Pin up art - Gillette (Gil) Elvgren

I’m a big admirer of old school pin up art, I love some of the 30s to 80s pin up artists, not so much the contemporary ones as they tend to over sexualize and cheapen their work (there are some exception, of course, that I’m going to discuss in the future).

My absolute favorite is by far the amazing Gil Elvgren (1914 – 1980). He was a classical American illustrator with a successful career in advertising (he painted for Coca Cola, General Electric, Ford and many other iconic brands) and numerous published magazine drawings. He studied art at the Minneapolis Art Institute and became one of the most important pin up artists of the twentieth century (in my humble opinion he was the best).

His work is not limited to pin up art, but he is best known for them, especially if we’re talking about the pieces he made for Brown & Bigelow (a legendary firm in the field of calendars and advertising).

Today his original paintings are high commodities; they sell for thousands of dollars and are highly sought-after by collectors and art lovers.

As for his pin up girls, he had an unique eye for the idealized woman figure – never a femme fatale, never vulgar or cheap, his classic pin up was more of the girl next door pictured as a mix of sweet and seductive, caught unaware in a potential embarrassing or funny situation: the wind, plants, small dogs, elevator doors, fences all conspire in rising her skirts and revealing her beautiful, long legs and undergarments.

He also had an exquisite taste in fashion, his girls are always wearing amazing dresses and skirts in the style of the era. Elvgren's pin up girl is happy and natural and I’ll bet you’ll smile reading the witty titles he gives to most of his drawings.

Here are some of my favorites, I have plenty more and I’ll show you them in future articles.

“Hoops My Dear”, 1956

“All Set”, 1956

 

“Jill Needs Jack”, 1950

 “Up In The Air”, 1965

 Cover Up”, 1955

 “He Thinks I’m Too Good To Be True”, 1947

 “Welcome Traveler”, 1955

 “Rare Edition”, 1962

"Pot Luck", 1961

 "Lucky Dog”, 1958

"I've Been Spotted" 1947

 "What’s Up”, 1957

Photo credit

Aren't these just perfect? Looking at them makes me want to wear a beautiful party dress everywhere I go!

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