Getty Images, "Polo Player," Slim Aarons, January 1, 1955

This timeless photograph captures legendary American polo champion Stephen "Laddie" Sanford taking a moment of leisure before a match at the prestigious Gulfstream Polo Club in Delray, Florida, in 1955. The image showcases one of America's greatest polo players in his element, embodying the sophisticated sporting culture that defined Palm Beach society during the height of the post-war era.

Depicting the epitome of American sporting aristocracy, this photograph represents the golden age of polo when the sport commanded immense social prestige and attracted the nation's most prominent families. Sanford, whose Hurricanes team claimed the U.S. Open Polo Championship five times across three decades, personifies the intersection of athletic excellence and high society that characterized Palm Beach's exclusive sporting scene, where international celebrities, royalty, and America's social elite gathered to witness the world's finest polo talent.

Slim Aarons, renowned for his evocative photographs of, as he described it, "attractive people doing attractive things in attractive places," was the quintessential chronicler of high society. After serving as a war photographer, Aarons turned his lens to a new landscape: the glamorous lives of Hollywood elites, Palm Beach socialites, and jet-setting debutantes and princes. His work for society publications captured an aspirational world of leisure and luxury that defined the American upper class throughout the mid-20th century, creating images that remain timeless symbols of sophistication and style.

Every piece in our unique Slim Aarons collection is meticulously handcrafted using archival materials and printed on premium, luster photographic paper with environmentally safe inks, custom framed by skilled artisans who ensure that each work of art meets the exacting standards befitting such an iconic photograph.