Realist art attempts to portray its subject matter without artifice. Similar to naturalism, authentic realist paintings and prints see an integration of true-to-life colors, meticulous detail and linear perspectives for accurate portrayals of the world.
Work that involves illusionistic techniques of realism dates back to the classical world, such as the deceptive trompe l’oeil used since ancient Greece. Art like this became especially popular in the 17th century when Dutch artists like Evert Collier painted objects that appeared real enough to touch. Realism as an artistic movement, however, usually refers to 19th-century French realist artists such as Honoré Daumier exploring social and political issues in biting lithographic prints, while the likes of Gustave Courbet and Jean-François Millet painting people — particularly the working class — with all their imperfections, navigating everyday urban life. This was a response to the dominant academic art tradition that favored grand paintings of myth and history.
By the turn of the 20th century, European artists, such as the Pre-Raphaelites, were experimenting with nearly photographic realism in their work, as seen in the attention to every botanical attribute of the flowers surrounding the drowned Ophelia painted by English artist John Everett Millais.
Although abstraction was the guiding style of 20th-century art, the realism trend in American modern art endured in Edward Hopper, Andrew Wyeth and other artists’ depictions of the complexities of the human experience. In the late 1960s, Photorealism emerged with artists like Chuck Close and Richard Estes giving their paintings the precision of a frame of film.
Contemporary artists such as Jordan Casteel, LaToya Ruby Frazier and Aliza Nisenbaum are now using the unvarnished realist approach for honest representations of people and their worlds. Alongside traditional mediums, technology such as virtual reality, artificial intelligence and immersive installations are helping artists create new sensations of realism in art.
Find authentic realist paintings, sculptures, prints and more art on 1stDibs.
Sunbathing In Capri, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1970s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features sunbathers by a swimming pool at the Hotel Punta Tragara on the island of Capri, Italy, Au...
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Sugarbush Skiing, Vermont, Estate Edition, Winter Landscape Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1660 winter landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an individual skiing at Sugarbush, a mountain resort in Vermont, April 1960. This is an...
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Conca dei Marini, Italy, Estate Edition Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1980s landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a busy bay in Conca dei Marini, on the Amalfi coast in Italy, August 1984. This is an est...
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Sunbathing In Capri, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1970s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features sunbathers by a swimming pool at the Hotel Punta Tragara on the island of Capri, Italy, Au...
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Sea Drive, Nassau, Estate Edition Midcentury Modern Photograph Seascape
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features film producer Kevin McClory taking his wife Bobo Sigrist and their family for a drive in an 'Amphica...
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Eagle Club, Switzerland, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features holidaymakers dining at the Eagle Club, Gstaad, Switzerland. This is an estate stamped and hand nu...
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Mittersill Castle, Austria, Estate Edition, Midcentury Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1950s landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a glider resting on the ground by Mittersill Castle, Austria. This is an estate stamped ...
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Skiing in Zermatt, Switzerland, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features the apres-ski in Zermatt, Switzerland. This is an estate stamped and hand numbered edition of 150 ...
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Faithful Couple: Mick Jagger & Marianne Faithfull at Leixlip Castle, Estate Ed.
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Slim Aarons's iconic and unusual photograph of 60's rock and roll legends, captured in a moment of casual glamour. 1968: Singer Marianne Faithfull, the Honorable Desmond Guinness and Mick Jagger (of the Rolling Stones) sit on a sofa under a large gilt framed portrait of a woman in 18th century silk dress at Leixlip Castle, Ireland, the home of Desmond Guinness. The sofa is a deep burgundy red, and the background features a richly patterned and gilded wallpaper...
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Poolside Pairs, Palm Springs, Estate Edition 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 Nelda Linsk (in yellow), wife of art deale...
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Poolside Pairs, Palm Springs, Estate Edition, Midcentury 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 Nelda Linsk (in yellow), wife of art deale...
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Dining In Gstaad, Switzerland, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1960s landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features holidaymakers at a ski lodge at Gstaad, Switzerland, March 1961. This is an estate stam...
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On The Slopes Of Sugarbush, Vermont, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1960s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people relaxing at the chalet of stockbroker A Albert Sack Jr, at the Sugarbus...
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$2,400
Beverly Hills Party, Los Angeles, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1954 portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features American actors Lauren Bacall and Judy Garland attending a house party in Beverly Hills. This i...
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Courchevel, French Alps, 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 a ski resort in Courchevel in the French Alps, circa 1970. This is an estate stamped and hand num...
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Lounging In Gstaad, Switzerland, 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 holidaymakers in sun loungers on the slopes at at Gstaad, Switzerland, March 1961. This is an est...
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Californian Party, San Francisco, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1990s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features the Belgian born actress Audrey Hepburn (1929 - 1993) socialising at a party in San Francisco. This is an estate stamp...
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Deauville Casino, France, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1970s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features an exclusive gambling table at the casino in Deauville, France, 1970. This is an estate stamped and han...
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Zephyria I, Estate Edition. Monte Carlo French Riviera Speedboat Seascape
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Monte Carlo, 1970: This classic landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a vintage wooden and red painted speedboat carrying holidaygoers in the ...
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Mustique, Grenadines Islands, 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 Linda Ashland relaxing in a beach hammock on the island of Mustique in the Grenadines. This is an es...
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Pop And Society, Ireland, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features, from left to right; singer Marianne Faithfull, the Honorable Desmond Guinness and Mick Jagger (of ...
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Culinary Heights, France, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1980s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Courchevel restaurant chefs Jean Jacob (left) of 'Le Bateau Ivre', Michel Rochedy (centre) ...
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Anguilla Beach Resort, Leeward Islands, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1990s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features holidaymakers on the mile-long crescent beach at the Hotel Cap Jaluca resort, Anguilla, Leeward Islan...
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$1,800
Vermont Winter, Vermont, Estate Edition, Winter Landscape Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vermont Winter, Vermont, Estate Edition, Winter Landscape Photograph This 1960s winter landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features students from Sto...
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Cocteau Collector, Slim Aarons Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
August 1982: Art collector Sylvia Coca sits in front of one of Jean Cocteau's murals in Marbella. (Photo by Slim Aarons/Getty Images) Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Auth...
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Party At Romanoff's, Beverly Hills, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograp
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1950s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a party at Romanoff's in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles. This is an estate stamped and hand numbered ...
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Sea Drive, Nassau, Estate Edition Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features producer Kevin McClory taking his wife Bobo Sigrist and their family for a drive in an 'Amphicar' a...
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$1,800
Poolside Scenery, Palm Springs, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1970 portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Nelda Linsk (left, in yellow), wife of art dealer Joseph Linsk with guests by the pool at the Li...
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Conca dei Marini, Amalfi Coast, Estate Edition, Landscape Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1980s landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a busy bay in Conca dei Marini, on the Amalfi coast in Italy, August 1984. This is an est...
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Palermo (formerly Taormina Pool), Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This rich, vibrant Slim Aarons Estate Edition photograph depicts a swimming pool at the glamorous Villa Igiea, in the Sicilian cultural, economic and tourism capital of Palermo, on t...
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Porto Ercole, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Boats in the harbour of Porto Ercole (Port'Ercole), Tuscany, August 1967. Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included Numbered and ...
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$2,400
Private Island, 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 relaxing on the beach of a private island owned by Philippine Airlines President, Benigno T...
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$1,800
Race Day Lunch, 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...
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$3,600
Race Day Lunch, 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...
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Venice (Venezia), Photography, Limited edition
Located in Warsaw, PL
limited edition (10), signed
Photographic Paper
Slim Aarons 'Leisure in Antibes' (Slim Aarons Estate Edition)
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A woman sunbathing in a motorboat as it tows a waterskiier, in the sea off the Hotel du Cap Eden-Roc in Antibes on the French Riviera, August 1969. Leisure in Antibes Hotel du Cap Eden-Roc, French Riviera 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 72 x 48 inches $4900 60 x 40 inches $3950 40 x 30 inches $3350 30 x 20 inches $3000 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 Seascape Photography, Vintage Hotel du Cap Eden Roc, Vintage Pools, Vintage French Riviera, ocean, France, 70's French Riviera, seascape, red, Vintage beach...
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$5,400
Castello Di Paraggi, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1970s photograph, taken by society photographer Slim Aarons, features the Castello di Paraggi near Portofino, Italy, August. This is an estate-stamped and hand-numbered ed...
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Caleta Beach, Acapulco, Estate Edition, Landscape Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1960s landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a couple walking on Caleta Beach holding hands, Acapulco, Mexico, 1968. This is an esta...
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Alice In Acapulco, Mexico, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1960s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Alice Topping and Minnie Cushing (left) relaxing with friends in Acapulco, Mexico. This is...
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Catch Up by the Pool, California, 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 former fashion model Helen Dzo Dzo Kaptur (in white lace), Nelda Linsk (in yellow), wife of art deale...
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$1,800
SS Queen Of Bermuda, Bermuda, Estate Edition, Maritime Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1950s maritime photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features the British ocean liner 'SS Queen of Bermuda' in Hamilton Harbour, Bermuda. This is an es...
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On The Slopes Of Sugarbush, Vermont, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photo
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early 1960s portrait photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a group of people relaxing at the chalet of stockbroker A Albert Sack Jr, at the Sugarbus...
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Caleta Beach, Acapulco, Estate Edition, Landscape Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1960s landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a couple walking on Caleta Beach holding hands, Acapulco, Mexico, 1968. This is an esta...
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$1,800
Lounging In Bermuda, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late-1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Jill Council relaxing with a drink by a swimming pool in Bermuda, November 1969. This is an estat...
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Capote Cycling, Slim Aarons Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Slim Aarons Capote Cycling Slim Aarons Estate Edition 1970: Truman Capote (1924 - 1984) on his bicycle in Palm Springs, California. Author of several novels including 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' which was made into a film. 40 x 60 inches $3950 30 x 40 inches $3350 20 x 30 inches $3000 10 x 12 inches $1350 Complimentary dealer shipping to your framer, worldwide. Estate stamped and hand numbered edition of 150 with certificate of authenticity from the estate. Chromogenic Lambda print from the original transparency 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. 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. 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). Please contact us for additional photographs from Slim Aarons * Undercurrent Projects offers premium quality photographic prints from the Slim Aarons Archive, owned and housed by Getty Images. All photographs are printed and authorized by the Getty Images Gallery, London. Photographs are printed utilizing the original transparency held at the archive source. Internal: Vintage Literary photography, vintage writers, vintage glamour, vintage breakfast at...
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$5,400
Snorkelling Holiday, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This mid-1970s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features a snorkelling holiday in the Turks and Caicos Islands in the Caribbean. This is an estate-stamped a...
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'Capri Tan' Estate Edition, 1968, Italy: vintage 60s beach fashion
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
1968, A kneeling sunbather shows off her rings and pendant on a beach in Capri, Italy. From a recent Vogue article on the photography of Slim Aarons: "The iconic Capri is always teeming with a variety of hotels, each more beautiful than the last. A stone's throw from the Villa Malaparte from Jean-Luc Godard's movie Contempt, the Faraglioni cliffs plunging into the turquoise of the Tyrrhenian Sea, and the colorful houses that climb the bay. The Hotel Punta Tragara was one of Slim Aarons' favorite spots in Italy." Slim Aarons Capri Tan...
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Pebble Beach, Slim Aarons Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Riders from the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center wend their way through the Californian sand dunes and pampas grass, November 1976. Slim Aarons Pebble Beach, Slim Aarons Estate Editio...
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Eagle Club, Switzerland, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features holidaymakers dining at the Eagle Club, Gstaad, Switzerland. This is an estate stamped and hand nu...
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Poolside Pairs, Palm Springs, Estate Edition 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 Nelda Linsk (in yellow), wife of art deale...
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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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Tyrolean Churches, Tyrol, Estate Edition, Winter Landscape Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This 1990 winter landscape photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features Andreas Kirche and Liebfrauen Kirche in Kitzbuhel in the Austrian Tyrol, 1990. This is ...
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$3,600
Lynn Wyatt, France, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This early-1990s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features American socialite Lynn Wyatt by a swimming pool in Cap Ferrat, France. This is an estate-stamped...
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Pebble Beach, Slim Aarons Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Riders from the Pebble Beach Equestrian Center wend their way through the Californian sand dunes and pampas grass, November 1976. Slim Aarons Pebble Beach, Slim Aarons Estate Editio...
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Tropical Mustique, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
February 1989: Pierre Vincent Marais holidays with friends on the island of Mustique in the Grenadines. Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included Numbered an...
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Rowing Off Sicily, Estate Edition (Taormina, Italy: rocky turquoise seascape)
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Slim Aarons' Rowing Off Sicily, an Estate Edition photograph, is a vintage scene of two couples out rowing off the coast of Sicily, Italy, near Taorm...
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Hotel on Lake Como, Estate Edition
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The swimming pool and jetty at the Villa d'Este Hotel, Lake Como, Italy, June 1983 Slim Aarons Estate Edition, Certificate of Authenticity included Numbered and stamped by the Slim ...
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Pop And Society, Ireland, Estate Edition, Mid-Century Modern Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This late 1960s photograph, captured by society photographer Slim Aarons, features, from left to right; singer Marianne Faithfull, the Honorable Desmond Guinness and Mick Jagger (of ...
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$3,600
Skiing Princess, Austria, Estate Edition, Portrait Photograph
By Slim Aarons
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Skiing Princess Slim Aarons Estate Edition Numbered and stamped by the Slim Aarons Estate. Certificate of Authenticity included. C-type print on Fuji Crystal Archive Paper, Crisp de...
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$5,400
Bouldereign, 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 Carl Hovgard's home, Bouldereign in Carefree, Arizona, built around the boulders on a desert site,...
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