Do men pinup artists draw differently
than women pinup artists? It’s the battle of
the sexes!
It had to be asked- you know
it and I know it. It’s so basic to the
art-form, it just couldn’t be ignored. Pinup
art is about the way an artist perceives sex
and women, so there are bound to be
differences. Let’s observe, together, the
differences and similarities between men and
women pinup artists.
A Little History
Traditionally, not
many women artists are historically
documented. Women rights are such a new
concept, that sometimes I wonder how we got
so far, in such a short time span.
Historically, it was World War II that
launched women into the work-place, in
America, and they had their hand in every
field of expertise and occupation.
The 1950’s document a handful of talented
female commercial artists, who specialized in
pinup art (not counting the rest of the
female commercial artists that didn’t focus
on pinups). In the 1970’s Olivia would
create a new photo-realistic standard to
pinup art (very much influenced by Alberto
Vargas), that would start a wave of
“pornographic” images, that aimed to satisfy
Playboy readers. The 1990’s, however, would
see more women come into the niche, as a new
generation of women would be born into the
idea that they’re equals in the workplace, as
in the bedroom.
Pearl Frush Vs. Gil Elvgren
Both prolific and
skillful artists, Gil elvgren and Pearl
Frush exhibited women in many situations
and themes; The beach (a Frush
favorite), sports, or other everyday
activity. This is where the similarities
would end, however. While Elvgren had an
ideal woman, who would repeat throughout
his entire career (even though it is
known
he
used live models), Frush would
painstakingly show the different face
features (body-type didn’t change,
though), giving each pinup the depth of
a portrait. And while Frush’s attention
to detail would focus on the model
herself, freezing her in a timeless
placeless location, Elvgren would make
the setting abundant with detail,
telling a story, or narrative.
Gil Elvgren’s pinups are the images we
conjure, when thinking of a vintage pinup. My
theory is that his humor would make him
unforgettable. Elvgren would use slogans of
word play, throughout his entire career,
while Frush would stop quite early on. Also,
Elvgren’s girls are usually caught up in a
predicament, while Frush’s girls seem to be
capable and enjoying themselves in whatever
they do.
Olivia de Berardinis Vs. Hajime
Sorayama
Olivia de
Berardinis, as I mention above, was one
of the Playboy magazine artists to
changed the face of pinups, making them
more realistic. But Olivia would also
add the fetish and fantasy factor into
the pinup painting, and change it’s
direction forever.
While their work is very simmilar, Sorayama
tends to take up a more mechanical,
hard-edged, technological fantasy, while de
Berardinis is more into fabric ruffles and
hair flow. Sometimes the technology in
Sorayama’s work takes over and leaves only
female-like mechanical organs, while in
Olivia’s work, there’s always a very human,
feminine presence. It could be just me, but I
feel Sorayama has more to say than just
tits&ass (no disrespect to the rest of
the pinup artists, who strictly create
fantasy).
Jessica Dougherty Vs. Marcus Grey
Jessica Dougherty and Marcus Grey are
children of the photo-realistic revolution.
While Dougherty seems to take after mother
Olivia, Grey takes the direction of more
mechanical daddy Sorayama (infused with
grandpa
Mucha 
). Dougherty’s is more
feminine, with flower motifs, and most
of the time, much less daring than
Grey’s. Grey’s work is darker, more
leather, fetish and mechanics.
Alayna Magnan Vs. Dean Yeagle
To end
this tour, we take a short look at the
rejuvenated cartoon pinup genre. While there
are many cartoonists, who draw pinup art, I’d
like to just take a swift look at two artists
that seem to showcase the tide’s movement in
men’s and women’s perceptions towards sex and
women.
Dean Yeagle created
this wonderful dumb-blond (sometimes a
redhead) character, Mandy, who is very
reminiscent of Elvgren’s pouty girls.
Yeagle is as committed to Mandy (and her
scruffy little puppy) as
Duane Bryers was to his Hilda, drawing
her in many awkward and flexible positions.
Though Yeagle’s 1950’s influences are very
apparent, he (typically to the cartoon genre
and the beginning of this millennia) has
commentary pieces, which are feminist in
their views.
Alayna Magnan is a
young, post-modern pinup artist. Though
she has a very defined style, she has a
myriad of influences obvious in her
work. From American comics to Japanese
Manga, to Brat dolls, to Art Nouveau, to
Disney princesses and beyond. Magnan’s
pinups are strictly that- pinups, sexy
images. The deeper message is only
reached when looking at many of her
images at once (
easily
done at her website, with a smart hover
function). Each pinup is a different
stereotypical character, together they
bring to life all the facets of a whole
woman.
One more point to look at is the fact that
Magnan calls her pinup girls “Sexy Bitches”.
To add to that, in the about page, she refers
to them as living human beings, who...
...reside among the swimming pools &
movie stars of glamorous Los Angeles where
these self-proclaimed Sexy Bitches…
As a feminist of the same
generation, I find this debate always on the
table: Is my natural right to want to be a
sex object in conflict with my natural right
for equality (save the debate about natural
right’s existence for some other blog
)
Hope you enjoyed my new-wave battle of the
sexes,
Tags: tits&ass, Marcus Grey, Jessica Dougherty, Dean Yeagle, Sexy Bitches, Feminist views, post-modern, dumb-blond, cartoon pinup, Alayna Magnan, Women Pinup Artists, Pearl Frush, Gil Elvgren, battle of the sexes, fetish and fantasy, pinup painting, olivia de Berardinis,
Hajime Sorayama, vintage pinup, attention to detail, photo-realistic, 1950's, 1970's, 1990's, Playboy magazine, parnographic images, female commercial artists,
pinup art, World War II
