Slim Aarons (1916–2006) was a celebrated American photographer who chronicled the leisurely lifestyle of the rich and famous in his captivating shots of beguiling figures in luxurious environments. The glamorous world of his photographs, in which effortlessly beautiful and wealthy people lounge poolside, became an iconic series that allowed Aarons access to shoot some of the most candid portraiture of the 20th century. These wonderful photographs were taken by Slim Aarons in the 1960s, they show holidaymakers enjoying their winter holidays at some beautiful places around Europe.
At 18 years old, Aarons enlisted in the United States Army, worked as a photographer at the West Point military academy, and later served as a combat photographer in World War II and earned a Purple Heart. Aarons said combat had taught him the only beach worth landing on was “decorated with beautiful, seminude girls tanning in a tranquil sun.”
After the war, Aarons moved to California and began photographing celebrities. His work appeared in LIFE, Town & Country, and Holiday magazines. He never used a stylist, or a makeup artist. Aarons made his career out of what he called “photographing attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places.”
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| Holidaymakers in sun loungers on the slopes at Verbier, Switzerland, February 1964. |
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| Holiday-makers take the sun on a mountain top in Verbier, 1964. |
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| Holiday-makers take the sun on a mountain top in Verbier, 1964. |
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| The Ice Bar at the Hotel Krone in Lech, Austria, 1960. The mountain in the background is the Omershorn. |
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| Princess Luciana Pignatelli on a skiing holiday in Lech, Austria. |
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| Skiers at Cortina D’Ampezzo in Italy, 1962. |
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| Skiers waiting for the cable car at Verbier in Switzerland, 1964. |
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| Skiers admire the view across a valley of clouds at Verbier, 1964. |
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| Skiers pass by the Hotel Chesa Grischuna in Klosters, 1963. |
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| A group of women reclining on the snow in Gstaad with rugs covering their knees, 1963. |
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| Skiers at Verbier, 1964. |
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| Skiers walk up a mountain in Cortina D’Ampezzo, a ski resort in northern Italy, 1962. |
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| Holidaymakers in sun loungers on the slopes at at Gstaad, Switzerland, March 1961. |
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| Skiers at Gstaad, Switzerland, March 1969. |
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| Curling at St. Moritz, Switzerland, 1963. |
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| A bartender mixes a drink for a customer at the Ice Bar at the Hotel Krone in Lech, Austria, 1960. |
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| Holidaymakers dining at the Eagle Club in the ski resort of Gstaad, Switzerland, 1969. |
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| The town centre at the ski resort of Gstaad, Switzerland, 1961. |
(Photos by Slim Aarons/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)