Vintage pinup we found in a foot locker at an estate sale
Back in the old days, before we had two kids, Ted and I used to frequent estate sales in our neighborhood. Our area has a lot of mid-century houses, and for a while we were on a roll finding odds and ends that helped us complete our house (a.k.a. Bingo). Among our finds was this picture, which we found in a rusty foot locker from the 1930s. We took the awful thing home, hoping we’d find time to pull out the saw and cut this image out of the lid. Of course, it just sat there. So we took a picture and set the thing on the curb with a “free” sign at our next yard sale. The next couple was also pleased to get the trunk.
There are so many things I like about this image. It is racy (no pun intended), without being crass–at least to my current sensibilities. I love the woman’s expression, almost irked or indulgent.
Vargas pinup from 1945
The scarf, helmet, goggles and shoes are an amusing ensemble. And while slender, the lady is not extreme. There is none of the bodily exaggeration that would come with the Vargas pinups of WWII.
We all know that aesthetic preferences change over time, but the feminine ideals really swung from one pole to the other in the decade between 1933 and 1943, or thereabouts. There are dozens of historical reasons why this change occurred, but it is still striking to see the transformation.
The idea of dated design is one we struggle with constantly. Our doorbell buttons were on Apartment Therapy last week, and I noticed that one commenter said that her friend had one of our earlier designs, which looked really dated now. I cannot argue one way or another about that person’s perception, but it is always curious to us to see how people respond to our designs. One person brushes them off as dated, while the another winces that they are far too modern, while a nice bunch in the middle like them and use them. As designers, we cannot always decide where we want to be on the continuum of style and trend. History beyond our control will dictate how viewers perceive our goods, but we will always relate to one era more than another. Some will favor motogirl, others will admire Vargas.
How do you define your aesthetic, and how does it change over time? Are you static?
I love it! Where can I get one?
Alas, that was the only one we had. I wish I had a better copy of it!