Glued to the sofa the other day with a fever and cough that wouldn’t quit, I caught the end of a movie on t.v. that touched my soul. Filmed in 1942, Orchestra Wives had all the trappings of old Hollywood movies filmed on set, and I loved it! The costuming was amazing….dressing gowns with feathers, fur, lace and sequins…lucy dresses worn with spectator pumps to the local sweet shoppe…gloves and hats worn by everyone…the stuff a girl’s dreams are made of…I couldn’t get enough.

Starring George Montgomery and Ann Rutherford, the plot is a simplistic view of life on the road with an orchestra. At a time when our nation was in the midst of fighting a world war, I think that’s the kind of entertainment people wanted….Good Clean Fun, as my mother would say!

I went to the polls early this morning to cast my vote.

It was heartening to see how many others were making it a priority to be heard on election day. We owe it to this great country of ours to get out and vote.

I’ve added a new press kit download to my web site to assist anyone looking for more info about me and my work.

As a working visual artist, it is always a struggle to juggle time creating with time answering requests from publicists, private individuals seeking commissioned work, fan requests, and business propositions. I rely a lot on my website to convey info and I hope this is helpful.

100 signed postcards of my “Semper Fi” painting (which features pinup model Cherry Dollface) will be sent to marines stationed abroad as my way of saying thank you for all the hard work and sacrifice they do to make us safe here at home. Pinups have traditionally been a way for soldiers stationed far from home to stay connected to the home life they are fighting for and I’m excited to help keep this tradition alive!

There are new products available in my gift shop, including a new section featuring my painting of Kim Falcon titled “Fishnet Stockings”. I’ll be adding more images every week, so check back often!

Four new paintings have been added to my website gallery and fine art prints of these works are now available for online ordering. Although I posted blogs when some of the works were completed, it takes time to have the paintings professionally scanned and proof out the prints before they can be offered for sale - not to mention getting the gallery pages on my website updated.! You can go to my What’s New page for links to these new offerings.

In my quest to produce the ultimate pinup painting, I have been in contact with top pinup models and photographers to use their images as reference for my paintings. A lesson I learned early on is that good reference material produces better art. For those aspiring pinup artists out there, be wary of using any pinup photo you see on the internet, or in print. In accordance with U.S. Copyright laws, an artist MUST get a release from the photographer and/or model before using their image. You may have read that “substantialy changing” the image will keep you safe from copyright infringement, but that is not necessarily true. To be safe, ask for the release before you begin the work and you’ll be good to go.

sample model release

I’m still reeling from my conversation with the beautiful and lovely Asia Devinyl today. We are planning a photo shoot for reference photos. I was put at ease before my phone call by Asia’s genuine nature that showed through during her interview on Blairing Out with Eric Blair Show. As a society we assume that someone who makes a living as a model may be unapproachable, but not Asia! She is such a warm and friendly person. I can’t wait to work on a painting of her.

I’m steadily progressing toward completion of my latest painting. It’s a battle at times between wanting to get it done and knowing that taking my time is what gets me the results I’m looking for. In the words of Alberto Vargas, “Don’t lay your color too fast, build it gradually.” I read that in a book of Vargas’ work published by himself and Reid Austin simply titled Vargas. Published in 1978, this is the only work I’ve found that has anything written about Vargas’ technique, and of course it includes tons of prints of his amazing watercolor pinups.

I’m often asked what inspires me to paint pinups. Besides the fact that I’ve always been fascinated by the glamour of 40’s Hollywood and grew up watching old Elvis movies (and imagining myself to be his next conquest!), I am inspired by the work of pinup artists who reigned supreme during the WWII era. Chief among these artists in my mind is Alberto Vargas, creator of the Varga Girl that graced the pages of Esquire magazine for years. I love the subtle shading and sultry eyes of Vargas paintings, and that his two favored mediums were pastels and watercolors - which were the first mediums I used to create my pinups.

I recently got my hands on a new book titled “Alberto Vargas, Works from the Max Vargas Collection” and spent the weekend studying never before published Vargas paintings, sketches, and studies of pinups from the 20’s through the 60’s, including Vargas’ rarely seen legacy nudes. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves retro pinups - whether you love to view them or paint them, or both. Clck on the link above to view more details about the book and purchase at Amazon.com