Slim Aarons
Slim Aarons 'Venice Gondolas', Estate Edition
1957

Name: Slim Aarons 'Venice Gondolas', Estate Edition
Brand: Slim Aarons
Price: 3350 USD
Availability: InStock

About the Item

Gondolas moored in Venice, 1957. In the background is the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore, on San Giorgio Maggiore island. Captured with the exquisite clarity and charm that epitomizes Slim Aarons's work, this 1957 photograph, "Gondolas moored in Venice," is a timeless window into the serene elegance of Venetian life. The composition, masterfully balanced, draws the viewer's gaze across the tranquil waters, where the iconic gondolas rest gracefully, their reflections a dance of light upon the canal. The intricate ferros — gondola prows — create a rhythmic skyline that leads to the majestic Church of San Giorgio Maggiore, resplendent in the background. Aarons’s signature is his ability to capture the quiet luxury and leisure of his subjects; here, the empty gondolas invoke a sense of anticipation, a pause in the day's luxury. This piece, with its rich marine color palette and detail, offers an almost tactile experience — the gentle lapping of the waves against the wood and feel the warmth of the Mediterranean sun. Perfect for collectors who appreciate historical depth and the allure of the Italian Riviera, this photograph invokes a world of grace and tranquility, a collectible piece of history that continues to resonate with the sophistication and culture of its time. Slim Aarons Venice Gondolas Chromogenic Lambda print Printed Later Slim Aarons Estate Edition Complimentary dealer shipping to your framer, worldwide. Stamped and hand numbered by the Slim Aarons Estate. Certificate of Authenticity included. Collector will get the next number in the edition 60 x 60 inches $5100 48 x 48 inches $4500 40 x 40 inches $3950 30 x 30 inches $3350 20 x 20 inches $2500 16 x 16 inches $2150 Complimentary dealer shipping to your framer, worldwide. Over the course of a career lasting half a century, Slim Aarons (1916-2006) portrayed high society, aristocracy, authors, artists, business icons, the celebrated and their milieu. In doing so, he captured a golden age of wealth, privilege, beauty and leisure that occurred alongside—but quite separate from—the cultural and political backdrop of the second half of the Twentieth Century. Photograph is unframed Slide show includes a close-up of the Slim Aarons estate's stamp. Collector will get the next number in the edition * We are pleased to offer the entire archive of the Slim Aarons Estate, offering the official Slim Aarons Estate Edition (only offered in this edition of 150). * Undercurrent Projects, New York, is proud to represent Aarons' full collection of negatives and transparencies. Housed at Getty Images Hulton Archive in London, The Slim Aarons Estate has released the limited Estate edition as a Lambda print, which is a modern c-type prints. They have chosen Lambda prints for their sharpness, clarity, colour saturation and quality, compared to archival inkjet prints. Lambda printing gives true continuous tone. Internal: Slim Aarons Venice, Vintage Venice Gondolas, Vintage Sport, Italy, Vintage Pools, Canals, 50s Venice, Church of San Giorgio Maggiore

Creator:

Slim Aarons (1916-2006, American)

Creation Year:

1957

Dimensions:

Height: 30 in (76.2 cm)Width: 30 in (76.2 cm)

More Editions & Sizes:

40 x 40 inchesPrice: $3,95048 x 48 inchesPrice: $4,50060 x 60 inchesPrice: $5,100

Medium:

Lambda

Movement & Style:

Realist

Period:

1950-1959

Framing:

Framing Options Available

Condition:

Gallery Location:

Los Angeles, CA

Reference Number:

1stDibs: LU1486923322

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Slim Aarons

American photographer Slim Aarons captured the 20th century’s international jet set — U.S. socialites, European royalty, Hollywood stars — at play in sun-kissed locales like Monaco, Saint-Tropez and Palm Beach, as well as other luxurious settings around the globe.

Committed to eschewing makeup and artificial lighting, Aarons created images that are at once candid and polished, combining the relaxed posture of his subjects, who trusted him to document their lives, with the visual sharpness of a seasoned art director. Having gotten his start taking pictures for the U.S. military magazine Yank during World War II, he contributed over the course of his career to Life, Town and Country and Holiday magazines and published several books.

Aarons was born in Manhattan in 1916. He joined the army at 18, shooting military maneuvers at West Point before serving as a combat photographer, for which he was awarded a Purple Heart. After the war, he moved to California and began snapping socialites and movie stars. In the 1950s, he opened a bureau for Life magazine in Rome, where he took pictures capturing the postwar scene. Aarons was always able to win the trust of his elite subjects, who saw him as close to a peer, rather than a paparazzo. In a 2002 interview with The Independent, he remarked, ''I knew everyone. They would invite me to one of their parties because they knew I wouldn't hurt them. I was one of them.'' This access allowed Aarons to document the rich and famous with their guard down, reading newspapers and magazines, talking on the phone, relaxing by the pool, and chatting with friends. The 1957 photograph The Kings of Hollywood, for example, which won him wide acclaim, shows Clark Gable, Van Heflin, Gary Cooper and Jimmy Stewart laughing together as they celebrate New Year’s Eve.

Many of Aarons’s best-known images involve games and sports. In the 1972 Poolside Backgammon, two young women play the board game of the title against the backdrop of a majestic Acapulco estate. In 1958’s Cannes Watersports, a couple attempts to glide across the Golfe de la Napoule on Jet Skis, one expertly and one hanging on for dear life. And in Penthouse Pool, shot in Athens in 1961, a young woman wearing a yellow bathing cap smiles coyly at the camera, surrounded by friends and brightly colored seat cushions, with the Acropolis faintly visible in the background. Among Aarons’s books are 1974’s A Wonderful Time: An Intimate Portrait of the Good Life, and its 2003 sequel, Once Upon a Time. His final book, A Place in the Sun, was published in 2005, one year before his death.

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