Gillette Elvgren , known as Gil Elvgren famous for the wonderful vintage inspired pin up paintings capturing striking poses beauty & humor through his work ..
Going back to the women Elvgren painted , they were never the femme fatale, or somebody's mistress, They were the girl next door whose charms are revealed in that fleeting instant when she is caught unaware in what might be an embarrassing situation.
take a look at some of Elvgren's artwork of pin-up girls and the photos he used as reference they are just amazing!
Elvgren knew exactly what kind of woman he was looking for to create these amazing images , he would look for someone with small eyes, small ears, nice legs and a cinched waist with full hair, the gals had to have an expressive face !
Being a keen photographer Elvgren would prep every painting choosing the right model for the a specific setting making sure he had the correct lighting and props in his studio, most of the props he would also make himself.. then like a retoucher today he would use his paintbrush of course using oil paints and would enhance leg length, nip the waist, make lips fuller and so on ..
Some of Elvgren's pin up paining's were reproduced and placed onto the noses of WII planes and also dropped onto decks of playing cards ..
It is safe to say that the way Elvgren captured these beautiful ladies is so iconic, from the girl next door to these dreamy cartoon "IT" girls is just amazing .. from a bygone era and still adored and shared around the world , inspiring us all to this day!