Alberto Vargas Paintings
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
1
1
Overall Height
to
Overall Width
to
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
11
921
643
639
615
1
1
1
1
Artist: Alberto Vargas
Glorifying The American Girl
By Alberto Vargas
Located in Fort Washington, PA
Medium: Watercolor, Ink and Appliqués on Board
Signature: Signed Lower Right
Sight Size 16.00" x 12.00", Framed 26.00" x 22.00"
Glorifying The American Girl...
Category
1920s Other Art Style Alberto Vargas Paintings
Materials
Ink, Watercolor, Board
Related Items
Cubist Nude Abstract
Located in Soquel, CA
Visual texture and colorful cubist nude reminiscent of Picasso's Women of Algiers series. Signed "Croce" lower, right. Unframed. Image, 14"H x 36"W.
Category
1960s Cubist Alberto Vargas Paintings
Materials
Crayon, India Ink, Watercolor, Cardboard
Brunhilde
By William Stout
Located in Pasadena, CA
Provenance
Acquired by American Legacy Fine Arts directly from the artist.
Description
William Stout is a multi-media artist who has won numerous awards for his artwork in pulp fiction, dioramas for natural museums, and film work, including two Conan movies, Indiana Jones, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Pan’s Labyrinth. Stout’s painting, Brunhilde, represents a compilation of the artist’s interests and was inspired by the 19th-century composer Richard Wagner’s epic opera, The Ring of the Nibelung, as part of an art project with the Los Angeles Opera’s 2010 performance of The Ring. The subject, Brunhilde, is based on Norse mythology from the Medieval Poetic Edda and represents the story of a beautiful warrior maiden, a Valkyrie, who was cruelly deceived by her lover. Her father, the supreme god Odin, punished Brunhilde for disobeying him and caused her to fall into everlasting sleep surrounded by a wall of fire. The hero, Siegfried, crossed through the flames and woke the maiden with a kiss. In Stout’s version, Brunhilde is seen as a mighty Shieldmaiden and Valkyrie in the forest surrounded by spirit animals. The barred owl...
Category
2010s Other Art Style Alberto Vargas Paintings
Materials
Ink, Watercolor, Illustration Board
Cone No 5: Sister Twin
By Kim Frohsin
Located in Burlingame, CA
'Cone No 5: Sister Twin' from Kim Frohsin's important and historic Cautionary Tales series series of 2015. Twin Sister Cone is one of about 15 "portraits of construction cones by Fro...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alberto Vargas Paintings
Materials
Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Gouache, Board, Pigment
The Fox and the Lion
By William Stout
Located in Pasadena, CA
Provenance
Acquired by the gallery directly from the artist
Artist Statement
"I drew and painted a series of Aesop's Fables that featured foxes. This was one of my favorites."
—Wil...
Category
2010s Realist Alberto Vargas Paintings
Materials
Ink, Watercolor, Board
Cone No 5: Brother Twin
By Kim Frohsin
Located in Burlingame, CA
'Cone No 5: Brother Twin' from Kim Frohsin's important and historic Cautionary Tales series series of 2015. Twin Brother Cone is one of about fifteen "portraits" of construction cone...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Contemporary Alberto Vargas Paintings
Materials
Ink, Mixed Media, Acrylic, Gouache, Board, Carbon Pencil
The Tree and the Crow
By William Stout
Located in Pasadena, CA
Provenance
Acquired by the gallery directly from the artist
Artist Statement
“I love crows; I love Arthur Rackham’s dynamic pen
and ink style of anthropomorphized trees—so, why
not...
Category
2010s Other Art Style Alberto Vargas Paintings
Materials
Ink, Watercolor, Board
Alberto Vargas paintings for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Alberto Vargas paintings available for sale on 1stDibs. You can also browse by medium to find art by Alberto Vargas in board, ink, paint and more. Not every interior allows for large Alberto Vargas paintings, so small editions measuring 12 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Ernesto Gutierrez (b.1941), Tadeo Zavaleta, and Cecilia Arrospide. Alberto Vargas paintings prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $32,000 and tops out at $32,000, while the average work can sell for $32,000.