Slim Aarons "Polo by the Sea" Tee

Notes

100% cotton tee digitally printed with "Polo by the Sea" (1969) by Slim Aarons.

Photo by Slim Aarons/Getty Images

Size & Fit

Unisex. Runs true to size (men's sizes).

Provenance

Slim Aarons was a legendary American photographer, best known, in his own words, for capturing "attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places." Never using a stylist or makeup artist, Aarons preferred instead to photograph his subjects in their natural states and habitats. His most iconic images depict actors and scions, heiresses and minor royals, literati and sportsmen at home and at play in places like Palm Beach, St. Moritz, Cannes and Capri. His poolside scenes are among his most famous work, but his work took him to polo grounds and croquet courts; ski slopes and yachts; inside castles, cabanas and grand hotels. But what's most arresting about Aarons' work is not his access to these rarified realms or the sense of privileged leisure he documents (and at which some, in 2020, might bristle). It's the idealized, self-acknowledged fantasy of it all: Slim was, as one critic wrote, an "insider among insiders." His work makes the world look far more beautiful than it ever really was, and far more perfect than it could ever really be, even for his glamorous subjects.

We're extremely proud to be collaborating with Slim Aarons' estate on this capsule. Aarons' work, his sense of style and taste, and the combination of talent and impish charm that opened doors for him around the world are qualities which we not only respect but to which we aspire. We like the idea of taking some of Aarons' most iconic work and applying it to a medium or canvas more usually associated with streetwear: graphic printed tees and hoodies. The printing has been done extremely carefully for all five of the images we chose for this collaboration: photographs of topless bathers in Capri; spectators at Henley Royal Regatta; a St. Tropez beach scene; a polo match by the sea in Spain; and - one of his most beautiful images in our opinion - a lakeside summer picnic.

With all of the challenges our world faces today, Aarons' work provides a sense of escape - to a colorful fantasy world of beauty and leisure.