This Woman Recreated The Looks Of A Forgotten 1950s Pin-Up Girl Named Hilda (24 Pics)
Activist Amy Pence-Brown decided to recreate some of the iconic illustrations of Hilda, a plus-size pin-up girl from the 1950s.
Hilda is a character created by American illustrator back in the 1950s that wasn't your stereotypical pin-up girl of that time. She had a great sense of humor and a plump figure that she definitely wasn't ashamed of. The character appeared on various calendars up until the 1980s but, sadly, eventually faded into obscurity before being rediscovered again sometime in the 21st century.
Hilda's antics inspired many women worldwide, especially activist Amy Pence-Brown who even decided to recreate some of the character's iconic illustrations. See Amy's recreations of Hilda in the gallery below!
More info: amypencebrown.com | Facebook | Instagram
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
"Much like the art of Norman Rockwell, Duane Bryers' Hilda reminds us of playful, sweet, and carefree days gone by. But she recalls more than that, too," said Amy in an interview with Bored Panda. "Hilda shows us that at some time someone else found big girls' curves sensual, silliness sexy, softness endearing, confidence bold and bare, skin beautiful. And that maybe, just maybe, we can find that in ourselves as well."
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
"Her imagery has been shared repeatedly in fat activist/body positive circles and pages and posted on my wall and private messaged to me over the past five years, as news of her existence was shocking and celebratory," said the activist. "Here was a body that looked more like mine than many others I'd ever seen revered as something sexy enough to be on a flirty calendar."
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
Amy says that Hilda has been a "positive breath of fresh air in the body shame and sex shame filled media." "I've written before about my love of using self-portraits and social media as a radical tool in the feminist revolution over the years and I thought Hilda's imagery could use a little more feminism and body positivity. So using things I had around the house, my tripod, my iPhone timer, and a few supplies I purchased at the Dollar Tree down the street and the thrift shop, I embarked on a little fun summer project recreating some of her most iconic images in 2017," said Amy.
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
For the past 11 years Amy has been a body positivity activist in rural conservative America and received countless mean and nasty comments from people hidden behind their screens. "I found this out tenfold when a social activism performance art piece I did in a black bikini and a blindfold in the name of self-love went super viral in 2015 (like to the tune of 200 million views to date of the cumulative video iterations) and people had a lot to say about my fat body," said the activist.
However, Amy added that more people had positive comments and she believes that seeing her body helped people see their own ones with more kindness. "My honesty helped them to examine their own and how they want to raise their children," said the activist. "Seeing me embrace my power and sexuality has softened their hearts to body diversity and cultural biases."
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
"Hilda is so goofy and flirty and making her my own at nearly twice her age, and adding photographs of my own real body along with quirky little objects from my home that represent my life as a woman and a mother, has really touched people in a surprising way," says Amy. "Sexiness can be silly while subverting the gaze and critically examining pin-ups can also be radical. And we can have fun doing it all at the same time."
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: amypencebrown
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: amypencebrown
Image source: amypencebrown
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
Image source: idaho_amy
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Image source: idaho_amy
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Image source: idaho_amy
"Much like the art of Norman Rockwell, Duane Bryers' Hilda reminds us of playful, sweet, and carefree days gone by. But she recalls more than that, too," said Amy in an interview with Bored Panda. "Hilda shows us that at some time someone else found big girls' curves sensual, silliness sexy, softness endearing, confidence bold and bare, skin beautiful. And that maybe, just maybe, we can find that in ourselves as well."
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Image source: idaho_amy
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Image source: idaho_amy
"Her imagery has been shared repeatedly in fat activist/body positive circles and pages and posted on my wall and private messaged to me over the past five years, as news of her existence was shocking and celebratory," said the activist. "Here was a body that looked more like mine than many others I'd ever seen revered as something sexy enough to be on a flirty calendar."
#5
Image source: idaho_amy
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Image source: idaho_amy
Amy says that Hilda has been a "positive breath of fresh air in the body shame and sex shame filled media." "I've written before about my love of using self-portraits and social media as a radical tool in the feminist revolution over the years and I thought Hilda's imagery could use a little more feminism and body positivity. So using things I had around the house, my tripod, my iPhone timer, and a few supplies I purchased at the Dollar Tree down the street and the thrift shop, I embarked on a little fun summer project recreating some of her most iconic images in 2017," said Amy.
#7
Image source: idaho_amy
#8
Image source: idaho_amy
For the past 11 years Amy has been a body positivity activist in rural conservative America and received countless mean and nasty comments from people hidden behind their screens. "I found this out tenfold when a social activism performance art piece I did in a black bikini and a blindfold in the name of self-love went super viral in 2015 (like to the tune of 200 million views to date of the cumulative video iterations) and people had a lot to say about my fat body," said the activist.
However, Amy added that more people had positive comments and she believes that seeing her body helped people see their own ones with more kindness. "My honesty helped them to examine their own and how they want to raise their children," said the activist. "Seeing me embrace my power and sexuality has softened their hearts to body diversity and cultural biases."
#9
Image source: idaho_amy
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Image source: idaho_amy
"Hilda is so goofy and flirty and making her my own at nearly twice her age, and adding photographs of my own real body along with quirky little objects from my home that represent my life as a woman and a mother, has really touched people in a surprising way," says Amy. "Sexiness can be silly while subverting the gaze and critically examining pin-ups can also be radical. And we can have fun doing it all at the same time."
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Image source: idaho_amy
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Image source: idaho_amy
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Image source: amypencebrown
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Image source: amypencebrown
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Image source: amypencebrown
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Image source: idaho_amyDE
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