Food and art in Florence

The art of the Renaissance or the art of food? Do we go to Florence for the food or for the art? Has gastronomy replaced Giotto on the Florence bucket list?

how it began

‘Yes,’ said Lucy. ‘They are lovely. Do you know which is the tombstone that is praised in Ruskin?’ […] ‘I like Giotto. It is so wonderful what they say about his tactile values.’

These famous words are uttered in the church of Santa Croce in Florence, by Lucy Honeychurch in E.M. Forster’s A Room with a View. When he published it, in 1908, many people in Britain and the US dreamed of going to Florence, to follow in Lucy’s footsteps. And some would have recognised that ‘tactile values’ is a quote from Bernard Berenson. Art is what people went to look at; they did not go for the food. And those feelings persisted for decades. All visitors to Florence wanted to find out the answers to those questions that bothered Lucy. And travel publishers brought out guide books to help them, earnestly describing fresco cycles, assisting the eager visitor to understand art and sculpture.

and how it changed

Today that mould has been broken. Not that human nature has changed. Travellers still dream of going to Florence but they want to experience food AND art. So Santa Croce maybe doesn’t have the glamour it once had. Far better would be if the maitre d’ at Enoteca Pinchiorri (with three Michelin stars) were to rush forward, usher us to an excellent table, whisk the menu from our hands and offer to concoct a personalised gastro tour. That is food and art in Florence all rolled into one.

So yes, it’s still all about wanting to emulate the heroes of our age. Lucy and her culture-hungry counterparts were following in the footsteps of the previous century’s Grand Tourists, who had wanted art and sculpture. Lucy wanted art and sculpture too. But today our role models have changed. They are no longer aesthetes with cabinets full of Tuscan bronzes or walls adorned by Renaissance artists with breathtaking brushwork. They are TV chefs with Mediterranean herb gardens and nifty knife work. When we go on holiday, we don’t hang upon the words of Berenson. Few may need to know which was the tombstone praised in Ruskin. People are visiting Italy as much as ever, but with Fred Plotkin, not John Ruskin, as their mentor.

So enjoy!

Food, after all, is universal. Everyone eats. And now too, unlike 50 years ago, the travelling, vacationing classes do their own cooking and housekeeping. Food is a levelling, absorbing subject. Suddenly, for the mass of travellers, Giotto’s pigments are not half so interesting as Maestro Giorgio’s condiments.

For the Blue Guide Italy Food Companion, a handy guide to help you negotiate any menu (and available in print or as a downloadable app).