Lecture 11 November - Food and Art through the ages: from Renaissance Sugar Sculpture to 3-D Printing

The Arts Society Horsham kicks off the festive season early with a celebration of 'Food and Art Through the Ages' in a whistle-stop tour of the history of food as artistic medium — starting with 16th century sugar sculpture and venturing all the way to 3-D dessert printing and beyond. Hosted by Food Historian Tasha Marks, the audience at the Brighton Road Baptist Church was treated to a sensory discovery of desserts as spectacle where we learnt the origins of dessert, the crossover between sugar and art, architecture and dessert and the democratisation of sugar from a precious commodity to the modern day free to view and free to consume modern art! 

We learnt that the origin of sugar from the Middle East, India, Egypt and beyond first reached Britain in the 12th century when it was revered for its medicinal application. The early method of producing sugar from drying sugar cane was soon replaced by a refining process of the sugar loaf, or sugar cone, in the 15th century. The idea of desserts after a meal was traced to medieval times when a course of fruit, jelly and sweetmeats was served away from the main dining room and often consumed standing up! This so called 'Medieval Void' was later transformed in Elizabethan times to an extravaganza of sugar sculptures in sumptuous banquets! It was regarded as symbol of power and status due to the expensive raw materials and method of production. Sugar was a luxury commodity. Indeed the sugar workers were considered as artists and commanded good income as confectioners. 

The sugar rush reached its high in the Renaissance period where a banquet of the wealthy class would have featured an entire table decorated with sugar sculptures, moulded in different objects, architectural delights and mythical creatures, often with underlying symbolisms. It was a pure ostentatious display of wealth and power. In some country estates, banqueting halls were built for invited guests for the exclusive consumption of desserts. Examples of these banqueting halls have survived, including 'The Pineapple' in Dunmore, Scotland and Melford Hall in Long Melford, Suffolk. The sight and scent of the sugar works were very much part of the complete sensory experience for the privileged guests! 

The democratisation of sugar was founded, ironically, on the slave trade in the desire and demand for this rare commodity to be more affordable to the masses. The long shadows and lessons of the slave trade have found expressions in modern sugar art installations. Tasha illustrated examples from contemporary artists such as Kara Walker with the 'Marvellous Sugar Baby' where sugar is no longer enjoyed in private houses for the privileged few but granted open access for all.  Sugar as an art medium is crafted to enhance the sensory experience of visitors in museums and galleries. Tasha’s own show at the V&A of edible bubbles became an interactive and social experience for the visitors! Perhaps the more shocking modern installations designed to invoke discomfort in the viewer serves to remind us of an over-indulgent consumer culture and the bitter legacy of the slave trade of this commodity. 

While new technology such as 3-D printing creates amazing works of art from sugar, much like the early confectioners with their sculpted sugar creations, we were also reminded to consider the future of food — to be critical of its origin and be more mindful of the way we consume it. That is a lot of food of thought! We will certainly savour our marzipan or Turkish Delight with restraint and gratitude this Christmas!