable woman in 2002. Men's Health also named her one of the '100 Hottest Women of All-Time', ranking her at No. The February 2001 Esquire's feature on Desire featured Bellucci on the cover and in an article on the five senses. In that year, Bellucci made the transition to acting and began taking acting classes. She posed for Dolce & Gabbana and French Elle, among others. By 1989, she was becoming prominent as a fashion model in Paris and across the Atlantic, in New York City. In 1988, Bellucci left the Faculty of Law at the University of Perugia, and moved to one of Europe's fashion centers, Milan, where she signed with Elite Model Management with the aid of model agent Piero Piazzi. Monica Bellucci began modelling at age 13 by posing for a local photo enthusiast. Bellucci at the 2002 Cannes Film Festival for the promotion of Irréversible
