What do you think?
Rate this book
Pinups: Past and Present
Past and Present is a curated reference survey of the state of pinup art among contemporary graphic artists, tattooists, and cartoonists.
With more than 100 artists from the United States, Europe, Australia, Japan, and China included, this collection offers an unrivaled look at every different direction pin-up art design has taken since the heady days of Bettie Page. More than 200 images from the best practitioners betray the influences of the greats, such as Gil Elvgren and Olivia De Berardinis, but also show new trends , including a revival in 1980s-influenced line work in the vein of Patrick Nagel, and of biomech-influenced approaches. Every image is accompanied by a caption detailing the artist, name of work, and major influences, making this an invaluable source of information and inspiration for all graphic artists and cartoonists in the genre.
In the past, pinup women were considered to be a low bar for artists and were generally taboo in the art community. The current appeal of old pinup art is the unpretentious, often naive, and joyful whimsy that celebrates the sensuality of the women depicted. Whether they're real or imaginary, pinup women are a celebration of feminine sexuality .
The sheer breadth and span of pinup art today is amazing and every major genre is represented within, Past and Present features the best contemporary artists , such as Enric Badia Romero, Carlos Cartagena, Fiona Stephenson, Chris Wahl, ONEQ, David Nakayama, Andrew Hickinbottom, Zach Gardia, Ben Tan, Marta Nael, Jan Meininghaus, David Vincente, Screaming Demons, Syd Brak, Loopydave, Natalie Shau, Jasmine Becket-Griffith, Elias Chatzoudis, and many more.
For the pinup aficionado and artist, this non-stop, eye-popping book is an essential source of inspiration.
With more than 100 artists from the United States, Europe, Australia, Japan, and China included, this collection offers an unrivaled look at every different direction pin-up art design has taken since the heady days of Bettie Page. More than 200 images from the best practitioners betray the influences of the greats, such as Gil Elvgren and Olivia De Berardinis, but also show new trends , including a revival in 1980s-influenced line work in the vein of Patrick Nagel, and of biomech-influenced approaches. Every image is accompanied by a caption detailing the artist, name of work, and major influences, making this an invaluable source of information and inspiration for all graphic artists and cartoonists in the genre.
In the past, pinup women were considered to be a low bar for artists and were generally taboo in the art community. The current appeal of old pinup art is the unpretentious, often naive, and joyful whimsy that celebrates the sensuality of the women depicted. Whether they're real or imaginary, pinup women are a celebration of feminine sexuality .
The sheer breadth and span of pinup art today is amazing and every major genre is represented within, Past and Present features the best contemporary artists , such as Enric Badia Romero, Carlos Cartagena, Fiona Stephenson, Chris Wahl, ONEQ, David Nakayama, Andrew Hickinbottom, Zach Gardia, Ben Tan, Marta Nael, Jan Meininghaus, David Vincente, Screaming Demons, Syd Brak, Loopydave, Natalie Shau, Jasmine Becket-Griffith, Elias Chatzoudis, and many more.
For the pinup aficionado and artist, this non-stop, eye-popping book is an essential source of inspiration.
- GenresArt
176 pages, Hardcover
Published October 30, 2018
2 people are currently reading
20 people want to read
About the author
Jim Silke
39 books3 followersJim Silke was an American graphic designer, screenwriter, and comic book artist. He wrote the scripts for Sahara and King Solomon's Mines. In 1994, he created the comic book limited series Rascals in Paradise.
Over the course of his career, Silke was nominated for four Grammy Awards for best album design. He won in 1962 for his cover for Judy at Carnegie Hall.
Over the course of his career, Silke was nominated for four Grammy Awards for best album design. He won in 1962 for his cover for Judy at Carnegie Hall.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 15, 2022
The art is great but the format and presentation of it is a bit lacking to the point where I feel misled. There is no other information for the artwork other than the artist and the name of the piece. You have no idea when it was made or for any specific reason for it beyond the chapter the pieces were placed in. The book has the word past in its title but all the artists of the pieces are current enough that they have their own websites (contact info in back of book) Each section of different pin-ups mention historical artists and uses for the pin-ups but none are shown, just current artists. The book feels more like it was intended as an advert for the artists work rather than actual historical reference to pin-ups.
December 23, 2019
Absolutely gorgeous and informative “coffee table” book on the titular topic.
A huge plus with this book is that it primarily focuses on contemporary pinup artists. Also, several of the artists featured are female!
A huge plus with this book is that it primarily focuses on contemporary pinup artists. Also, several of the artists featured are female!
November 26, 2020
I really enjoyed this book/collection. It gave a decent intro to each type of pinup and when showing the examples it left out a lot of violent options it could've used which the viewer can appreciate.
April 4, 2024
An inconsistent collection. Some really unique and interesting art and some amateurish stuff. Artist I liked
Nathalie Rattner
Ben Tan
Sveta shubina (cool comic strip dot style)
Damian Fulton
Leila Ataya
What I learned: Neo-Surrealism plays with visions dreams and the subconscious.
Nathalie Rattner
Ben Tan
Sveta shubina (cool comic strip dot style)
Damian Fulton
Leila Ataya
What I learned: Neo-Surrealism plays with visions dreams and the subconscious.
January 15, 2021
3.4*
Really quick interesting read. I thought it would’ve been more classic representations, but I might have been misinformed.
Really quick interesting read. I thought it would’ve been more classic representations, but I might have been misinformed.
January 31, 2024
Great art work and some brief history on the different types of pin up art and its evolution.
April 4, 2024
The title is misleading because almost every artist are more recent which isn't obvious because there are no date or information except titles and artist names.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews