MoMo's Blogs: November 2012

The Gibson Girl was a sketch of a woman drawn in the early 1900's by and American artist named Charles Dana Gibson. After first appearing as a black and while sketch in Life magazine, she became the icon for the perfect woman of that time. Gibson drew many portraits of this fictional woman doing numerous activities. She became like an earlier version of Barbie, except she was a drawing instead of a doll, and taught women to be independent and strong.

The Gibson Girl had many characteristics that were portrayed in whatever sketch she was in. She was always a tall, regal woman with narrow waist. Every woman in America wanted to look and be just like her. Likewise, every man wanted to find a woman just like her. She became the American dream woman. She was always fashionable and at ease. Her hairstyle became very popular and easily recognizable after being shown in numerous magazines and was known as the pompadour style. She was always seen with her large wavy hair swept up on top of her head. For actual woman copying her style, they would add pads under their hair to make it higher and add hair extensions to have more hair.

This iconic, fictional drawing started appearing in and on everything. After she first was shown in Life, she began showing up in every magazine. Many companies began using her in many different forms of their advertising. She was just like a celebrity, even though she was not a real person; another similarity she has to today's Barbie. It was not long before she began being depicted on things from china and silverware to dresser sets and pillows. There is even an ice cream parlor in Disneyland named after her, that is filled with her advertisements.

The Gibson Girl not only came to represent what was ideal for a woman or girl to look like during that time, but she came to represent how they should act. She portrayed woman to be strong and independent. She showed woman that they could play sports, yet still look fantastic and be feminine while doing it without messing up their hair or dress. She exhibited self-confidence that every woman in America should have and could overcome any problem thrown her way. One article on this fashionable and independent icon says that she "remained aloof of her surroundings but not to the extent of haughtiness."

The Gibson Girl could almost be describe as a role model. She was something that every woman wanted to be just like and they could all look up to her, even if she was fictional. She gave such a positive lifestyle for woman to want to have and taught them how to be beautiful and strong woman of the early 20th century. Just as Barbie showed woman later that they could do anything, the Gibson Girl did the same through her sketches. It was sad that she began to disappear from magazines at the start of World War I and soon became something of the past.