Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Peruvian, 1896-1982
Alberto Vargas (1896-1982) was born in Arequipa, Peru, in 1896, the son of a successful photographer, and was educated in Switzerland. Arriving in New York in 1916, he was determined to stay in America and pursue what became an illustrious career.
His name has become synonymous with pin-up girls, but in the early 1940s, he was just a guy hired by Esquire magazine to imitate departed star George Petty, who bolted over pay. Vargas initially aped Petty's sleek women with their telephone posing and large-hat lounging; soon, however, his own distinctive, delicate watercolor style emerged. His wide-eyed wonder- women rivaled Betty Grable as the ultimate pin-up girl of World War II.
Vargas, who signed his Esquire work "Varga", had already achieved some notoriety for his Ziegfeld Follies and movie poster art. But Esquire made him famous, though he was paid poorly and, like Petty, eventually quit. Legal problems over ownership of his work, even of his own signature, plagued him.
But late in his life, Vargas was given a second shot at fame and fortune by longtime fan Hugh Hefner. His regular Playboy slot in the 1960s and '70s elevated Vargas to a pinnacle eclipsing Petty.
One of the true giants of American illustration, Alberto Vargas has created an art style so sensuous, so exquisite, that for the past six decades his magnificent paintings of women have come to embody the fantasies of three generations of women and men around the world. His work also appeared in Harper's Bazaar, Theatre Magazine, and Tattler.
He died in December 1982.(Biography provided by Gallery of the Masters)
to
1
1
2
1
1
Overall Height
to
Overall Width
to
2
2
1
1
1
2
1
11
69
69
41
40
2
1
1
Artist: Alberto Vargas
Seductive Platinum Blond Hair and Blue Eyed Pin Up in Turquoise Hat
By Alberto Vargas
Located in Miami, FL
Study of a sultry and seductive reclining platinum blond Pin Up with a wide-brimmed sun hat. Most likely done for Playboy. This work is very finely rendered and looks better the ...
Category
1960s American Realist Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Watercolor, Pencil
C 20th Portrait of Female Nude by Hollywood favourite Vargas: 'Reclining Nude'
By Alberto Vargas
Located in London, GB
Alberto Vargas was a Peruvian artist best known for his drawings and paintings of pin-up girls that were featured in many notable publications in the 20th century including Esquire a...
Category
Late 20th Century Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pencil
Related Items
Two Balinese Beauties (Mapeed), circa 1945
By Johan Rudolf Bonnet
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Rudolf Bonnet (1895-1978)
'Mepèèd' (Mapeed)
Signed lower right
Titled upper right
Pastel on gouache pigmented paper, 57 x 34 cm
In original carved ebo...
Category
1940s Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Crayon, Pastel, Gouache, Pencil
Free Shipping
H 22.45 in W 13.39 in D 0.04 in
Raphaël Delorme (1885-1962), Study of a female nude, watercolor and pencil
Located in PARIS, FR
Raphaël DELORME (1886-1962)
Study
Watercolor and pencil on paper
21 x 31 cm
frame 30 x 40 cm
Trace of fold in the bottom
Born in 1885 in Bordeaux, Raphaël Delorme is one of the majo...
Category
1920s Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pencil, Watercolor
BLUES - Nude original art by Paula Craioveanu
By Paula Craioveanu
Located in Forest Hills, NY
"Blues"
Female Nude, part of "Nude in Interior" series, inspired by Matisse.
Ultramarine tempera on colored paper.
Size 27.5x19.5in / 70x50cm .
See the other nudes from the sam...
Category
2010s Contemporary Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Tempera, Carbon Pencil
Study, preparatory work for “La Princesse”, watercolor and pencil on paper
Located in PARIS, FR
Raphael DELORME (1886-1962)
Study, preparatory work for “La Princesse”
Watercolor and pencil on paper
Annotated “La Princesse”
30,5 x 22,5 cm
Small folds and small stains
Born in 18...
Category
1930s Art Deco Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pencil, Watercolor
"The Dance, " Ludovico Lipparini, graphite, gouache, mythological, classical
Located in Wiscasset, ME
"The Dance" by Ludovico Lipparini is a beautifully rendered work on paper in the classical tradition using graphite and gouache and created in the f...
Category
Early 19th Century Realist Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Gouache, Paper, Graphite
Nude - XXI century, Contemporary Realistic Figurative Mixed Media Drawing
By Andrzej Szypluk
Located in Warsaw, PL
Contemporary realistic figurative mixed media drawing
PROVENANCE
Exhibited at Katarzyna Napiorkowska Gallery.
The Gallery is a primary representative for this artist.
The Gallery o...
Category
Early 2000s Realist Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Chalk, Pastel, Pencil, Cardboard
Pencil Study #6
Located in Columbia, MO
Pencil Study #16
2016
Graphite on paper
12.75 x 4.25 inches
Jessica Keiser currently resides in New Haven, Connecticut. Keiser's style is Naturalistic, ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Realist Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Graphite
Male Torso
By John Koch
Located in London, GB
Pencil, coloured pencil and chalk on paper, titled (lower left), signed (lower right), 31cm x 46cm, (51cm x 68cm framed).
John Koch was an American painter and teacher, and an impo...
Category
1950s American Modern Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Chalk, Pencil, Color Pencil
Nude - Drawing by Marthe Delacroix - Mid-20th Century
By Marthe Delacroix
Located in Roma, IT
The Posing Nude is an Original Drawing realised by Marthe Delacroix.
Watercolour and pencil on the paper.
Good conditions.
The delicate and beautiful fine strokes form the artwork...
Category
Mid-20th Century Modern Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Pencil, Watercolor
No Reserve
H 12.6 in W 9.06 in D 0.08 in
Six Soviet Gymnasts
By Patrick Procktor
Located in London, GB
Watercolour, felt tip pen, and pencil on paper, titled (lower left), 48cm x 37cm, (70cm x 58cm framed). It is in its original frame, although the glass and mount have been replaced.
Patrick Procktor was part of an influential group of British artists in the 1960s. His early paintings were dynamic, abstract depictions of the male nude, before he established himself as one of the leading watercolourists of his generation from the 1970s His work is held in many major public collections. This work is after the soviet painting...
Category
1960s Post-War Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Watercolor, Felt Pen, Pencil
Running Men
Located in London, GB
Graphite and coloured pencil on paper, signed and dated (lower right), 36cm x 44cm, (45cm x 53cm framed). The picture is behind museum quality non-reflective UV glass.
Throughout h...
Category
1990s Contemporary Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Carbon Pencil, Color Pencil
MB 804 A&B (Double Sided Figurative Drawing, Two Male Nudes and Safari Hunter)
By Mark Beard
Located in Hudson, NY
Figurative drawing with graphite, charcoal, and conte crayon on Arches paper
30 x 19 inches, unframed
One piece of 30 x 19 inch Arches paper. Two drawings on opposite sides.
These u...
Category
2010s Modern Alberto Vargas Nude Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Charcoal, Archival Paper, Graphite, Watercolor
Alberto Vargas nude drawings and watercolors for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Alberto Vargas nude drawings and watercolors available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Alberto Vargas in pencil, paint, watercolor and more. Not every interior allows for large Alberto Vargas nude drawings and watercolors, so small editions measuring 24 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Paul Cadmus, and Aaron Bohrod. Alberto Vargas nude drawings and watercolors prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $4,092 and tops out at $15,000, while the average work can sell for $9,546.