Hollywood Pinups

Inthe1980s,tocommemoratethe40thanniversaryoftheoriginalVargaGirl'sfirstappearancein"Esquire",themagazinecommissionedTimothyWhitetocreateacontemporaryversionoftheperenniallypopularpinup.SimultaneouslypayinghomagetoVargasyetcompletelyreinventingtheform,Whitecreatedaseriesofpin-upportraitsofthehottestactressesandmodelsatthetime.White'sportraitswerecomparabletoVargas'intheirposes,attitude,andplayfulness,butwereoverthetopintheircreativeapproach,imagination,anduseofdigitaltechnology.Whitebeganbyshootingmostofthemodelscompletelynude(Vargas,bytheway,drewhisimagesasnudes,too,butwasforcedtodrawontheirclothesat"Esquire's"insistence!),saveforhigh-heeledshoesandembellishmentssuchasdozensofrealdiamondsusedasglovesandpasties!Throughadigitalprocess,Whitethencreatedclothesforhismodels-andtheultimateeffectwasunbelievable.ImaginesupermodelVendelalookingbackoverhershoulderintranslucentlingerie;CindyCrawford,nudesaveforaleopardbraandcuffs;ChristieBrinkleyinblackcombatbootsandracycamouflage;TyraBanksfloatinginaseaofbubbles,nudeexceptforwhitepantyhoseandheels.Thesegorgeousportraits,whichalsoincludedBridgetHall,StephanieSeymour,ElleMcPherson,RachelWilliams,NaomiCampbell,ElizabethBerkley,andAngieEverhart,appearedoneatatimeoveraperiodofoverayearasaregularfeatureinthemagazine."Esquire"thenwentontousetheimagesinamajoradvertisingcampaign.Modelsandstarletsparticipatedbecauseitwasgreat-andverytasteful-publicity.