There has never been any place on earth quite like the French Riviera in the 1920s and early 30s. Artists and writers from all over the world--including Picasso, Man Ray, Stravinsky, Coco Chanel, Cocteau, Edith Wharton, Diaghilev, and Hemingway--came to invent a new way of life. This photo-biography shows these mythic personalities living in a world divided between a thirst for creation, the hunt for happiness, and the ominous approach of World War II. With access to extraordinary personal archives published here for the first time, you will witness firsthand the life and work of some of the most important artists of the 20th century.