Slim Aarons: The man who captured Marbella
- Secret CDS
- 6 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
At any respectable open house of a luxury villa, you may very well find a Slim Aarons print or at the very least, a copy of one of his books (A Place in the Sun, La Dolce Vita, Poolside with Slim Aarons).
To stage a property with a Slim Aarons photo is to acknowledge and nod to the nostalgia of the luxury and glamour that helped create modern-day Marbella.
The scenes are evocative. Slim Aarons’ thing was to capture attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places. He gave us a literal snapshot into the post-war glamour of high society — a timeless movement of the wealthy globally gallivanting at leisure — and he lets us all peek in.
He used no stylists, no lighting crew… he roamed freely, guerrilla-style, through glitterati gatherings, just sensing and waiting for the moment — reportedly even using a beautiful assistant to distract his guests. His core subjects lived in stunning homes, were often classically beautiful and well dressed — one could say he lived on a permanent set. One of golden light and cocktail hours. Of jets, yachts and palaces. His life is a film reel of jet-set people in extraordinary and exclusive places.
His use of Kodachrome film — a vivid, colour-rich 35mm stock — contributed to the richness and saturation of his images. Often the white of the villas and hotel settings created the perfect contrast for glowing tans, vivid nature, and bold designer clothing.
However, his career as a photographer started out in an almost paradoxical way: he was a combat photographer during World War II, where he came to a poignant and pertinent realisation.
“I decided I’d had my fill of human suffering and despair,” he said. “When I was asked to hotfoot it to Korea to cover the war, I let it be known the only beach I was interested in landing on was one decorated with beautiful girls tanning in a tranquil sun. Beaches were made for strolling and lying on, not for invading.”
Clearly, he grabbed onto this ethos with gusto and let it dictate his life. He was tall and good-looking and blended into the crowd of his chosen subjects. He was as comfortable with the aristocracy as he was with the rising stars of Hollywood. His style is natural, but it also captures a world of privilege that is completely unobtainable to most.
Much can be said — he was prolific in his global travels, and his archives are full of rich, colourful, intimate portraits. But what is also iconic is that he helped establish and build the identity of places such as Marbella, which in the 1950s and 1960s was still relatively new on the international circuit.
His photos of El Venero, the Marbella Club Hotel, house parties and gatherings give us a window into the soul of a blossoming hot spot — a place where royalty intersected with starlets and new money.
Now, when even the average person must stage their photo, perfect the lighting on their camera phone, and pose and pout — his photos feel refreshing. Underproduced. Exuding true intimacy. This is not the "affordable luxury" of today — this is old money living. Slim Aarons was a man attracted to elegance and beauty, and he captured and chronicled this for the future to enjoy.
Having lived through the despair and hardship of war, Slim Aarons chose a life that many could only dream of.
And he really did choose it. The full quote that he used to introduce a 2003 photo memoir was:
“I believe in fairytales. For six decades I have concentrated on photographing attractive people who were doing attractive things in attractive places.”
He was a living fairy tale, obscuring humble origins. In his new post-war life, he would speak of a classic New Hampshire upbringing — that he was an orphan raised by New England grandparents. However, upon his death, his widow and daughter were shocked to be contacted by his unknown family. In reality, he was a child of Jewish immigrants, and at a time when anti-Semitism was rife, he had hidden a childhood that began on the Lower East Side of New York, involving time spent passed from relative to relative after his mother was institutionalised.
A man of total reinvention — one who had lived through atrocity and didn’t just aim for the stars — he lived among them and became one himself.
In a world that existed before digital cameras and social media, he chronicled a lifestyle behind closed doors that might otherwise have been lost. He left behind a legacy — he chose life and joy instead of death and depression. Not everyone is lucky enough to have that mindset, but behind the glamorous photos lives a story that should be told.
All images are credited to Slim Aarons
Comentários