He wasn't the first but he was the best. In terms of technique, taste and visual impact Gil Elvgren ranks as the modern day Rembrandt in the world of illustration of beautiful women. He was my principal inspiration as I am a nationally published illustrator and am frequently called upon to paint beautiful girls in ads. As a student at the University of Minnesota, majoring in studio art, my style and artistic goals were the pariah of most of the art faculty except the very best artist they had on the faculty staff. He understood what I wanted to achieve and I never got less than an A in any studio class. In my senior year I visited Brown & Bigelow Company in St. Paul, where I lived, and submitted samples to Clair Fry, the famous art director who commissioned Elvgren and many other top flight artists for their famous calendars. It was then that I learned that none of these men were on staff but located across the country. He loved my work and gave me great early advice as to how to get going in the commercial art business as they knew nothing about that at the U. of M. I followed his advice and started my career which has lasted over thirty years.
Gil Elvgren was the best for the reasons I previously stated but in addition his work was always in good taste. His girls were downright wholesome and "the girl next door type". They often had the look of being unaware that they were being watched and were usually caught in somewhat innocent and private moments. His work could never ever be termed salacious or perverse as so many of his later day copiers are. The art of the pinup, for the most part, has degenerated somehwhat since Gil Elvgrens day. It probably started with the advent of Playboy and Penthouse magazine and their "foldouts". As long as we have these wonderful retrospective books on artists like Elvgren the public will have the chance to see what great pinup art used to be by the absolute master of the genre.
For anyone interested in my contributions to this art genre my official website is www.dickbobnick.com . |
Gil Elvgren: All His Glamorous American Pin-Ups (Taschen 25th Anniversary Special Editions) Books In Print, Audio Books.