The main subject of Vargas’s piece is “Jeanne,” a pin-up model. Pin-up art has been around for decades, yet during the time of World War 2, this particular art form skyrocketed. When Vargas moved back to New York City in 1940, he worked at Esquire Magazine and began his, arguably, most famous pin-up art. This extremely popular art form from Vargas lasted from 1940 until after World War 2, around the early 1950s when Vargas left Esquire Magazine (McKamey). Pin-up illustrations, photography, painting, and more were especially popular within the U.S. military as a symbol of hope for those who went off to fight (Kym). In this piece, “Jeanne” is half naked with a silky white cloth draped over her legs, along with pale, yellow-white flowers in her hand. The artistic choice of brighter whites and neutral tones created a feeling of pure hope, which was something many military men and hard workers in the United States yearned to feel. “Jeanne” as well as the other “Varga Girls,” or pin-up models for Alberto Vargas, was a way to remind many soldiers to continue their fight so that they could eventually come home to their beautiful, significant others. It was common for military men to attach these pin-up works into their helmets or hang them in their bunkers as a way to keep them close and stand as a constant positive outlook (Kym).

Kym, K. “Beauty, Glamour, and the Pin-Up Girls of the 1940s.” The Seamstress of Bloomsbury, 23 Mar, 2023, https://theseamstressofbloomsbury.co.uk/blogs/seamstress-blog/beauty-glamour-and-the-pin-up-girls-of-the-1940s?srsltid=AfmBOopBJ5YQXtXZVtqKI-Q6oTsldV-c9zOdgCrO5YimK2YNFiaAldkw Accessed 23 Mar. 2025. 

McKamey, Pam. “Alberto Vargas, The King of Pin-Up Art.” Asgard Press, 11 Sep. 2023. https://www.asgardpress.com/alberto-vargas/#:~:text=Years%20with%20Esquire%20Magazine&text=Under%20his%20contract%20with%20Esquire,highly%20profitable%20for%20the%20publication Accessed 4 April 2025.