Beauty Parade February 1949 – An Artistic Journey Into Glamour And Intrigue
Introduction: A Glimpse into the Past
Peter Driben’s Beauty Parade February 1949 captures an iconic moment of American glamour and vintage allure, bringing together the bold and seductive spirit of mid-20th-century pin-up art. Known for his mastery of the pin-up genre, Driben’s work was celebrated for its sophisticated yet playful depictions of women, often embracing a combination of sensuality and class. This artwork, painted in 1949, exemplifies the refined yet bold portrayal of feminine beauty through a strategic balance of color, form, and composition.
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Main Subject: The Femme Fatale in a Red Dress
At the heart of the composition is the captivating figure of a woman, portrayed in a seductive and confident pose. She sits with one leg poised delicately over the other, her body turned slightly to the side, yet her gaze directly confronts the viewer. The figure exudes a sense of both allure and power, her crimson dress billowing slightly as if caught in a breeze, emphasizing her voluptuous form. The dress, with its off-the-shoulder cut, accentuates her graceful, feminine curves, while the bright red hue suggests passion and vitality.
Her expression is one of mischievous charm, a classic hallmark of Driben’s subjects, whose gaze often invites curiosity and intrigue. The woman’s red heels match her dress, a visual cue that reinforces her boldness and confidence. Atop her head, a carefully styled mass of waves and curls frames her face, with a ribbon adding a touch of playful elegance. The artist’s attention to detail is evident in her delicate features—high cheekbones, a soft smile, and slightly arched eyebrows—creating a harmonious balance of beauty and grace.
Her pose also suggests a subtle narrative. Resting lightly on her thigh, one hand holds a long, slender object (perhaps a cigarette holder), adding to the sense of poised sophistication and the timeless glamour of the era.
Surrounding Elements: The Shadowed Background and Wings
The background of the piece is as compelling as the figure herself. Dark, almost ethereal shadows emerge from either side of the central subject, forming what appear to be angelic or bird-like wings. These dark, contrasting elements not only serve to frame the woman but also add a dramatic sense of mystery and power. The wings are smooth and stylized, echoing the fashion trends of the time, which often included dramatic statements in art and design. These wings lend an air of fantasy and exaggerate the beauty of the subject, providing a striking contrast against the vivid red of her dress.
The composition is completed by a soft play of light that surrounds the figure, accentuating the curves of her body and the flowing fabric of her dress. The darker tones in the wings and background provide an aura of tension, as if the woman is both part of and removed from the mysterious world around her. There is an underlying sense of both elegance and danger, a reflection of the femme fatale archetype.
Materials and Techniques: Masterful Illustration
Peter Driben’s style is rooted in the traditions of commercial illustration, where detail and glamour are paramount. His use of bold, clean lines and the careful attention to proportions gives the figure a lifelike quality that remains faithful to the conventions of pin-up art. The application of colors is deliberate and evocative; the rich red of the dress contrasts starkly against the dark, muted background. Driben’s use of highlights and shadowing on the woman’s skin creates depth, emphasizing her form and the play of light across her body.
The technique is characterized by smooth gradations of light and dark, which give a three-dimensional quality to the figure. The background is softer, with fewer details, placing all focus on the central subject. This simplicity of the background serves to highlight the intricate details of the woman’s pose, facial features, and attire.
Style: Pin-Up Art at Its Peak
This piece embodies the pinnacle of mid-20th-century pin-up art. It was during this period that pin-up art became a symbol of youthful exuberance, seduction, and American culture. The stylistic approach employed by Driben in Beauty Parade February 1949 is rich in its visual appeal, with a heightened sense of femininity, confidence, and allure. His figures, though idealized, are imbued with personality, suggesting that these women are not just objects of beauty, but active participants in their narratives.
Driben’s work often blurred the lines between commercial art and fine art, appealing to both mass audiences and collectors. His pin-up models, with their glamorized but relatable characteristics, were meant to celebrate the sensuality of the female form while remaining within the bounds of taste and style.
Theme and Mood: Seduction, Confidence, and Power
The primary theme of Beauty Parade February 1949 is one of sensuality paired with a quiet but undeniable strength. The woman’s posture and expression suggest an empowered persona—someone who is fully aware of her beauty and the power it holds. There is a confident playfulness in her stance, enhanced by the subtle details of her hand positioning and the graceful way in which she sits. The wings behind her, though dark, are elegant, providing an almost mystical quality to the composition that reinforces the idea of beauty as something transcendent and otherworldly.
The mood of the piece is seductive and alluring but also imbued with a sense of mystery. The figure’s direct gaze draws the viewer in, yet the surrounding shadows and surreal wings leave a lingering sense of ambiguity. Is the woman an angel or a temptress, a mythic figure or a flesh-and-blood reality? This tension between the ethereal and the grounded plays a significant role in the overall atmosphere of the artwork.
Conclusion: An Iconic Representation of 1940s Glamour
Peter Driben’s Beauty Parade February 1949 remains an iconic representation of mid-20th-century glamour and the era’s fascination with sensuality, beauty, and fantasy. Through his use of bold color, dramatic composition, and attention to detail, Driben crafted a work that continues to evoke the allure and power of the pin-up model. His combination of elegance, charm, and mysterious strength makes this artwork a lasting testament to the timeless appeal of the feminine form as depicted in the art of the 1940s.
About The Artwork
Beauty Parade February 1949 by American Painter Peter Driben (1903 – 1968); painter, illustrator and one of the most prolific pin-up artist of the 1940s and 1950s.
This is a fun piece from the February 1949 Edition of Beauty Parade Magazine, which shows an attractive redhead, with red lipstick in mid length off shoulder red dress, a red bow bandana in her hair that is also wearing red strap high heel shoes.
Originally she was seated on a greyish-blue decorative pouf and was set against a black background; but decided to replace those and add in my fractal art composition portrait Taidushan Sai The Talons Of Time, to change the look as if she may be in for some enticing hot water.
The young redhead has her dressed lifted and spread over her thighs using her two hands, which reveals her decorative panty and her beautiful full figured legs.
This is a remastered digital art old masters reproduction of a public domain image that is available as a canvas, acrylic and metal print online.
Artist Info
Info Below From Wikipedia.org
Peter Driben was born in Boston, and he studied at Vesper George Art School before moving to Paris in 1925. While taking classes at the Sorbonne in 1925, he began a series of highly popular pen-and-ink drawings of the city’s showgirls.
In March of 1934 Driben created his first known pin-up which was the cover to La Paree Stories; and by 1935, he was producing covers for Snappy, Pep, New York Nights, French Night Life and Caprice.
As Driben’s popularity continued to rise in the late thirties he created more covers for other periodicals including Silk Stocking Stories, Movie Merry-Go-Round and Real Screen Fun.
Driben’s career expanded into advertising when he moved to New York in late 1936. Here he created original three-dimensional die-cut window displays for Philco Radios, Cannon Bath Towels, and the Weber Baking Company.
Perhaps his most famous work being the original posters and publicity artwork for The Maltese Falcon. Peter Driben was also a close friend of publisher Robert Harrison, and in 1941 he was contracted to produce covers for Harrison’s new magazine Beauty Parade.
From there Peter went on to paint hundreds of covers for that publication and for the other seven titles Harrison was to launch – Flirt, Whisper, Titter, Wink, Eyeful, Giggles, and Joker.
Driben would often have as many as six or seven of his covers being published every month. Driben’s work for Harrison established him as one of America’s most recognized and successful pin-up and glamour artists. Just before he began to work for Harrison, Driben married the artist, actress and poet, Louise Kirby.
In 1944 he was offered the unusual opportunity, for a pin-up artist; that was to become the art director of the New York Sun, a post he retained until 1946. During the war, his popular painting of American soldiers raising the flag at Iwo Jima sparked a considerable amount of media attention.
In 1956, Driben and Louise moved to Miami Beach, where he spent his retirement years painting portraits (including one of Dwight D. Eisenhower) and other fine-art works, which were organized into successful exhibitions by his wife. Driben died in 1968, Louise in 1984.
