I’ve always been an admirer of Olivia De Berardinis and her pinup art. Her work is intense, passionate and beautiful. I saw my first Olivia work in Playboy magazine years ago and have been a fan ever since. She continues to create incredible images of beautiful women as witnessed above.

Follow Olivia on Twitter: @OliviaPinupArt and visit her web site: http://eolivia.com

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Yes, it’s that lovely time of the year again when SI turns loose their bevy of swimsuit models and photographers bringing us some warmth in the middle of winter. This year’s edition is a double edition featuring Brooklyn Decker on the cover. I still miss Marisa, but Brooklyn is seriously hot! Check out the video for yourself.

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Photo Copyright Hampton Van Meter 2009

The New Orleans, Louisiana-born Nola Chick is an up and coming pinup model. Having been told that she had “that look”, she tried her hand at modeling and found that she had a passion and flair for it.

As you can see from these photos, she’s got the whole 40’s and 50’s pinup vibe going on. This session with photographer Hampton Van Meter really captures the feel of the vintage pinup.

Marielle puts together her own outfits, finding just the right look for the effect she’s going for. Working with the photographer, she brings her own vision and creativity to each shoot.

Her portfolio is varied and shows a willingness to experiment and push the envelope. The Hampton Van Meter shots are my personal favorites, but there’s plenty of good stuff in the other sessions, as well.

Photo Copyright Hampton Van Meter 2009

Check out Marielle’s web site, NolaChick.net for more photos and info. Follow her on Twitter @TheNolaChick.

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Fans of WWII vintage pinup girl photos will love this site:

http://www.skylighters.org/photos/pinups.html

Unfortunately, the site appears to have been abandoned (last updated in September of 2004), but there’s a ton of great stuff on it. Check it out!

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Check out this page of pics of current stars in vintage pinup poses. Very cool!

http://www.listal.com/list/pinup-picture

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I’m still bumming that Marisa Miller was left out of this year’s SI Swimsuit issue, but I can almost forgive them for providing embeddable videos. Enjoy!

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I’m something of a Facebook newbie which is a good thing in that there are so many happy discoveries to be made. One such find is the Pinup Girls group.

I’ve just joined the group today so am still learning about it, but it’s an open group where fans of pinups and pinup models have access to resources within the world of pinups. It’s nice to see it’s alive and well, although there was never any doubt. Pinups are timeless, which is one of the things that is so appealing about them.

The group has a photo section where models display their, uh, portfolios. Members vote in the monthly contest to determine the Pinup Girl of the Month. The April contest is going on now.

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Vargas Girl - July, 1966

The Vargas Girl series from Playboy Magazine was one of my favorite features. This particular image from the July, 1966 issue is among my favorites. It’s a bit different from Vargas’ usual work, which made it all the more stunning.

If you’re old enough to remember the Vargas Girls, leave a comment and let me know which was your favorite.

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The cool thing about polling people about their favorites is that you get to hear about things you may not have known existed. People tend to be pretty passionate about “favorites” and there’s generally a compelling reason why something becomes a favorite.

There are many great and near-great pinup artists. I don’t like to classify anyone as “better” because genius, like beauty, tends to be in the eye of the beholder. That said, my all-time favorite pinup artist is Alberto Vargas.

The Vargas Girls from the 50’s and 60’s Playboy magazines are simply amazing. The earlier works from Esquire are brilliant, as well, and Vargas’ work goes back to the 20’s and 30’s. Even the early stuff clearly shows him to be at the top of the heap.

All due respect given to Elvgren, Moran, Mozert, Ballentine and the rest of the pantheon of “classic” pinup artists, as well as Olivia, Julie Bell and Boris Vallejo from more recent years. I admire their work tremendously. Vargas is my “gun to the head” choice, so to speak, but they’re all unique and amazing in their own ways.

So, who’s your favorite?

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Well, the good news is that the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue is available on newsstands as we speak. That bad news is that Marisa Miller isn’t one of the featured models.

No disrespect to the lovely ladies who are featured in SI Swimsuit 2009, it’s just that Marisa Miller happens to be my all-time favorite SI Swimsuit model. IMO, she’s an 11 and you can’t have a “real” SI Swimsuit Issue without her. Then, again, nobody called and asked my opinion.

I’m happy to report that the 2009 issue isn’t completely Marisa-less. Harley-Davidson features her in their ad and offers a free 16-month calendar of Marisa digging the new V-Rod Muscle bike.

Anyway, enough of my carping. As usual, the SI Swimsuit crew has put together an amazing collection of photos of gorgeous women in exotic settings. The reason I continue to buy the SI Swimsuit Issue every year is that it’s the gold standard for swimsuit photography. I’ve checked out some of the wannabes and there’s just something about SI’s offering that makes the others look like amateurs.

Obviously, the models have a lot to do with it, but the models in the other mags are hot, too. I believe the difference is the photographers. The SI photographers are the best in the world, in my opinion, at making beautiful women look spectacular.

Now, if they could just find a way to get the magazine to open flat and not hide significant parts of some photos in the crease!

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