Pinup Artist: Enoch Bolles

[Poppy Fields]

Enoch Bolles (1883 - 1976) was an American pin-up artist of the Art Deco era and one of my Top 10 favourite artists of the genre. Maybe even Top 5. His work is more stylised and graphically-oriented than the 50's pin-up artists; it's very modern in it's execution and I can see Bolles working with vector graphics if he was alive today.

His women all have beautifully rounded limbs, gorgeous rosy skin and waved - often wild, often blonde - bobbed hair. Their breasts are unfailingly high, round and just the right size to defy gravity. They are almost always smiling, although they do play sultry glamour vixens as well. Like other artists, Bolles had an odd "theme" which he often repeated: the "broken neck". Unlike George Petty's (another favourite) "women with no necks" though, they still look graceful.

Despite the style in which his women are depicted, there is something more "real" about them than e.g. Elvgren's women, even though these are more realistically painted. They have sass and an air of independence, rather than being merely saucily sexy. Even though he obviously painted the same woman - or type of woman - with the same easy smile over and over again, they each somehow have their own unique personalities.

There is a blog dedicated to Enoch Bolles with more examples of his work, as well as information on the history behind his work. One of our PL members, Johanna, has a set of photos on her Flickr account where she imitates the style of the bolles girl. She really captures the attitude of the poses, as well as that smile (and the hair!) (Johanna's entire Flickr account is a treasure trove of fantastic clothes and photo shoots. She is an artist and a surreally beautiful model too.)

I am currently working on solidifying my personal illustration style. My influences, interests and artistic desires are so diverse and numerous, that I've been struggling (for years) to "nail myself down". Revisiting Bolles has reminded me of my earliest exposure to pin-up, in the form of flapper style and the Weimar culture, and how much I love the look and feel of that era. I don't know what took me so long to clue in hell, I've been wearing a Brooks bob for most of the past 15 years! - but I'm really working on exploring that style more deeply now. I'm interested to see where it goes.