As groups of visitors swarm the Villa Medici, getting lost in the forest From the Renaissance gardens or painfully climbing the stairs to the cardinal’s room, Arturo Franzino descends the steps two at a time like an arrow, fangs on his feet and a bouquet of rosemary in his hand. At 27 years old, he is the third resident director at the French Academy in Rome. The caponata planned for lunch on this October day will not happen on its own and deftly dodges the struggling tourists.
Since January 2022, the Villa Médicis offers a very special culinary residency. Regular residents, invited to conduct their artistic research for a full year, are not subject to any production limitations, as are residents who come for shorter stays. They are free, therefore, to organize their time and whether or not to produce a draft or a work at the end of their stay. On the contrary, the young cook runs every lunch hour between the kitchen and the cafeteria to feed the entire team of the institution: the maintenance staff, the residents and the management.
“It is a somewhat special residency format, admits Sam Stourdzé, the director. Previously, the Villa Medici was interested in the culinary arts by inviting historians or journalists. Nowadays, the practice of cooking is central, whether to accompany large events or to supply the cafeteria. » The table is set at lunch time for the employees, happy to find a complete meal there for the price of 6 euros.
Artistic-culinary collaborations
Everything is cooked on site, according to the season, according to what the chef picks from the Academy’s garden and orchard, but above all according to deliveries from the Roman producers with whom he works closely. A daily task that Arturo Franzino carries out five days a week with two chefs who help him, when he is not preparing the institution’s private dinners for guests passing through Rome, such as the Prince of Monaco or the Bulgari family.
“In March, for the carnival, we recreated an old banquet in the hall, remembers the enthusiast of culinary traditions, with a big smile on his face. At the initiative of resident visual artist Hélène Bertin, we baked life-size bread characters and molded heads from lumps of butter using ancient statues as models. » He is as enthusiastic about culinary-artistic collaborations as he is about the village’s daily food.
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