Art Deco

“I talk with the authority of failure.’’ When thinking about the popular culture of the 1930s, that icon of Jazz Age decadence, F. Scott Fitzgerald, rarely comes to mind. And yet it is Fitzgerald’s words that haunt Morris Dickstein’s judiciously researched, persuasively argued, elegant analysis of Depression culture, “Dancing in the Dark.’’ Failure was in the air - the country itself had failed, in a way - and the weightless fantasies of a prior decade had lost their savor.

A New York City auction will feature a painting by art deco artist Tamara de Lempicka that vanished from public view after it was created in 1925. Sotheby's says "Reclining Nude I" (one) is expected to sell for $3 million to $5 million on May 2. The work was included in the artist's first major solo exhibition in Milan in 1925. It was thought to have disappeared right after that. Sotheby's says it was contacted late last year by its West Coast owner. The auction house says the owner had it for a decade before he realized that it might be an original work by the...

A New York City auction will feature a painting by art deco artist Tamara de Lempicka that vanished from public view after it was created in 1925. Sotheby's says "Reclining Nude I" (one) is expected to sell for $3 million to $5 million on May 2. The work was included in the artist's first major solo exhibition in Milan in 1925. It was thought to have disappeared right after that. Sotheby's says it was contacted late last year by its West Coast owner. The auction house says the owner had it for a decade before he realized that it might be an original work by the...

NEW HAVEN - Francis Picabia, one of the originators of Dada, made this picture, called "Midi (Promenade des Anglais)" sometime between 1923 and 1926. It's on show at the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven, where it leapt out at me largely because I'm a sucker and I like palm trees and blue sky and Nice (where you will find the Promenade des Anglais), but also because I like macaroni, I'm tickled by feathers, and I'm intrigued by the texture of snakeskin. The latter are hard to make out at first.

NEW HAVEN - Francis Picabia, one of the originators of Dada, made this picture, called "Midi (Promenade des Anglais)" sometime between 1923 and 1926. It's on show at the Yale University Art Gallery in New Haven, where it leapt out at me largely because I'm a sucker and I like palm trees and blue sky and Nice (where you will find the Promenade des Anglais), but also because I like macaroni, I'm tickled by feathers, and I'm intrigued by the texture of snakeskin. The latter are hard to make out at first.

How to get there The lowest round-trip air fare between Boston and Miami at press time was $202 on American Airlines. Where to eat Versailles Restaurant 3555 SW Eighth St., Miami 305-444-0240 It sounds French, but this restaurant is all Cuban with mirrored walls and Spanish-speaking staff. It reflects the Cuban culture -- sometimes loud, passionate, and dripping with loyalty. Sandwiches and appetizers under $6 and entrees under $12. Puerto Sagua 700 Collins Ave., Miami Beach 305-673-1115 This spot has one of the best Cuban...

BRATTLEBORO, Vt. - A thriving, artsy town along the banks of the Connecticut River, Brattleboro is bucolic enough for city-weary visitors while offering plenty of activities for energetic travelers. Three- and four-story historic buildings offer interesting and independently owned places to shop and dine, including at least five bookstores and almost as many coffee shops. In fact, there seems to be more than one of everything here: CD and used record stores, clothing boutiques, sporting goods emporiums, kitchen shops, home goods and gifts stores, restaurants, and arts...

How to get there Lowest round-trip air fare between Boston and Los Angeles available at press time started at $317 on America West Airlines, connecting through Las Vegas. What to do Walking tours Los Angeles Conservancy 523 W. 6th St., Suite 826 213-623-2489, www.laconservancy.org. Most downtown tours last two hours. Tours include Art Deco, Broadway Theaters, and Pershing Square Landmarks (every Saturday); Biltmore Hotel and Marble Masterpieces (second Saturday of the month)

Cape Cod vacation life at its best delivers idyllic days, when the breeze ruffles your hair and the sunlight sparkles on the sea. Inevitably, though, drizzly days follow, drenching the skies and dampening the spirits. If you can't curl your toes in the sand, you can explore some of the curious and quirky spots that give the Cape its unique character: Cape Cinema Art House Going to the movies is commonplace on a rainy day, but the Cape Cinema in Dennis is far from typical.

Maybe it’s the fact that the First Family hails from here, but Chicago has lately upped its hipness quotient. Who needs the Olympics when the buzz is on in the city’s thriving art, design, and restaurant scenes? Hoteliers have made their own strong bid for visitors with a string of happenings, from newly updated institutions to newly opened stylish digs, and almost all are offering fall-season specials. Read on for a survey of the latest and greatest downtown. High above the tourist throngs on shop-centric Michigan Avenue is the soothing aerie that is the Four Seasons...

Cape Cod vacation life at its best delivers idyllic days, when the breeze ruffles your hair and the sunlight sparkles on the sea. Inevitably, though, drizzly days follow, drenching the skies and dampening the spirits. If you can't curl your toes in the sand, you can explore some of the curious and quirky spots that give the Cape its unique character: Cape Cinema Art House Going to the movies is commonplace on a rainy day, but the Cape Cinema in Dennis is far from typical.

RYE, N.Y. - The kids swarm onto the platform and hop into two-seater cars painted with Egyptian Revival wings and lightning bolts, like celestial chariots. Music pumps as the platform, a big wooden disk, begins to spin, and the cars, hooked to metal rods, swivel sharply this way and that. As the disk spins faster, the cars whip back and forth, hence the ride’s name - The Whip. The kids yelp with each bump and bounce, much as children have done on this ride since it was built, in 1928.

Maybe it’s the fact that the First Family hails from here, but Chicago has lately upped its hipness quotient. Who needs the Olympics when the buzz is on in the city’s thriving art, design, and restaurant scenes? Hoteliers have made their own strong bid for visitors with a string of happenings, from newly updated institutions to newly opened stylish digs, and almost all are offering fall-season specials. Read on for a survey of the latest and greatest downtown. High above the tourist throngs on shop-centric Michigan Avenue is the soothing aerie that is the Four Seasons...

BRATTLEBORO, Vt. - A thriving, artsy town along the banks of the Connecticut River, Brattleboro is bucolic enough for city-weary visitors while offering plenty of activities for energetic travelers. Three- and four-story historic buildings offer interesting and independently owned places to shop and dine, including at least five bookstores and almost as many coffee shops. In fact, there seems to be more than one of everything here: CD and used record stores, clothing boutiques, sporting goods emporiums, kitchen shops, home goods and gifts stores,...

“I talk with the authority of failure.’’ When thinking about the popular culture of the 1930s, that icon of Jazz Age decadence, F. Scott Fitzgerald, rarely comes to mind. And yet it is Fitzgerald’s words that haunt Morris Dickstein’s judiciously researched, persuasively argued, elegant analysis of Depression culture, “Dancing in the Dark.’’ Failure was in the air - the country itself had failed, in a way - and the weightless fantasies of a prior decade had lost their savor.

Artists and writers with strong ties to this region have produced some remarkable art books this year. Boston is a big photography town, and Abelardo Morell is at the top of the list in that medium. His "Camera Obscura" (Bulfinch, $60) is a haunting series of images made with that most basic technology; Morell's magic results in apparitions of iconic buildings -- the Empire State Building, the Tower of London -- that appear on the walls of rooms, upside down, as in a dream.

Artists and writers with strong ties to this region have produced some remarkable art books this year. Boston is a big photography town, and Abelardo Morell is at the top of the list in that medium. His "Camera Obscura" (Bulfinch, $60) is a haunting series of images made with that most basic technology; Morell's magic results in apparitions of iconic buildings -- the Empire State Building, the Tower of London -- that appear on the walls of rooms, upside down, as in a dream.

The new dorm tower at Massachusetts College of Art and Design is the most interesting Boston high-rise in years. Even though it isn't finished, it's already an architectural landmark, rising like a multicolored flag above Huntington Avenue. There's a youthfulness about this building, a feeling of play, of experiment. Those are qualities an art school ought to have. College buildings need donors to give them names. For the time being, this one is known as the MassArt Residence Hall.

How to get there The lowest round-trip air fare between Boston and Miami at press time was $202 on American Airlines. Where to eat Versailles Restaurant 3555 SW Eighth St., Miami 305-444-0240 It sounds French, but this restaurant is all Cuban with mirrored walls and Spanish-speaking staff. It reflects the Cuban culture -- sometimes loud, passionate, and dripping with loyalty. Sandwiches and appetizers under $6 and entrees under $12. Puerto Sagua 700 Collins Ave., Miami Beach 305-673-1115 This spot has one of the best Cuban black-beans-and-rice...

How to get there Lowest round-trip air fare between Boston and Los Angeles available at press time started at $317 on America West Airlines, connecting through Las Vegas. What to do Walking tours Los Angeles Conservancy 523 W. 6th St., Suite 826 213-623-2489, www.laconservancy.org. Most downtown tours last two hours. Tours include Art Deco, Broadway Theaters, and Pershing Square Landmarks (every Saturday); Biltmore Hotel and Marble Masterpieces (second Saturday of the month)