Elvgren Hardcover – Special Edition, January 1, 2008

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 [...] .

I've heard of Gil Elvgren under a negative vein. "He's merely a smut artist who objectified women." is a common response to those who know of him from appearance alone.This book does a stellar job proving this claim as a false and unjust marginalization perpetuated only by ignorance and a lack of culture.A near complete collection of all of his works, this book explains the artistic relevance of each time period which he produced work. It displays his paintings in a beautiful fully colored adaption which although doesn't do the originals justice, works its hardest to live up to the impossible task. As a student of art, one can't help appreciating how Elvgren captures the anatomical complexities of each person, while also achieving a sort of innocence unique only to his works. The poses are inspiring and creative. Each pictures uses everythign to masterfully tell a story at a glance.For those like myself who admire the old pinup artworks that help define a generation of advertisement, this book is not merely a perfect addition to your collection: It's a necessity.Unrelated to the book, there were some minor warping and a couple of pages were stuck together from what appeared to be a minor spill along the lower pages. Not a problem at all.

Without any knowledge; yet a curious fascination for a bygone era, I perused many of the illustrators famous for their cheesecake-girl-next-door pin ups of the fifties on the web. Gil Elvgren came up tops! As Rockwell held a mirror up to the American public, Elvgren manage to evoke Rockwellesque subtleties into his work too. Your eyes are attracted to the girls, however, other elements like a dog, a turtle, a prop like a diary, add to the charm of the work and to the total innocence of the girls. Living in the current "Raunch Culture" where female nudity is pervasive, this book transports you back to another time where the girls exude a level of desirability that Elvgren perfectly captured in his work. The luscious and lovingly delivered colour plates (some 500 of them) demonstrate Elvgren's evolution into the auteur of pin up illustrators, as he progressively developed real depth into to his work. This book is a perfect introduction to an incredible genius and an incredible artform

I am a fan of all kinds of retro 'pop art'. This book is a great addition to any art collection. The book is hardcover, large photos, bright colors. At the price it is at, this is one of my best purchases from Amazon. The girls are all in similar poses, situations, but they are all gorgeous and take you back to the golden years of Americana. I would warn any parents that their is some photos/drawings of full nudity (which I didn't expect). Not many, but a few. I planned on keeping this out as a coffee table book, but with some young boys running around the house, I will keep it in my bedroom bookcase. To wrap up, at this price in my opinion this is a no brainer purchase. 5 stars.

Si te gusta el arte de Gil Elvgren, sin duda querrás tener este libro. Tiene muchas obras del autor y como se sabe, deleitarás tu mirada con las hermosas chicas que plasmó. Si eres entusiasta o practicante del arte, dibujo y pintura, también lo disfrutarás. No doy las cinco estrellas solo por algo que ya había leído y notado antes de comprar el libro (así que lo asumí y de todos modos lo pedí). El acomodo de las obras es algo saturado y encimado. Algunas imágenes que merecían ser mas grandes no lo son, y algunas otras tienen mucho grano o la calidad de la imagen falló en nitidez. La referencia es que vi otros libros y posters con obras de Elvgren, donde las mismas imágenes que menciono, se ven con mejor calidad. De todos modos, muchas imágenes vienen bien y disfruto sin problema el libro.