The Côte d'Azur with its blue seas and captivating scenery is not only the playground of sun lovers and celebrities, but an area astonishingly rich in the work of many famous painters, who came to the area for its clear light and bohemian lifestyle. Matisse, Chagall and Picasso all worked here. The "French Riviera" is undoubtedly a top summer vacation rendezvous.

 

 

Nowadays a trendy haunt of celebs St Tropez first began to be noticed when a whole tribe of painters descended on the quiet little town. Paul Signac instigated the influx by building a house here, and inviting Matisse, Dufy, Derain, Bonnard, Seurat, Vlaminck and Van Dongen to stay. Some years later, in the 1930s, the town was discovered by writers, including Jean Cocteau, Colette and Anais Nin. 1956 saw the arrival of Brigitte Bardot and director Roger Vadim to make "And God Created Woman" and that established St Tropez as the resort to be seen in. Today there are wonderful collections of Impressionist and...