Catherine Wilke, Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1980 portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticke...
Lambda
Catherine Wilke, Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1980 portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticke...
Lambda
Catherine Wilke, Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1980 portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticke...
Lambda
Amalfi Coast, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1970s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features people windsurfing on the waters off the Amalfi Coast, Italy, in September 1978.
Lambda
Amalfi Coast, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1970s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features people windsurfing on the waters off the Amalfi Coast, Italy, in September 1978.
Lambda
Amalfi Coast, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1970s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features people windsurfing on the waters off the Amalfi Coast, Italy, in September 1978.
Lambda
Piazza Umberto, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the...
Lambda
Piazza Umberto, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the...
Lambda
Piazza Umberto, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the...
Lambda
Piazza Umberto, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the...
Lambda
La Fontelina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of sunbathers and parasols at La Fontelina beach, at the base of the Faraglioni rocks o...
Lambda
La Fontelina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of sunbathers and parasols at La Fontelina beach, at the base of the Faraglioni rocks o...
Lambda
La Fontelina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of sunbathers and parasols at La Fontelina beach, at the base of the Faraglioni rocks o...
Lambda
La Fontelina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of sunbathers and parasols at La Fontelina beach, at the base of the Faraglioni rocks o...
Lambda
La Fontelina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of sunbathers and parasols at La Fontelina beach, at the base of the Faraglioni rocks o...
Lambda
Ursula Andress, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1950s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Swiss actress Ursula Andress poses in a hammock in Rome, Italy.
Lambda
Ursula Andress, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1950s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Swiss actress Ursula Andress poses in a hammock in Rome, Italy.
Lambda
Ursula Andress, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1950s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Swiss actress Ursula Andress poses in a hammock in Rome, Italy.
Lambda
Unghia Marina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people stand on a terrace, at the Unghia Marina on the island of Capri, Italy, in September...
Lambda
Unghia Marina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people stand on a terrace, at the Unghia Marina on the island of Capri, Italy, in September...
Lambda
Unghia Marina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people stand on a terrace, at the Unghia Marina on the island of Capri, Italy, in September...
Lambda
Unghia Marina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people stand on a terrace, at the Unghia Marina on the island of Capri, Italy, in September...
Lambda
'Capri Tan' Estate Edition, 1968, Italy: vintage 60s beach fashion
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The Hotel Punta Tragara was one of Slim Aarons' favorite spots in Italy." Slim Aarons Capri Tan Hotel Punta Tragara, Capri, Italy Chromogenic Lambda print Printed Later Slim Aarons ...
Lambda
Marina Piccola (Slim Aarons Estate Edition)
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
Marina Piccola, 1954 Chromogenic Lambda Print Estate edition of 150 Canzone del Mare at the Marina Piccola, Capri, Italy, 1954. Slim Aarons (1916-2006) worked mainly for soci...
Lambda
Piazza Umberto, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the...
Lambda
Piazza Umberto, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the...
Lambda
Piazza Umberto, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an aerial view of a parasols shading customers at cafes and restaurants in the Piazza Umberto, on the...
Lambda
Unghia Marina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people stand on a terrace, at the Unghia Marina on the island of Capri, Italy, in September...
Lambda
Unghia Marina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people stand on a terrace, at the Unghia Marina on the island of Capri, Italy, in September...
Lambda
Unghia Marina, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people stand on a terrace, at the Unghia Marina on the island of Capri, Italy, in September...
Lambda
$5,400
Slim Aarons 'Sunbather on Rock, Costa Smeralda Sardinia, Italy' (Estate Edition)
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A sunbather on a rock by the seaside pool at Jacques Couelle's home 'Monte Mano', on the Costa Smeralda, Sardinia, Italy, August 1973. 40 x 60 inches $3950 30 x 40 inches $3350 2...
Lambda
Sunbathing On Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticken and...
Lambda
Sunbathing On Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticken and...
Lambda
Sunbathing On Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticken and...
Lambda
Sunbathing On Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticken and...
Lambda
Sunbathing On Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticken and...
Lambda
Sunbathing On Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticken and...
Lambda
Sunbathing On Capri, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers - along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticken and...
Lambda
Slim Aarons 'Vuccino and Rava in Capri' (Aarons Estate Edition)
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
Carla Vuccino, wearing a swimming cap, and a sunbathing Marina Rava, both wearing bikini as they sit on the rear of a boat, on the waters off the coast of the island of Capri, Italy,...
Lambda
Slim Aarons, 'Marina Piccola' Midcentury Modern Photography
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
Canzone del Mare at the Marina Piccola, Capri, Italy, 1954. Slim Aarons Marina Piccola 1954. (printed later) C print Estate stamped and numbered edition of 150 with Certificate of...
C Print
Slim Aarons, 'Capri Tan' Midcentury Modern Photography
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
1968, A kneeling sunbather shows off her rings and pendant on a beach in Capri, Italy. Slim Aarons Capri Tan 1968. (printed later) C print Estate stamped and numbered edition of 1...
C Print
Dining in Sicily, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photogra
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Count Giuseppe d'Almerita dining with guests in Sicily, Italy, in October.
Lambda
Dining in Sicily, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photogra
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Count Giuseppe d'Almerita dining with guests in Sicily, Italy, in October.
Lambda
Dining in Sicily, Italy, Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photogra
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1980s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Count Giuseppe d'Almerita dining with guests in Sicily, Italy, in October.
Lambda
Crespi And Mastroianni 1968 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Crespi And Mastroianni 1968 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Italian countess Consuelo Crespi (left, 1928-2010) and Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni (right, 19241996) in conversation...
Archival Pigment
Crespi And Mastroianni 1968 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Crespi And Mastroianni 1968 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Italian countess Consuelo Crespi (left, 1928-2010) and Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni (right, 19241996) in conversation...
Archival Pigment
Crespi And Mastroianni Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Crespi And Mastroianni 1968 by Slim Aarons Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition Italian countess Consuelo Crespi (left, 1928-2010) and Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni (right, 192...
Archival Pigment
Count Guido Monzino Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Count Guido Monzino 1983 by Slim Aarons Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition Italian mountain climber and explorer Count Guido Monzino (1928-1988) rowing on the waters of Lake Como ...
Archival Pigment
Funk In Tuscany Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Funk In Tuscany 1969 by Slim Aarons Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition Italian fashion designer, model and socialite, Marta Marzotto (1931 – 2016), playing a James Brown album on ...
Archival Pigment
$4,200
Slim Aarons, Jack & GeeGee Entz on Rose-Canopied Steps, Tivoli near Rome, Italy
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Lambda printing gives true continuous tone. Internal: Slim Aarons, Tennis, Jack and GeeGee Entz, Roses, Villa d'Este, Tivoli, Rome, Italy, Slim Aarons Sport Photography, Vintage Spo...
Lambda
$5,400
Slim Aarons, Jack & GeeGee Entz on Rose-Canopied Steps, Tivoli near Rome, Italy
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Lambda printing gives true continuous tone. Internal: Slim Aarons, Tennis, Jack and GeeGee Entz, Roses, Villa d'Este, Tivoli, Rome, Italy, Slim Aarons Sport Photography, Vintage Spo...
Lambda
Slim Aarons 'Beach Backgammon' Mid-century Modern Photography
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
CAPTION: Backgammon on the beach at the Hotel Excelsior on the Venice Lido, Italy, 1957. Slim Aarons, an acclaimed fine art photographer, is synonymous with images that capture the ...
Lambda
Slim Aarons 'Beach Backgammon' Mid-century Modern Photography
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
CAPTION: Backgammon on the beach at the Hotel Excelsior on the Venice Lido, Italy, 1957. Slim Aarons, an acclaimed fine art photographer, is synonymous with images that capture the ...
Lambda
Catherine Wilke in Capri 2 (Slim Aarons Estate Edition)
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
Catherine Wilke joins the topless sunbathers – along with Elisabetta Catalano, Charlotte Ticken and Pamela Grupas – on the island of Capri, Italy, 1980. Slim Aarons (1916-2006) work...
Lambda
$3,000
Slim Aarons 'Funk In Tuscany' 1969 Official Limited Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Funk In Tuscany' 1969 Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition Print Italian fashion designer, model, and socialite, Marta Marzotto (1931 - 2016), playing a James Brown album on an Itali...
Color
$3,000
'Dining Al Fresco On Capri' 1980 Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Dining Al Fresco On Capri' 1980 Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition Print Italian artist and actress Domiziana Giordano, Italian author Francesca Sanvitale (1928 - 2011), Dino Trap...
Color
Vuccino And Rava in Capri, 1958, Slim Aarons Estate Limited Edition Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
Carla Vuccino, wearing a swimming cap, and a sunbathing Marina Rava, both wearing bikinis as they sit on the rear of a boat, on the waters off the coast of the island of Capri, Italy...
C Print
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.
Find a broad range of photography on 1stDibs today.
The first permanent image created by a camera — which materialized during the 1820s — is attributed to Joseph Nicéphore Niépce. The French inventor was on to something for sure. Kodak introduced roll film in the 1880s, allowing photography to become more democratic, although cameras wouldn’t be universally accessible until several decades later.
Digital photographic techniques, software, smartphone cameras and social-networking platforms such as Instagram have made it even easier in the modern era for budding photographers to capture the world around them as well as disseminate their images far and wide.
What might leading figures of visual art such as Andy Warhol have done with these tools at their disposal?
Today, when we aren’t looking at the digital photos that inundate us on our phones, we look to the past to celebrate the photographers who have broken rules as well as records — provocative and prolific artists like Horst P. Horst, Lillian Bassman and Helmut Newton, who altered the face of fashion and portrait photography; visionary documentary photographers such as Gordon Parks, whose best-known work was guided by social justice; and pioneers of street photography such as Henri Cartier-Bresson, who shot for revolutionary travel magazines like Holiday with the likes of globetrotting society lensman Slim Aarons.
Find photographers you may not know in Introspective and The Study — where you’ll read about Berenice Abbott, who positioned herself atop skyscrapers for the perfect shot, or “conceptual artist-adventurer” Charles Lindsay, whose work combines scientific rigor with artistic expression, or Massimo Listri, known for his epic interiors of opulent Old World libraries. Photographer Jeannette Montgomery Barron was given a Kodak camera as a child. Later, she shot on Polaroid film before buying her first 35mm camera in her teens. Barron's stunning portraits of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Warhol and other artists chronicle a crucial chapter of New York’s cultural history.
Throughout the past two centuries, photographers have used their medium to create expressive work that has resonated for generations. Shop a voluminous collection of this powerful fine photography on 1stDibs. Search by photographer to find the perfect piece for your living room wall, or spend some time with the work organized under various categories, such as landscape photography, nude photography and more.