Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
American, 1916-2006
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, Aarons opened a bureau for Life magazine in Rome, where he took pictures capturing the postwar scene. He 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, Aarons 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 him 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.
Find a collection of vintage Slim Aarons photography on 1stDibs.
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Artist: Slim Aarons
Bettina Graziani, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Bettina Graziani relaxes in a hammock on the Costa Smeralda, Sardinia, 1964.
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Piazza Umberto, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the island of Capri, Italy, in August 1980.
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Piazza Umberto, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the island of Capri, Italy, in August 1980.
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1980s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Piazza Umberto, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the island of Capri, Italy, in August 1980.
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1980s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Olimpia Hruska, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Swedish model Olimpia Hruska, wearing a bikini, poses against a rock on the Costa Smeralda in Sardinia, Italy, 1964.
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Olimpia Hruska, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Swedish model Olimpia Hruska, wearing a bikini, poses against a rock on the Costa Smeralda in Sardinia, Italy, 1964.
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Olimpia Hruska, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Swedish model Olimpia Hruska, wearing a bikini, poses against a rock on the Costa Smeralda in Sardinia, Italy, 1964.
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The Costa-Delords, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Delfina Costa-Delord and Alessia Costa-Delord posing for a portrait, each wearing a hat, in Asolo, Italy, in September 1988.
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Amalfi Coast, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Windsurfing on the waters off the Amalfi Coast, Italy, in September 1978.
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Amalfi Coast, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Windsurfing on the waters off the Amalfi Coast, Italy, in September 1978.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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The Costa-Delords, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Delfina Costa-Delord and Alessia Costa-Delord posing for a portrait, each wearing a hat, in Asolo, Italy, in September 1988.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity...
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1980s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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The Costa-Delords, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Delfina Costa-Delord and Alessia Costa-Delord posing for a portrait, each wearing a hat, in Asolo, Italy, in September 1988.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity...
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1980s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Conca dei Marini, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A bay in Conca dei Marini, on the Amalfi coast in Italy, August 1984.
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Conca dei Marini, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A bay in Conca dei Marini, on the Amalfi coast in Italy, August 1984.
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Gloria Schiff And Consuelo Crespi, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pilar Crespi and her sister, Italian countess Consuelo Crespi (1928-2010) in Costa Smeralda, Sardinia, Italy, in August 1968.
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Gloria Schiff And Consuelo Crespi, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pilar Crespi and her sister, Italian countess Consuelo Crespi (1928-2010) in Costa Smeralda, Sardinia, Italy, in August 1968.
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1960s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Lili Livi, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Lili Livi poses by Lake Como, Italy, circa 1960. Lili is the daughter Madame Camilo Livi.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Pope Paul VI, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pope Paul VI (1897-1978) delivering a sermon during his visit to Venice, Italy, in October 1972.
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1970s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Pope Paul VI, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pope Paul VI (1897-1978) delivering a sermon during his visit to Venice, Italy, in October 1972.
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1970s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Pope Paul VI, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pope Paul VI (1897-1978) delivering a sermon during his visit to Venice, Italy, in October 1972.
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1970s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Lili Livi, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Lili Livi poses by Lake Como, Italy, circa 1960. Lili is the daughter Madame Camilo Livi.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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1960s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Lili Livi, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Lili Livi poses by Lake Como, Italy, circa 1960. Lili is the daughter Madame Camilo Livi.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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1960s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Earl Of Lichfield, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Photographer Patrick Anson, 5th Earl of Lichfield (1939-2005) holding a Hasselblad camera while posing with Ines Torlonia, Marina Lante della Rovere and Signor...
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Edna Lewis, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A restaurant in Positano, Italy, 1958. One of the woman is art director Edna Lewis.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Edna Lewis, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A restaurant in Positano, Italy, 1958. One of the woman is art director Edna Lewis.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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1950s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Edna Lewis, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A restaurant in Positano, Italy, 1958. One of the woman is art director Edna Lewis.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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1950s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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Walking On Capri, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Rodney Pleasants, Alessandro Spicaglia, Pauline Cappa, Don C. Napolitano and Luigi Boscaln walking on the island of Capri, Italy, in August 1980.
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Pierro And Ludovico Antinori, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pierro Antinori and Ludovico Antinori posing by a well, on which rests a bottle of white wine and two glasses, in Florence, Italy, in June 1985.
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Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
View looking down the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan, Italy, 1960. Opened in 1890, the covered arcade is on the northern side of ...
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Pierro And Ludovico Antinori, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pierro Antinori and Ludovico Antinori posing by a well, on which rests a bottle of white wine and two glasses, in Florence, Italy, in June 1985.
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Pierro And Ludovico Antinori, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pierro Antinori and Ludovico Antinori posing by a well, on which rests a bottle of white wine and two glasses, in Florence, Italy, in June 1985.
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Britt Ekland, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Film star Britt Ekland (Britt-Marie Eklund) in Porto Ercole, Italy.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Bettina Graziani, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
French fashion model Bettina Graziani (Simone Micheline Bodin) (1925 - 2015) adjusting the sail of a boat, Costa Smeralda, Sardinia, Italy, 1964.
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Bettina Graziani, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
French fashion model Bettina Graziani (Simone Micheline Bodin) (1925 - 2015) adjusting the sail of a boat, Costa Smeralda, Sardinia, Italy, 1964.
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Marisa Berenson, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
American actress Marisa Berenson sunbathing in Capri, 1968.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Patrick Lichfield, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
September 1968: Patrick, Earl of Lichfield, with a friend in Capri, Italy.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Marisa Berenson, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
American actress Marisa Berenson sunbathing in Capri, 1968.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Marisa Berenson, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
American actress Marisa Berenson sunbathing in Capri, 1968.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Marisa Berenson, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
American actress Marisa Berenson sunbathing in Capri, 1968.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Lord Lichfield, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
British photographer Lord Lichfield holding a Hasselblad camera. On his arm is Marina Lante della Rovere, to the left is Ines Torlonia, and reclining is...
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Lord Lichfield, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
British photographer Lord Lichfield holding a Hasselblad camera. On his arm is Marina Lante della Rovere, to the left is Ines Torlonia, and reclining is...
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1960s Realist Slim Aarons Portrait Photography
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David Bailey, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
September 1968: English photographer David Bailey on the Italian island of Capri.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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David Bailey, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
September 1968: English photographer David Bailey on the Italian island of Capri.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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David Bailey, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
September 1968: English photographer David Bailey on the Italian island of Capri.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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San Vicenzo, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
1984, Donna Stefanella Vanni Calvello di San Vicenzo in the Hall of Mirrors at her family's palazzo in Palermo, Sicily. The focal point of Sicilian Belle-Epoque society, this eightee...
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Twice Blessed, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
1960: Framed in a rustic window, member of the so called 'black aristocracy' who trace their ancestry back to the papal courts, Princess Laudomia Hercolani, wife of Prince Hercolani and daughter of Prince and Princess del Drago...
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Windsors In Portofino, Italy, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1950s figurative photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features the Duke and Duchess of Windsor walking their dog in Portofino in 1951.
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Caprice On Capri, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
1958: Singer and actress Caprice Chantal (right) on the Italian island of Capri.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Hotel Excelsior, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The beach front of the luxurious Excelsior Hotel on the Venice Lido, 1957.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Hotel Excelsior, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The beach front of the luxurious Excelsior Hotel on the Venice Lido, 1957.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Hotel Excelsior, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The beach front of the luxurious Excelsior Hotel on the Venice Lido, 1957.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Porto Ercole, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A Magnum motorboat belonging to Count Filippo Theodoli arrives at the private jetty of the Il Pellicano Hotel in Porto Ercole, Italy, August 1973.
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Porto Ercole, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A Magnum motorboat belonging to Count Filippo Theodoli arrives at the private jetty of the Il Pellicano Hotel in Porto Ercole, Italy, August 1973.
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Lucy Hamilton, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Princess Lucy Ruspoli in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, 1982.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
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Ursula Pacelli, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Ursula Pacelli poses at the Venice Lido, Venice, Italy, 1957.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
Numbered and stamped by the Slim Aarons Estate
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Ursula Pacelli, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Ursula Pacelli poses at the Venice Lido, Venice, Italy, 1957.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
Numbered and stamped by the Slim Aarons Estate
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Ursula Pacelli, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Ursula Pacelli poses at the Venice Lido, Venice, Italy, 1957.
Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included
Numbered and stamped by the Slim Aarons Estate
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Armando Orsini, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Armando Orsini, a New York restaurateur, poses in a Tuscan olive grove, with a table displaying dishes of olives and a bottle of olive oil, Italy, in August 1975...
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Slim Aarons portrait photography for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a wide variety of authentic Slim Aarons portrait photography available for sale on 1stDibs. If you’re browsing the collection of portrait photography to introduce a pop of color in a neutral corner of your living room or bedroom, you can find work that includes elements of blue, purple, pink and other colors. You can also browse by medium to find art by Slim Aarons in digital print, lambda print, laser print and more. Much of the original work by this artist or collective was created during the 20th century and is mostly associated with the modern style. Not every interior allows for large Slim Aarons portrait photography, so small editions measuring 10 inches across are available. Customers who are interested in this artist might also find the work of Mark Shaw, Bob Willoughby, and Mark Beard. Slim Aarons portrait photography prices can differ depending upon medium, time period and other attributes. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $960 and tops out at $35,000, while the average work can sell for $3,000.