Many images of the Gibson girl
Gibson girl at the beach.
Source: Dana Charles Gibson-Wikimedia Commons
Gibson girl posing for protrait
Source: Dana Charles Gibson-Wikimedia Commons
Gibson like girl in advertisement
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Gibson girl with friends at the beah
Source: Charles Dana Gibson-Wikimedia Commons
Gibson girl drops her glove.
Source: Charles Dana Gibson -Wikimedia Commons
Our First Pin Up Girl
The Gibson Girl was the first mass marketed ideal American women. Girls everywhere in the 'Gay Nineties" up until World War 1 , tried to perfect their personal look to reflect the varying yet staple Gibson Girl Look. . The Gibson girl was the creation of Charles Dana Gibson. Many consider her the first American Pin Up girl. She appeared in dozens of magazines and was the model the sold everything from Coke Cola to liver pills. The basic Gibson hour glass figure and romanticized felinity was the standard of ideal American beauty until the much more boyish and reckless "Flapper" came on the scene.
The Man Behind The Girl
Charles Dana Gibson was from a lower middle class family. During a long illness as a child his father taught him how to draw silhouettes. Gibson attended art school in for a short time. Gibson's art studies took him to Europe. There he met his mentor and inspiration of future work, the English illustrator George Du Maurier. He began to create sketches of women. Though many social belles claimed to be the original model for the drawings, many believe Gibson was inspired by his wife, Irene Langhorne.
Gibson ran out of money to study and had to drop our of art school. He was eventually hired by Life magazine in the 1880's. He did a number of pen and ink illustrations the publications. In 1890 his popularity as a sketch artist had grown and he found work with a number of weekly magazines throughout New England...
No Shrinking Wall Flowers Here
The Gibson girl portrayed, a well educated female who continued to promote the Victorian ideal of femininity, ,but with a little Vixen added. Not as much as the over the top 'flapper' girl who would overtake the Gibson girl after 20 years of dominating the image of ideal girlish American youth. The Gibson girl was not a corseted belle in need of a fainting couch. She was a curvy red cheeked girl who enjoyed the company of boys and was out in about in the world. She had an hour glass figure clothed in the latest appear, always fashionably dressed in an appreciate outfit for skating, biking, or pin icing in the park. She may have played with the boys, but she was all girls with piles of curls framing her perfect features. She was the new beautiful middle class girl, who could somewhat innocently enjoy her youth until she settled down for a life of domestic bliss.
Susan E. Meyer, in her book America's Great Illustrators described the ideal Gibson girl: "She was taller than the other women currently seen in the pages of magazines... infinitely more spirited and independent, yet altogether feminine. She appeared in a stiff shirtwaist, her soft hair piled into a chignon, topped by a big plumed hat. Her flowing skirt was hiked up in back with just a hint of a bustle. She was poised and patrician. Though always well bred, there often lurked a flash of mischief in her eyes.a
Gibson Girls and Gibson Like Girls sell America on everything!
Gibson Girls and Gibson Like Girls sell America on everything!
The country became obsessed with images of the Gibson Girl. Gibson himself was noted to be one of New York City's most eligible bachelors. This was a short-lived upswing for his social life. During this time many young edible socialites and debutantes from the South went to Gibson's studio to be sketched. Later many of these belles would claim to have been the inspiration for the original, Gibson girl. In 1895 Gibson married Irene Langhorne in 1895 a girl from an old and established Virginia family. Irene was most likely the inspiration for the first Gibson girl who appeared in 1890.
Merchandising of the Gibson Girl on was absolutely not like anything seen before. Collections of Gibson work appeared in art books that were the equivalent of coffee table books. Gibson girls appeared on every household item imaginable like china sets, ashtrays, pillow covers, screens, fans, and tablecloths. There was a wallpaper with Gibson girl faces that was popular in the city apartments of single men. .The image appeared in drawing for books and was the inspiration for popular songs.
The country became obsessed with images of the Gibson Girl. Gibson himself was noted to be one of New York City's most eligible bachelors. This was a short-lived upswing for his social life. During this time many young edible socialites and debutantes from the South went to Gibson's studio to be sketched. Later many of these belles would claim to have been the inspiration for the original, Gibson girl. In 1895 Gibson married Irene Langhorne in 1895 a girl from an old and established Virginia family. Irene was most likely the inspiration for the first Gibson girl who appeared in 1890.
Merchandising of the Gibson Girl on was absolutely not like anything seen before. Collections of Gibson work appeared in art books that were the equivalent of coffee table books. Gibson girls appeared on every household item imaginable like china sets, ashtrays, pillow covers, screens, fans, and tablecloths. There was a wallpaper with Gibson girl faces that was popular in the city apartments of single men. .The image appeared in drawing for books and was the inspiration for popular songs.
Gibson Girl Gets Her Ken
Eventually the playful Gibson girl needed a companion. So Gibson created the ideal Gibson man. Like Barbie, her Ken did not come on the scene with as much hype as she did. The Gibson man of course was fashionably dressed for every occasion and always worshipful of the Gibson girl. Gibson always portrayed women as in some way superior to their mailer companions This did not offend the male audience who were raised to believe that women were morally superior and their admiration of a the ideal late Victorian Gibson girl would lead a wayward lad to mend his ways.
When World War l ended the age of red-cheeked youthful innocence went the way of the corset. John Held 'flapper" sketch's caught the eye of America's more worldly youth. Now the ideal female was really brought to life for every boy in every small town in America via the silver screen.
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