HYLAND
range from a jade sautoir with carved coral, lapis and gold
($245,000) to zebra bracelets encrusted with diamonds.
Little wonder Jackie Kennedy commissioned Webb to
design 12 "official gifts" for White House guests.
Captivating artistic triumphs also await visitors at the
Hubert Gallery near 80th street. Whether it's the chromatic
passion of Geoffrey Johnson ("he doesn't overpower a
room with his canvases," says gallery
owner Greg Hubert), a $40 million
Giacometti in the upstairs viewing
room, or the "dazzling wall power"
of Picasso's Head of a Woman,
the pieces here are a must-see. As
Hubert passionately says, "whether
it's working with interior designers, or
educating people who stroll in here
from the (neighboring) Met, these
pieces are simply captivating. They
resonate."
Savoring all these delights does take
a toll, yet the avenue offers many options for rejuvenation.
If a sugar surge is desired, Laduree for voguish macarons
is perfect, except for the creeping long lines (between
70th to 71st). French master chocolatier Robert Linxe
reigns supreme in Paris, and his magic is very apparent
in the lemony, cinnamon and even fennel-scented pastry
explosions at La Maison du Chocolat, a ganaches and
pralines heaven which has an alluring hot-chocolate salon in
the rear. For more wide-ranging choices, there's the frenetic,
