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.
A Skier in Vermont 1962 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
A Skier in Vermont 1962 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped A skier at the Stowe Mountain Resort, Vermont, USA, March 1962 60 x 40" inches / 127 x 101 cm paper size Estate Stamped Colle...
Archival Pigment
Chateau Saint-Martin Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Chateau Saint-Martin 1986 by Slim Aarons Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition An outdoor luncheon by the swimming pool of the Chateau Saint-Martin, a luxury hotel in Vence on the Co...
Archival Pigment
Bahamas Speed Week, Nassau, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Gordon Butler's Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray at the Bahamas Speed Week at the Oakes Course, Nassau. ...
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Snorkelling in the Shallows - Estate Stamped C-Type Print, Limited Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Brighton, GB
Snorkelling in the Shallows by Slim Aarons 16@ x 20" print. Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print. Edition of 150. Printed Later. 'Snorkelling in the Shallows is a Limited Edition E...
C Print, Photographic Paper, Color Pencil, Digital
Slim Aarons 'Boats At Hotel Du Cap-Eden-Roc' 1969 Limited Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Boats At Hotel Du Cap-Eden-Roc' Motorboats moored off the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes on the French Riviera, 1969. 40 x 30" inches / 101 x 76 cm paper size Estate Stamped...
Archival Pigment
Penthouse Pool, 1961 - Limited Edition Print, C-Type Print from Archive Negative
By Slim Aarons
Located in Brighton, GB
Penthouse Pool, 1961 by Slim Aarons 16 x 20" print. Limited Edition Premium Collection Estate Stamped Print. Edition of 150. Printed Later. "Penthouse Pool" is a beautiful Limited ...
C Print, Photographic Paper, Color, Digital
Fishing Boats - Limited Edition Italian Landscape Photograph, C-Type Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in Brighton, GB
Fishing Boats by Slim Aarons 16" x 20" print. Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print. Edition of 150. Printed Later. 'Fishing Boats' is a Limited Edition Estate Stamped Digital C-Typ...
C Print, Photographic Paper, Color, Digital
Underwater Drink - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Underwater Drink 1972 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped A woman drinking from a coconut underwater in the pool at Las Brisas Hotel in Acapulco, Mexico, February 1972. 48 x 78" inches / ...
Archival Pigment
Slim Aarons 'Towboat At Hotel Du Cap-Eden-Roc' 1969 Limited Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Towboat At Hotel Du Cap-Eden-Roc' A motorboat used to tow waterskiers, moored at the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes on the French Riviera, August 1969. 40 x 30" inches / 101 x 7...
Archival Pigment
Harbour Island, Bahamas 1967 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Harbour Island, Bahamas 1967 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped A couple relax at the beach on Harbour Island, Bahamas, 1967. 20 x 24" inches / 51 x 61 cm paper size Estate Stamped Co...
Archival Pigment
$4,200
Roquebrune-Cap-Martin 1970 Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Roquebrune-Cap-Martin A view from a hillside in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, southeastern France, looking toward Monaco, August 1970. 40x30” / 76x101 cm - paper size Estate Stamped Col...
Archival Pigment
$4,903
'Kirk Douglas In Antibes' 1969 Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Kirk Douglas In Antibes' American actor Kirk Douglas (right) prepares to go waterskiing at the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc in Antibes on the French Riviera, A...
Archival Pigment
Fishing Boats, 1952 - Wooden Fishing Boats on Sandy Shoreline in Mexico by Sea
By Slim Aarons
Located in Brighton, GB
Fishing Boats, 1952 - Wooden Fishing Boats on Sandy Shoreline in Mexico by Sea by Slim Aarons 16" x 16" image on 16" x 20" paper. Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print. Edition of 15...
C Print, Digital, Photographic Paper, Color
Slim Aarons The Carlton Hotel Limited Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
The Carlton Hotel (1955) - Limited Estate Stamped - Silver Gelatin Fibre Print (Photo By Slim Aarons/Getty Images Archive) A Cadillac with Florida plates parked outside the Carlto...
Black and White, Silver Gelatin
$3,600
Slim Aarons 'Pebble Beach' 1976 Official Limited Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Pebble Beach' Riders from the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center wend their way through the Californian sand dunes and pampas grass, November 1976. 20x20" inches / 51 x 51 cm paper s...
Archival Pigment
$3,000
Bahamas Speed Week, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features the Bahamas Speed Week in Nassau. This is an estate-stamped and hand-numbered edition of 150 with...
Lambda
$3,600
Buzios, Brazil, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1980s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features holidaymakers in Armacao dos Buzios, Brazil. This is an estate-stamped and hand-numbered edition ...
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Poolside Social, 1970 - Social by Swimming Pool of Kaufmann House Palm Springs
By Slim Aarons
Located in Brighton, GB
Poolside Social, 1970 - Social by Swimming Pool of Kaufmann House Palm Springs by Slim Aarons 16 x 20" print. Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print. Edition of 150. Printed Later. "...
Photographic Paper, Color, C Print, Digital
Winter Wear, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1970s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Manuela Boraomanero (left) and Emanuela Beghelli holiday in the Italian ski resort of Cortina d'Amp...
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Scottsdale Home, Arizona, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1970s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features guests by the pool at the home of Wayne Beal in Scottsdale, Arizona. This is an estate-stamped an...
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'Hotel Du Cap Eden-Roc' Antibes (Estate Stamped Edition)
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Hotel Du Cap Eden-Roc' (Estate Stamped Edition) *Super Oversize* print measuring a huge 72 x 48 inches Guests relax by the pool at the Hotel du Cap Eden-Roc, Antibes, France, Au...
Archival Pigment
Early Riders 1970 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Early Riders 1970 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Former mayor Frank Bogert leads an early-morning ride through Andreas Canyon in Palm Springs, southern California, January 1970. 30 x...
Archival Pigment
Harbour Isle Beach - Bahamas Island Resort Beach Views
By Slim Aarons
Located in Brighton, GB
Harbour Isle Beach - Bahamas Island Resort Beach Views by Slim Aarons 16" x 20" print. Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print. Edition of 150. Printed Later. 'Harbour Isle Beach' is ...
C Print, Photographic Paper, Color, Digital
$4,200
Saint-Tropez Beach, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1970s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features people sunbathing on the beach at Saint-Tropez, on the French Riviera. This is an estate-stamped and...
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Keep Your Cool 1978 Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Keep Your Cool, 1978 Carmen Alvarez enjoying a game of backgammon with Frank ‘Brandy’ Brandstetter in a swimming pool at Acapulco. 16x20” / 41 x 51 cm - paper size Estate Stamp...
Archival Pigment
Kings Of Hollywood, Beverly Hill, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1950s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features film stars (left to right) Clark Gable (1901 - 1960), Van Heflin (1910 - 1971), Gary Cooper...
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Abaco Islander 1986 Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Abaco Islander, 1986 Author Chester Thompson at work in his coconut grove on the Abaco Islands of the Bahamas, March 1986. His ancester Wyannie Malone settled on the islands in 178...
Archival Pigment
Il Canille, 1980, Capri, Midcentury Modern Photography
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
Sunbathers lounge on the white-painted terrace of Il Canille, built into the rocks of Pizzolungo overlooking the waters off the coast of the island of Capri, Italy, in August 1980. I...
C Print
Kasimir Korybut Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Kasimir Korybut 1971 by Slim Aarons Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition Kasimir Korybut and Michelle Vaughan begin a raft ride up the White River in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, 1971 unfra...
Archival Pigment
Poolside tete a tete, California, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1970s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features former fashion model Helen Dzo Dzo Kaptur (in white lace) and other guests at the Kaufmann Desert House ...
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Tennis In The Bahamas Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Tennis In The Bahamas 1957 by Slim Aarons Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition Two women stand talking to a man on the edge of a tennis court in the Bahamas, circa 1957. Behind the main group stand a second group of people talking...
Archival Pigment
Bahamas Speed Week, Nassau, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Gordon Butler's Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray at the Bahamas Speed Week at the Oakes Course, Nassau. ...
Lambda
Teddy Stauffer In Acapulco, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1970s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Swiss bandleader and restaurateur Teddy Stauffer (1909 - 1991) in the swimming pool of Warren Avis...
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Cannes Watersports 1958 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Cannes Watersports 1958 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Holidaymakers waterskiing in front of the Carlton Hotel, Cannes, 1958 12 x 16" inches / 30 x 41 cm paper size Estate Stamped ...
Archival Pigment
Saint-Tropez Swimmer 1971 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Saint-Tropez Swimmer 1971 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped A topless swimmer in Saint-Tropez, on the French Riviera, August 1971 60 x 40" inches / 152 x 101 cm paper size Estate Stam...
Archival Pigment
Black Pearl Trippers
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Henry B. Cabot Jr. (standing, centre) with his son Henry Bromfield Cabot III and their host Barclay (Buzzy) H Warburton III (in striped shirt) aboard the brigantine 'Black Pearl', ci...
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Black Pearl Trippers
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Henry B. Cabot Jr. (standing, centre) with his son Henry Bromfield Cabot III and their host Barclay (Buzzy) H Warburton III (in striped shirt) aboard the brigantine 'Black Pearl', ci...
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Poolside Bar 1980 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Poolside Bar 1980 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Guests seen from a poolside bar at the Hotel Il Pellicano in Porto Ercole, Italy, August 1980. 40 x 60" inches / 101 x 152 cm paper ...
Archival Pigment
Slim Aarons 'Dining Al Fresco On Capri' 1980 Official Limited Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Dining Al Fresco On Capri' Italian artist and actress Domiziana Giordano, Italian author Francesca Sanvitale (1928 - 2011), Dino Trappetti and Umber...
Archival Pigment
'Hotel Il San Pietro' Slim Aarons Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
'Hotel Il San Pietro' Slim Aarons Estate Edition Guests at the Hotel Il San Pietro in Positano, Italy, August 1979. In his words, he photographed 'be...
C Print
Poolside Service, Bahamas, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a swimming pool at the Lyford Cay Club at Lyford Cay on New Providence Island in the Bahamas, 1962...
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Monte Carlo, Monaco, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1970s landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features friends boarding a riva boat in Monte Carlo, Monaco, This is an estate stamped and hand n...
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Waterfall at Rose Hall, Estate Edition, Jamaica
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A woman combing her hair by a waterfall at Rose Hall, Jamaica, December 1971. Visual description: A tanned white woman smiles and combs her long brown hair by a waterfall at Rose H...
Lambda
Bahamas Speed Week 1963 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Bahamas Speed Week 1963 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped The Bahamas Speed Week in Nassau, 1963. 20 x 16" inches / 51 x 41 cm paper size Estate Stamped Collection Edition to 150 Ph...
Archival Pigment
Christmas Traffic - American Christmas Tree Traffic Landscape Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Brighton, GB
Christmas Traffic - American Christmas Tree Traffic at Night with Car Lights by Slim Aarons 16" x 16" print on 16" x 20" paper. Limited Edition Estat...
C Print, Digital, Photographic Paper, Color
Soho Waiters' Race (1955) - Silver Gelatin Fibre Print - Limited Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Soho Waiters' Race (1955) - Silver Gelatin Fibre Print - Limited Estate Stamped (Photo by Slim Aarons/Getty Images) Waiters carrying half bottles of champagne set off on the annual...
Black and White, Silver Gelatin
Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features skiers walking up a mountain in Cortina D'Ampezzo, a ski resort in northern Italy. This is an est...
Lambda
Sunbathing in Capri, Catherine Wilke
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
Sunbathing in Capri, Catherine Wilke, Chromogenic Lambda print Estate stamped and hand numbered edition of 150 with certificate of authenticity fr...
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Sugarbush Skiing, Vermont, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features tourists skiing at Sugarbush, a mountain resort in Vermont, April 1960. This is an estate stamped and h...
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Conca dei Marini, Italy, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1980s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a quiet bay in Conca dei Marini, on the Amalfi coast in Italy. This is an estate-stamped and hand-n...
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Zermatt Skiing Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Zermatt Skiing The apres-ski in Zermatt, Switzerland, March 1968. 24 x 20" - paper size Estate Stamped Collection Edition to 150 Photo by Slim Aarons Printed in 2025 Limite...
Archival Pigment, Color
Swimmer And Sunbather 1959 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Swimmer And Sunbather 1959 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped An underwater swimmer and a sunbather at Lake Tahoe, 1959. The line on the bottom of the pool marks the state line between Ne...
Archival Pigment
Italian Holiday Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Print
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Italian Holiday 1969 by Slim Aarons Slim Aarons Limited Estate Edition Emilio Pucci, Marchese di Barsento, holidays with family and friends on a luxury yacht in Porto Ercole, Tusc...
Archival Pigment
Slim Aarons, Blonde Beauties (Slim Aarons Estate Edition)
By Slim Aarons
Located in New York, NY
Slim Aarons Blonde Beauties, 1966 (printed later) Archival pigment print Estate stamped and numbered edition of 150 with Certificate of authenticity Bathers by a pool at the Tahoe...
Archival Pigment
Slim Aarons 'Catherine Wilke' (Slim Aarons Estate Edition)
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1980s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Catherine Wilke joining the topless sunbathers at the Hotel Punta Tragara on the island of Capr...
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Slim Aarons Estate Edition - Life In The Bahamas
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Life In The Bahamas A woman sitting in a hanging chair while having a drink in a bar in the Bahamas, in April 1967. A group of drinkers stand and sit at the bar in the background. ...
Archival Pigment
Conca dei Marini, Italy, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1980s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a quiet bay in Conca dei Marini, on the Amalfi coast in Italy. This is an estate-stamped and hand-n...
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Palm Springs Rodeo 1970 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped
By Slim Aarons
Located in London, GB
Palm Springs Rodeo 1970 - Slim Aarons Estate Stamped Spectators watch from the stand as a contestant rides a bucking horse at the Palm Springs Mounted Police Rodeo, Palm Springs, Ca...
Archival Pigment
Porto Ercole Beach - Beach Parasols and Water Tuscan Coastline in Southern Italy
By Slim Aarons
Located in Brighton, GB
Porto Ercole Beach - Beach Parasols and Water Tuscan Coastline in Southern Italy by Slim Aarons 16 x 20" print. Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print. Edition of 150. Printed Later. ...
Photographic Paper, Color, C Print, Digital
Waterfall at Rose Hall, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A woman combing her hair by a waterfall at Rose Hall, Jamaica, December 1971. Visual description: A tanned white woman smiles and combs her long brown hair by a waterfall at Rose H...
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