Slim Aarons: The Good Life
Staley-Wise Gallery – Nov 29 to Jan 20, 2024 New York (US)
The photographs of Slim Aarons are so closely associated with “the good life” that Aarons’ name is now shorthand itself for luxury, privilege, and style.
Book Once Upon a Time.
In the introduction to his 2003 book Once Upon a Time, Aarons said “I believe in fairy tales. For six decades I have concentrated on photographing attractive people who were doing attractive things in attractive places.” Ironically, the beginning of Aarons’ life was anything but a fairy tale, and his sunny and escapist images were a rejection of the terrors of war and familial heartbreak that he was all too familiar with. As a precursor to social media’s promotion of the perennial perfect moment, Aarons’ photographs are aspirational yet nostalgic.
Recently discovered.
This is Aarons’ fourth solo exhibition at Staley-Wise after his first-ever exhibition at the gallery in 2003, only 3 years before his death. Several of the photographs in this exhibition were recently discovered in his archive and have never been seen before.
The Essential Collection (Abrams, 2023).
This exhibition coincides with the publication of Slim Aarons: The Essential Collection (Abrams, 2023), the first book to consider the entirety of his life and career – from World War II through the 1990’s. It was written by Shawn Waldron with contributions by Lesley Blume, Laura Hawk, Nick Foulkes, and Maria Cooper Janis.
Staley-Wise Gallery→ 560 Broadway Soho – New York, NY, USA 10012
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