Vaughan Alden Bass was an American
painter
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...
of
pin-up art
A pin-up model (known as a pin-up girl for a female and less commonly male pin-up for a male) is a model whose mass-produced pictures see widespread appeal as part of popular culture. Pin-up models were variously glamour models, fashion models ...
.
Bass was a
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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artist who started his career working for the
Louis F. Dow Company in
St. Paul
Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...
during the mid-1930s. Bass created his own pin-ups for
Brown & Bigelow
Brown & Bigelow is a company based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, that sells branded apparel and promotional merchandise.
History
The company was founded in 1896 by Herbert Huse Bigelow and Hiram Brown.
On June 24, 1924, Bigelow was convicted fo ...
, but he worked for Dow as a "paint over" artist, redoing work that other artists (notably
Gil Elvgren
Gillette Elvgren (March 15, 1914 – February 29, 1980) was an American painter of pin-up girls, advertising and illustration. Best known for his pin-up paintings for Brown & Bigelow, Elvgren studied at the American Academy of Art. He ...
) had done for the company.
Bass' style was often compared with that of Elvgren,
Al Buell, and
Joyce Ballantyne
Joyce Ballantyne (April 4, 1918 – May 15, 2006) was a painter of pin-up art. She is best known as the designer of the Coppertone girl, whose swimming costume is being pulled down by a dog.
Early life and career
She was born in Norfolk, Nebr ...
. In the late 1950s, Bass did a series of wrestling scenes that demonstrated his comfort with any subject matter. He created the
Wonder Bread Girl in the 1950s; the Wonder Bread girl, is modeled after his own daughter. His portrait of President
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
is in the
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
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See also
*
Pin-up girl
A pin-up model (known as a pin-up girl for a female and less commonly male pin-up for a male) is a model whose mass-produced pictures see widespread appeal as part of popular culture. Pin-up models were variously glamour models, fashion models ...
*
List of pinup artists
This is a list of notable artists who work primarily in the medium of the pin-up.
{{compact ToC , center=yes , side=yes , i=I, u=U, x=X, z=Z , seealso=yes , nobreak=yes
A
* Arnold Armitage
* Rolf Armstrong
* Aslan
B
* Joyce Ballantyne
* Mc ...
References
*
American illustrators
Pin-up artists
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
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