Savoir faire: at Palazzo d'Arco, Mantua, an exhibition on the table and its rules

Savoir faire at the table: this is the title of the exhibition that Palazzo d’Arco in Mantua is hosting from May 14 to September 25, 2022. An exhibition curated by Silvia Tosetti and Francesca Rapposelli in which the wonders of the table triumph but also an opportunity to gain experience in convivial occasions, starting from the assumption that around the table revolve social and cultural dynamics and rules that change over time and with them change the services, culinary equipment, gastronomic tradition and good manners of diners.

The tables at the home of the Counts of Arco, an 18th-century palace in the heart of Mantua where everything has remained as it once was, proudly display their 19th- and 20th-century equipment with crockery, risers and “serving” pieces, cutlery and ornaments, in fine porcelain and biscuit, limpid crystal and precious silver, that trace in the modern European picture a path from East to West that is lively and cosmopolitan. Accompanying the table and daily living are nineteenth-century manuals of etiquette, “subtracted” from the shelves of the family library and displayed in the rooms to illustrate how the salle à manger should be set up, what are the indispensable rules for setting the table, what courses make up a perfect menu or how to assign seats at the table: indeed, every occasion has its own bon ton.

Since time immemorial, the table has been the centerpiece of convivial occasions, in the family and in society: at the table political agreements and marriage vows have been sealed, alliances and economic deals have been made, old friendships have been honored and new ones born. In the private and public spheres, the table was and is the stage where diners can show off their art, “savoir faire,” to be shrewd, affable and brilliant in different circumstances. “Savoir faire” is an aptitude, an innate skill but also an art learned through the study of special manuals of politesse, or good manners, and perfected through experience. “Savoir faire” at the table manifests itself in a certain participation in the events of others, in knowing how to welcome one’s guests with care and elegance, in choosing for them the right tableware, be it china, silverware or branches, the appropriate table ornaments, the perfect menu and impeccable service.

The exhibition itinerary

The exhibition unfolds in four sections, in the rooms of the aristocratic residence prepared for the family meal and banquet or alternative less formal and demanding convivial occasions such as brunch. It starts with the first, The Banquet: in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the tradition of the banquet and its ceremonial is kept alive, which is manifested in the setting and ornaments, service and gastronomy as well as the custom of setting up the meal under the eyes of the ancestors. Indeed, there are many examples of halls used for banquets, the decorative apparatus of which consists of the gallery of portraits of ancestors or a symbolism of historical and political exaltation of the family. In the Hall of Ancestors, the first on the tour of the Palazzo d’Arco, two tables are compared: on the first is displayed the English porcelain service from the factory of Josiah Wedgwood, a fine example of “Flow Blue Imari Ware” datable between 1844 and 1850, which brings to Anglo-Saxon tables the oriental, and more specifically Japanese, taste. The second presents the trousseau of Count Antonio d’Arco, whose list seems stolen from a page of the Rules of Knowing How to Live in Modern Society by Baronne Staffe (pseudonym of Blanche-Augustine-Angèle Soyer): the 1872 Ginori white porcelain service, numbering 196 pieces; the immaculate whiteness of the flanders tablecloth, with “bouquet” decoration and embroidered monogram, purchased in 1881 from the fine Milanese factory “G Baroncini”; and the silver serving flatware. Ladles, singular utensils and glittering glassware tell of sumptuous dishes and fine wines served on formally set tables as seen in the Nature Morte room.

The second section, The Family Table, is set up in the Hall of Diana, which was originally the dining room for the family as noted by the presence of the sideboard carved out of the walls of the room with the pass-through open to the Hall of Ancestors. The buffet-niche, as it was called, is an Anglo-Saxon invention that successfully landed on the continent from Scottish mansions as an element of dining room furniture and comfort. The table, the eighteenth-century double-door buffet and a second sideboard show two Richard Ginori white porcelain services: the 1906 rose service and the 1903 “Italia” service. Precisely the latter, used routinely in the family, as recounted in a letter from Count Antonio d’Arco, reflects the intimate atmosphere of everyday domesticity albeit ordered by noble etiquette.

We then move on to the third section, The Brunch: since 1895 the convivial “Sunday morning” event has been brunch, the result of the fusion of breakfast and lunch, breakfast and lunch, two previously distinct meals in nineteenth-century England. This new meal formula, served late in the morning and which could extend into the early afternoon, was the natural evolution of the traditional hunting breakfasts that brought together knights and amazons after the much-loved practice of the art of hunting. In the Wallpaper Room, the brunch table triumphs with Victorian silverware and galvanic productions serving on the table a generous and elegant meal made up of cold meats, eggs and fish but also tarts, bread, butter and jam, all washed down with a good cup of tea or a refined and not too alcoholic cocktail.

Finally, the last section, Gastronomy and Culinary Equipment, is located in the palace kitchen, where the table is overflowing with pots and pans, as it must have been when the cook and helpers were busy preparing a long and plentiful menu.The culinary equipment, mostly made of copper, becomes “talking” and tells about the gastronomic habits between the 18th and 19th centuries and the role played by copper in the home in past centuries. Alongside the cookware ready for the preparation of tasty recipes, a number of old family recipe books and some of the countless shopping lists kept in the Palace archives are on display.

The exhibition project and the enhancement of the kitchen and culinary equipment is also expressed in an educational collaboration, declined on the technological and laboratory level, with L’Istituto Superiore E.Fermi of Mantua. A group of students, as part of a broad school project in which the Fablab is also involved, applied the techniques of 3D scanning and photogrammetry on some antique kitchen molds to reproduce them perfectly. The rare copper specimens can then be made into a material suitable for their modern use in the kitchen.

Events on the sidelines of the exhibition

Savoir faire at the table is not only a temporary exhibition but includes a hands-on, experiential approach in the ordinary tour. It will be possible, for example, to learn the rules of table setting, the choice of table linens, what can and cannot be presented, and other extraordinary details that can make a difference. In addition, some special events, real experiences, are planned on precise days. Following is the schedule.

22/05 and 12/06 10 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. - Brunch at the Palazzo d’Arco. An Anglo-Saxon tradition as old as fox hunting, a social event in 1920s America, the must-do Sunday morning event: brunch will be at the Palazzo d’Arco in the orangery and garden. After visiting the halls of the palace, guests will be able to enjoy brunch offered in a modern key by Il Bianchi, an ice cream café in San Biagio (Mantua). Cost guided tour and brunch tasting: 25 euros.

June 21, 7 p.m. - The Summer Solstice Sorbet. An evening to recount the ancestral traditions of the land of Mantua that speak of herbs, nature and their powers, and that are also reflected in gastronomy. In the garden of Palazzo d’Arco with Daniela and Fernando Aldighieri we will celebrate the Summer Solstice with the preparation and tasting of a sorbet with a special taste. Cost guided tour and showcooking: 12.00 euros.

26/06 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. - Picnic at Palazzo d’Arco. Ladies and gentlemen of the Italian Napoleonic Association, dressed in early 19th century attire, will color the palace garden with blankets, wicker baskets, dances and purely Napoleonic fashions. Visitors will be able to stroll freely, attend the “actors’” snacks and entertain themselves with them at cricket or other period games. In addition, some purely didactic moments are planned in order to get a closer look at why certain trends or particular customs were created. Cost: 5.00 euros.

24/09 - A Sweet Home d’Arco. Cake Star, the well-known TV show broadcast on Real Time, unites Palazzo d’Arco, home of the 2022 edition, and Derecò, the pastry shop in Castiglione delle Stiviere that won the Mantua episode. The collaboration continues with an event where haute patisserie is linked to the historical and culinary traditions of the d’Arco family. On this occasion the pastry set will enrich the kitchen display and the art of pastry chef Fabio Marmorio will be realized in a family dessert that tells of the ancient origins of Trentino. Cost guided tour and showcooking: 12.00 euros.

Sept. 22, 6 p.m. - Presentation of Lydia Capasso’s book The Past is Served. Tales and recipes of dishes that made history, Milan 2022. Presented by Italo Scaietta, Conservator of Palazzo d’Arco, and Omero Araldi, Mantua Delegation of the Italian Academy of Cuisine.

Savoir faire: at Palazzo d'Arco, Mantua, an exhibition on the table and its rules

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