Introducing the exhibit

The National Gallery, a principal art museum in the UK, was founded in 1824 and houses some extraordinary collections in addition to hosting the country’s most prestigious exhibitions. So, it’s all the more surprising that the institution is associated with a basket case like Credit “Suisside” Suisse (some of whose clients have been accused of sex trafficking and torture – ‘Credit Suisse’s art partnerships up in the air after emergency UBS takeover’ – The Art Newspaper, 24.3.23), recently and rather ignominiously swallowed up by rival UBS. How this affects future exhibitions at the NG remains to be seen. Will UBS honour Credit ‘balance sheet like Swiss cheese’ Suisse’s sponsorship commitments?

The recent exhibition, housing the most complete and comprehensive collections of Renaissance painter Raphael for the first time ever in the UK (the most comprehensive and complete exhibition of his work remains the one held at the Scuderie del Quirinale in Rome, in 2020), generated the inevitable column inches and effusive praise- at times it became difficult to distinguish between an objective review and a fawning hagiography. This is our take – controversial and contrarian- on the exhibition.

Born Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, Raphael was an artist, architect, archaeologist, poet and much more, known as much for his artistic output as his libido. The Catholic Church obviously had no issues with Raphael’s promiscuity. Despite having a short career, passing at age 37 (1483-1520), Raphael had an unprecedented impact – some would say he outshone his contemporaries: Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci –  on culture and art.

Learning from his father Giovanni Santi, Raphael took over the family workshop when his father passed in 1494.It’s rather surprising that the impact of this tragic event on Raphael’s life is rarely discussed in more detail, especially in this era of psychoanalysis (real and pseudo), in all the volumes written about Raphael. That Giovanni artistically influenced his son is a given but what was the nature of the father-son relationship? How did Raphael feel in the presence of his father? How did he feel when he saw his father’s completed works? If Giovanni’s The Madonna and Child Enthroned With Saints, with its celestial figures, apprehensive humans, precisely rendered immoveable structures and geometrically perfect tiles can draw an adult’s prolonged attention, what effect did it have on his son (a profound effect, as it happens: Raphael would  go on to create a version of his own, in the form of an altarpiece,  a medium he soon came to master under the guidance of his uncle)? Conversely, how did Giovanni feel as he saw his son’s precocious talent burgeon?

Undoubtedly, the death of Raphael’s mother would have had a profound effect on father and son, as would the later death of two siblings. How did they cope with this and did they channel the grief in to their work? Did Raphael channel memories of his mother in every rendition – flawless, thin, bright-eyed-  of the Madonna?There are so many unanswered questions about the father and son but one factor can’t be refuted: the genesis of genius was engendered in loss and tragedy.

The exhibit provides a unique opportunity not just to learn about Raphael’s works, but one’s relationship with art in general. A key aspect of this exhibit is how the art on show can tell us about Raphael’s life and character, as well as develop our own perspectives on art. Prior to the exhibit, I had a base level of art knowledge – I’d heard of key figures like Rembrandt, and was aware of some of the world’s most iconic pieces. Now, I have a much deeper appreciation for the cultural impact of all types of art, and how it can be a tool to explore psychology and history.

Supplementing the exhibit isa complete hardback catalogue, filled with scholarly essays on Raphael and descriptions of each piece. This proved to be an invaluable learning tool for me as well as an interesting read.

I’ll aim to explore the layout of the exhibit, before briefly addressing each of the works and then finally addressing how the exhibit affected myself, a solo attendee with only a base understanding of art history, and other diverse groups such as art enthusiasts or school trips attending the exhibit.

Layout/Structure

The exhibit made use of different rooms to break up the collection of Raphael’s work into different chunks. This semi-chronological structure led guests along a numbered tour from Raphael’s first paintings to his architectural designs. I say semi-chronological since it roughly follows the timeline of his life, but some rooms such as the architecture room or the portrait room are dedicated to a certain aspect of Raphael’s career.

The different rooms are structured as follows:

Early Works

The first room was aptly labelled Early Works, featuring works from the time in his life following the passing of his father in 1494. I was struck with how bright and colourful the paintings of biblical scenes were(to me they suggested hope and salvation), which I think is reflective of the fact that Raphael was living with his uncle- who was a priest- following the death of his parents.

Florence & Beyond

Guests then filter into Florence & Beyond. This follows the period circa 1504 where Raphael turned his attention to Florence, as it was the artistic hub in Italy. This is where his style began to evolve as Raphael came into contact with his more famous contemporaries. His work was influenced by Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo and he’s even known to have studied the works of sculptor Donatello.

The Pope’s Banker

The next room is titled The Pope’s Banker. Agostino Chigi (1466 – 1520) is believed to be the richest man in Italy at the time, and acted as the financial backer for both Pope Julius II and Pope Leo X, hence the titleThe Pope’s Banker. Chigi supported and gave financial aid to Raphael, commissioning works both for his villa and the chapels in Santa Maria della Pace and Santa Maria del Popolo. The ‘Art-Money’ nexus existed long before Credit ‘Seriously Shit’ Suisse teamed up with the National Gallery! This section of the exhibit features some of the works Chigi commissioned.

Working for two Popes

Following this the exhibit naturally progresses from the last featuring Chigito Working for two Popes. This displays Raphael’s works for Pope Julius II and Pope Leo X(the more cynical would say this was an attempt by the Catholic Church to ‘Art Wash’- a ploy adopted centuries later by Middle Eastern despots -its persecutions during the Spanish Inquisition), beginning in 1508 when he was commissioned to paint frescoes for Pope Julius II’s private apartments in the Vatican. Some theorise this was the Pope’s attempt to emulate his predecessor, Pope Alexander VI.Where did the money for this interior decoration come from? While there is little evidence, it is reasonable to assume

that Julius utilised taxes levied by the Catholic Church, anonymous donors, and donations from believers to fund his project, pushing the Vatican to the forefront of Renaissance art. Raphael’swork was impressive enough that Pope Julius II fired other artists on the project, assigning Raphael to lead,while Julius’ successor, Pope Leo X, had Raphael continue after Pope Julius II’s passing in 1513. Raphael continued painting the papal suites, known as the Stanze, until his death in 1520 at which point they were left unfinished.

Architect &Grand Visions

The exhibit then transitions to show one of Raphael’s other labels, Architect. This much smaller room is dedicated to his brief career as an architect. Featuring a models and floorplans of his work, we learned about his designs for the burial chamber of Chigi, and how he became chief architect of the new St Peter’s Basilica. Grand Visions is similarly a smaller room and represents the growth in Raphael’s career. Learning to delegate work, Raphael was offered more commission by Pope Leo X and increased the diversity of his art. Giant tapestries and altar pieces can be found here.

Friends and Patrons

The final room is a portrait room dubbed the Friends & Patrons room. Due to the success of Raphael’s career he was often occupied, rarely taking commissions for portraiture. This means that the only portraits Raphael undertook were of those close to Raphael, such as his self-portrait with Giulio Romano, or of politically important figures like Lorenzo de Medici.

Laying out the exhibition in this way is a logical choice since it creates an easy- to- follow route through the exhibition, which means visitors of any age and interest can not only experience Raphael’s work, but it also allows the audience to track how Raphael’s work evolves over time.

By this I mean, Raphael was famously open to learning from other artists. While many artists would develop a style and stick with it for the duration of their career, Raphael would learn from and evolve with his contemporaries. Raphael would also share skills with and teach other artists himself. This process of sharing inspiration can be observed when looking at Raphael’s work in the context of Leonardo Da Vinci. Once I mentioned his name, I’d wager that Da Vinci’s most famous work sprung to your mind – the Mona Lisa.This iconic portrayal of a woman, turned slightly towards the viewer with hands crossed on her lap is synonymous with Renaissance art. One of Raphael’s featured works in the National Gallery is a portrait titled La Muta (‘silent one’). My initial instinct when viewing this painting was “oh, this reminds me of the Mona Lisa” and this is because it portrays a woman, turned slightly towards the viewer, with her hands crossed on her lap. This is not to say the works are identical – while the Mona Lisa is smiling, La Muta looks to be fairly despondent or disapproving. Coupled with this is La Muta’s left index finger, which is outward in a pointing position, again unlike the Mona Lisa. It gives me the impression that she is motioning toward something she is unimpressed with, as if I had trekked mud through her newly cleaned kitchen. It adds an element of movement to the painting which is absent in Da Vinci’s work. Considering the Mona Lisa was estimated to be painted around 1503, and La Muta is estimated to originate around 1507, the assumption can be made Raphael was inspired by, and built upon, other’s work.More controversially, the argument could be made that Raphael was ripping off Da Vinci. Today’s Intellectual Property lawyers would have a field day arguing for and against!

This was a long-winded way of explaining that in the early exhibit we see a lot of very colourful paintings of key biblical scenes. Yet as we move further along his career, we see less colour and different subject matters, and we can also see where the inspirations for these changes originate. Despite this logical and effective structure, there is one aspect of the exhibition which suffers as a result: the sketches.

These are frequent throughout the gallery and they show Raphael’s practice sketches before tackling larger pieces. In my opinion they’re overshadowed by the other works.The graphite sketches on paper have faded considerably. This is to be expected and the gallery’s very low lighting makes it hard to truly appreciate some of the sketches. Again, this is an understandable choice since high lighting can irreversibly damage artwork and Raphael’s works need to be preserved. This results in the already faded sketches being harder to see, therefore leading to people having to stand much closer to the works to properly experience them. These queues are made worse considering the sketches were often positioned next to the completed painting where people were also gathered. As well as crowds standing close to the sketch, it also lessens the impact of the sketch. Why struggle to examine a faded drawing when you could stand back and absorb the completed project? A solution to this would be change the structure of the gallery slightly.

One of the other rooms should have been dedicated to the key sketches. This would mean that people could have spread out a bit more, having more room to view each sketch. They would also no longer have been overshadowed by their completed big-brothers. Interestingly, it would also have allowed the audience at this stage to follow not the career of Raphael but the process of Raphael. Sketches were done as a plan before Raphael later completed the piece. This means that, like Raphael, the audience can use the drawings to build an image of what to expect before moving into the next room and experiencing the completed works in all their glory. This prevents the sketches being overshadowed and lets the audience follow alongside Raphael.That being said, the argument could be made that the sketches would lose some of their meaning if it was an incomplete fragment of a drawing in a separate room from the final product – some visitors may not connect the two works. In addition to this some sketches are key in showcasing how a certain piece evolved, and needs to be situated at a certain point in the process. So while I found a nitpick,I understand the thought process behind it and can admit that the current layout still works well.

Paintings

Art is arguably created to invoke an emotional reaction in those viewing it, be it joy, despondency or even fear. These emotions, in combination with imagery, are used by the artist to convey a message which may be political, personal, religious and many more. An exhibition such as this will therefore inspire reflection by the viewer not just on the artwork but the world around them. One guest I spoke to even described this particular exhibition as “overwhelming”, as a result of the sheer volume of iconic works. There’s almost too much to take in and consider. In order to address my thoughts, experiences and preferences I’ll first briefly outline each of the works included in the exhibit.

Head of a Boy (1498)

This faded portrait of an unknown young boy is the first piece visitors view if they are following the exhibit chronologically. The fact that the portrait was fading, no longer clear, only benefits the work. It builds on the impermanence of time: while all photos become memories of those we’ve lost, those photos too will one day be gone, only then are we truly forgotten. The gradual fading of the artwork creates a sense that this boy’s memory has a deadline. Yet the other unfaded works cement Raphael’s name in history, so while the boy in the picture may be gone his legend remains.As a work of art, it’s no better or worse than hundreds and thousands of self-portraits churned out by budding artists (just pop over to Piccadilly Circus and you’ll see how skilled the busking artists are, if you want to put this sketch of Raphael’s in to perspective). In fact, if Raphael’s name wasn’t attached to it, it probably wouldn’t merit a second look.

Saint Sebastian (1502-3)

The Christian martyr Saint Sebastian was famously tied to a tree and shot full of arrows for converting his fellow Roman soldiers to Christianity. Usually depictions of this event can be quite graphic, as can be seen in the portrait by Il Sodoma. However, Raphael makes the choice to use bright colours and show a beautiful young man (flowing locks, unblemished, broad face, pliant demeanour) holding an arrow rather than being harmed by one. I believe this is a decision to portray the beauty in Christianity(and an attempt to sanitise Christianity’s often violent history), likely born from Raphael’s religious background under the care of his uncle. Personally, I prefer Il Sodoma’s portrayal of the event, unafraid to shy away from the dark nature of the event and represent the darker side of faith.

Procession to Calvary (1504-5)

Raphael’s depiction (supposedly influenced by Da Vinci, Filippino Lippi and Justus of Ghent) of Jesus dragging his cross is extremely beautified. By this I mean the use of bright, diverse colours and the absence of any violence or blood (even the cross looks smooth and freshly painted). However, the colours and the actions of the various figures fade when you look directly in to Jesus’s eyes. His is the only gaze meeting the viewer’s; all the other figures look elsewhere. Similarly to Saint Sebastian, I suspect this is Raphael’s attempt to portray biblical events in a lightened way.Again, Raphael’s uncle may well have been an influence in sanitising the depiction of Christianity in Raphael’s work.While I understand a believer’s choice to beautify Jesus’s suffering, I feel by lightening the work it lessens the impact of the sacrifice. If he was not suffering to the extent we believed, then ultimately, how selfless actually was his sacrifice?

The Mond Crucifixion (1502-3)

This iconic portrayal of Jesus’s crucifixion is the first to really grab the viewer, due to its sheer size. Standing at nearly three meters tall and under two meters wide,The Mond Crucifixion is a pièce de resistance. As above, this usually grim point in time has been recreated with vibrant colours and minimal violence.However, Christ’s naked body contrasts with his red loincloth and with the blacks, greens, pinks and light blues of the other figures. The nails in his hands and wound in his rib only feature a small red dash.In fact, none of the figures even appear to be shedding tears. A strange decision on the part of Raphael considering the significance of the event depicted. It endeavours to create a sense of calm (not horror, which ultimately reflects Jesus’s attitude towards his sacrifice) but the presence of floating angels and the Sun and Moon gives the work a crowded and busy feel. Perhaps leaving the two angels and Sun and Moon out and letting the blue skies (why are the skies always blue in Raphael’s paintings?) remain unobstructed would have had a more calming effect.

Saint George and the Dragon (1504 -5)

The epic and heroic scale of this work is somewhat diminished by Raphael’s disproportionalities: for example, the Princess of Silene is barely more than a maroon splodge. It’s odd that the very reason for the heroic battle has been diminished and stuck in the background. St. George’s horse looks like a mutant (part horse, part bull), with its disproportionately large breast and improbably thick neck! There’s a lack of drama in the background: clear, blue skies (again!) instead of, say, trees bending in a storm.

However, the painting does have some merits, such as the contrast between the sable hue of the dragon (a cast –off from Durer’s The Apocalyptic Woman) and St. George’s sleek, shiny black armour.

Saint Michael (1503-4)

Saint Michael is the first exhibit from Raphael’s religious paintings to move away from the beautified version of Christianity. Here, Christians will NOT turn the other cheek. They’ll fight back!We see browns and reds (and a welcome, albeit temporary, departure from blue skies)with Michael in full armour (“Locked and loaded”!) slaying Lucifer, with other creatures (Hounds of Hell?) looking on in shock and awe. Set in Hell, the scene appears to depict a battlefield, with a town in flames in the background.The right side of the painting shows four men being attacked by serpents. It’s not just Lucifer, portrayed as a goat (a common symbol for Satan), getting his ass kicked. Raphael shows the full fury of God by showing sinners getting their comeuppance. As far as value for money and detail go – simultaneous slaying and judgements – this painting is hard to top. This change in tone suggests Raphael growing as an artist, moving away from his youthful optimism (and naivety) and approaching darker subject matters.

Virgin and Child with Infant Saint John and Child Saint (‘The Terranuova Madonna’ – 1505)

This painting introduces visitors to the concept of a “tondo” which is a type of circular painting originating from Florence. As this is one of Raphael’s first, we can see he has not maximised the potential of this circular canvas, since some of the painting is cropped out.It’s a tonally dark work: even the sky seems to have lost its usual blue glaze. It’s a drained, colourless sky and one wonders what was going through Raphael’s mind as he worked on this sombre piece.  Another unusual aspect about the work is the presence of a third child. It’s very rare to come across similarly themed works by Raphael that depict a third child and the identity of this child remains unknown. Raphael’s fondness for structures is visible in the buildings in the background, their straight lines and peaks contrasting with the undulating contours of the vegetation on the opposite side of the painting, yet Raphael has painted both in a greenish tinge.

Siege of Perugia (1505-6)

This piece depicts, as the name suggests, a battle. Regardless, all the soldiers are pictured weapon-less and armour-less. I note this because it encapsulates Raphael’s tendency to use nude figures with very important commissions, which answers the question of why soldiers are performing a siege naked. Allegedly inspired by Leonardo da Vinci, one can only wonder how this would have turned out had Raphael persevered with it.

Self Portrait (1506)

Raphael’s self portrait oozes self-confidence. I was particularly drawn to this earl work. The young Raphael is show with his head held high, looking directly towards the viewer, though he does not appear smug or cocky. It’s as if Raphael knew the talent he possessed and the impact he could leave on the art world(…and possibly the number of mistresses he was rumoured to have).

Lamentation of Christ(1506-7)

I found the Lamentation of Christ interesting as it exposes the audience to the idea that art is fluid, able to adapt and evolve as it forms. The portrayal of Jesus’ body being carried to the tomb was originally conceived as a crowd gathered around Jesus’ body. This can be seen in a sketch performed by Raphael early in the project, an ink on paper drawing of Christ’s body on the ground with his head resting in his mother’s lap. Jesus’s pose here is similar to his form in the final product as he is carried, which enables the viewer to see how one evolved into the other.

La Muta(1506-7)

I have already touched upon La Muta, a portrait very reminiscent of theMona Lisa. It is accompanied here by the sketch Raphael used to practice the form, Study for a portrait of a young woman. This image is one of the first in the exhibit to be inspired, not by Christianity, but by the art world around Raphael. Understandably, it stays within the confines of the genre- exposed shoulders, neutral expression and dark, unpretentious garments. However, it’s the model’s hands that catch the eye. Firm, long fingers, with just enough flesh to hint at the fact that the lady has healthy appetites.

Saint John the Baptist Preaching(1505)

Apart from depicting a variety of emotions, this work reintroduces the brightly coloured, uplifting tone from Raphael’s earlier paintings . We seen John’s furrowed seriousness as he points upwards (referring to the anticipated arrival of Christ), the attentiveness of those in the front row, the distractedness of two in the second row, and the defiant lack of interest of the fatty in the last row. The coming of Christ is seen as a time of hope and joy, exactly the sensation which is projected by the colour scheme. On that note, it’s worth noting how the bright colours contrast with the dark terrain in the background. In fact, the change from the lighter shade in the foreground to the darker hue in the background seems abrupt, as if the clouds had perhaps moved across the sun, thus darkening the land.

The Ansidei Madonna (1505)

The Ansidei Madonna was crafted as an altarpiece for the Ansidei family chapel. A Madonna is a term used to describe depictions of the Virgin and Child, the most common subject in Renaissance art. This piece shows Mary with the infant Christ on her lap, St John the Baptist on her right, and St Nicholas of Bari to her left. This is a melancholic piece, designed to allude to the infant’s eventual crucifixion later in life. Nicholas, Jesus and Mary all gaze at the Bible, which foretells his sacrifice. John, however, is looking at the cross he is holding in his left hand while pointing at the infant with his right, calling to the sacrifice to come. However, Raphael, being the architect that he was, has injected symmetry in to this work. All four figures are tilting their heads in the same direction and he’s taken considerable care in depicting the base of the throne in clean, sharp lines and blocks. The sharp-eyed will notice how the protruding wave at the left elbow of the Virgin catches just a hint of light. This would suggest that the scene is lit from behind and from the side.

Holy Family with Pomegranate (1507-8)

This piece unsurprisingly depicts the holy family and a pomegranate. What is special about this piece is that it highlights Raphael’s generosity toward other artists, a trait not all artists possessed. This piece was gifted to Domenico Alfani, who later made use of it to create an altarpiece. Raphael was not afraid to both learn from and inspire other artists.Although “just” a sketch, it still delivers an emotional thump, mainly in the depiction of Saint Joseph’s position and expression and Child Christ’s curious tilt towards the fruit from behind his mother’s arm.

Madonna of the pinks (1506-7)

This work again highlights Raphael’s interaction with other artists. The piece is strikingly similar to Da Vinci’s The Benois Madonna. It is up to viewer interpretation whether it is an homage to Da Vinci’s work, or a challenge. One aspect I was drawn to is the thin veil over the Virgin’s head, as it highlights the extraordinary skill required to achieve such an effect.The dark background struggles to compete with the look of love on the Madonna’s face, a testament to Raphael’s skill in portraying a smile so slight in size yet so impactful, especially when one considers that the Virgin was always aware of her son’s fate. The smile is complemented by the mother touching her son’s little fingers while supporting his back with her other hand. The dark interior background contrasts with the skin tone of the figures and the Virgin’s clothes but this is a parallel contrast, parallel to the physical contrast between mother and child. She’s smiling but sub-consciously her grip on him is loosening, as it one day will for good.Then again, is she really smiling? Could her demeanour not be that of a mother struggling to hold back tears while she spends precious moments with her infant, sadness overcoming happiness?

Saint Catherine of Alexandria (1507)

Saint Catherine of Alexandria was a Saint and martyr who, when refusing to renounce her faith, was ordered to be executed on a breaking wheel. This was a form of torture where an individual’s limbs were threaded through the spoked of a wheel and beaten until crushed with a rod. In Raphael’s depiction, he returns to the use of vibrant colours and little violence, asshe is standing next to the wheel turning away(contrapposto) from it to look up at golden light breaching the clouds. This gives the audience a sensation of hope, suggesting Saint Catherine of Alexandria was correct in looking towards God no matter the punishment man inflicted on her.

A rather unexpected result of showing St. Catherine twisting is that we get a suggestion of her curvaceous physique (wide hips and ample but firm thigh), even though she’s fully clothed in heavy robes (a quick study of his sketches/studies for this painting will reveal that the model the Saint is based on was nude). An example of Raphael moving away from the slim and delicate Madonnas to more voluptuous renditions of the female form…and ever so subtly eroticising saints?

Leda and Swan (1505-7)

This piece is based on a now lost Leonardo Da Vinci creation. Elements of this piece were incorporated into other works, for example the twisting pose of the woman was used in Saint Catherine of Alexandria, highlighting again how art from not only other artists but one’s own catalogue can influence new works. And, could there be a sexier, more suggestive Renaissance sketch? Leda’s half-smile, inscrutable (Is it a seductive smile? Is it a post-coital smile?) and non-committal yet not in the least bit shy. This is a muscular, pert, fertile woman of mythology, bearer of children and open to pushing boundaries. How else would you describe seducing a swan (ok, it was Zeus disguised as a swan but still!)?

The Madonnas

At this stage in the exhibit is a series of Madonnas, starting with the Virgin and Child (‘The Alba Madonna’ 1509-11). In this piece the Virgin has a look of motherly love on her face, and yet the infant Christ appears forlorn. It appears as though he knows the sacrifice he is destined to make and that he will not live a normal life. Interestingly, here the Virgin has her hand around the infant John the Baptist, and not her son.  Also noticeable is the way the brownish tinge of the earth slowly changes to alight green of the bushes, finishing with the light blue of a mostly clear sky. The predominant presence of blue and the strong infantile presence convey a sense of serenity and innocence to this tondo.

Following this is the Garvagh Madonna (1510-11), similar in themes and tones to The Alba Madonna. However, here the humans are depicted indoors.

The Bridgewater Madonna (1507-8)is another piece which expresses Raphael’s willingness to be inspired by others. Jesus is shown in an unusual position, which is inspired by the Taddei Tondo,a marble tondo created by Michelangelo.

The final Madonna is the Madonna of the Palm(1506-7), a piece which calls to Jesus’ birth. Another tondo, we see the holy family with Mary, on a trough, and Jesus looking at one another with Joseph holding the baby’s hands. This is a rare depiction of Joseph, which adds a layer of poignancy to the painting. Only one side of Joseph’s face is portrayed but it nevertheless conveys a father’s happiness, sadness and powerlessness.There is a through line in many of Raphael’s Madonnas of the young infant acknowledging and accepting his eventual sacrifice, though not all. This may be because it is ultimately more tragic when we picture an infant sacrificing themselves rather than a grown adult man.

Incredulity of Saint Thomas(1511-12)

This section of the exhibit consists of three pieces, two sketches and a sculpture. This marks the first time in his career that Raphael provided designs for a sculptor. The audience can observe sketches, one paper and one created using metalpoint. These show the design process for the tondo sculpture adjacent to the sketches. This will likely catch the viewer’s attention as it is the first physical, three dimensional piece of art we see in the exhibit after sketches and paintings. The chips and damage at the bottom of the tondo are indicative of the age of the artwork in the room. Compared to some of the pristine paintings, the sculpture feels like an ancient relic uncovered because of the wear and tear, helping to remind the audience how incredible it is we can still experience these works.

Descent into Limbo(1511-12)

Descent into Limbo is presented as a pair with the Incredulity of Saint Thomas since it is another sculpture. Nearly identical in size, material and scope, this piece portrays Christ surrounded by angels. In the top left-hand of the tondo is an unfinished angel, and Christ’s right foot only has two toes, which suggests that Raphael may have passed away during the design process of this piece.

Ground plan for Chigi Chapel (1511-12)

Here we see our first hint at Raphael’s architectural prowess. The plans we can see are reminiscent of the works of Raphael’s friend, architect Donato Bramante. This suggests he may have influenced or even aided Raphael in his early architectural career.

Study for an angel (1515-16)

Accompanying the Ground plan for Chigi Chapel is a study for an angel that Raphael was planning  on using in the Chigi Chapel. The angel is seen looking down but pointing upwards, as though they are showing us the way and guiding us to God. I was particularly drawn to this sketch over others as it was created using red chalk, which I found gave it a warm, calming effect.

Study of a figure leaning on a parapet(1508-9)

While not the most awe inspiring of his works, this sketch does have an interesting quality that the others do not. On the same scrap of paper are lines of a sonnet which Raphael had written, which shows us that outside of art, architecture and sculpting Raphael still explored other interests and talents.

Pope Leo in a Sedia Gestatoria(1513)

This piece can be used to teach audiences a common practice in the art world. Showing Pope Leo being carried by his people, the rough sketch is overlayed with a grid pattern. Obviously practice sketches were often done at a much smaller scale than many of the finished pieces, but this creates a problem when trying to replicate the finished product as scale alters the proportions of each aspect. To offset this problem artists would overlay a grid pattern on a sketch, and having mathematically worked out the dimensions of the larger canvas, proportionally recreate this grid pattern on the new location. These grids can then be used to determine the positions of specific elements.

Pope Julius II (1511)

Bathed in deep, rich colours, this portrait stands apart from the rest as the viewer is placed slightly above and to the right of the Pope, who is looking downwards with a defeated expression. The deep greens and reds contrast with the deathly palour of the Pope (who, incidentally, almost died in 1511). It suggests that life is slowly seeping out of him as he sits there in his papal regalia ( rendered with attention to detail and delicacy: check out the white fur trim on the Pope’s red “hoodie”).This piece reflects the Pope’s reaction to his recent military defeat, given that he was usually associated with violent power and war. This piece is also among Raphael’s most widely knownworks, and as such is given a lot of breathing room in the exhibit.

The School of Athens(1509-11)

This is a rather breath-taking portrayal of history, having been replicated at the exhibit to scale due to its current location in the Vatican. Another of Raphael’s most iconic works, its hard to take in every aspect of this image, showing all of the great philosophers, such as Plato and Aristotle, at an imaginary gathering. The wall it was displayed on was barely large enough to show all of it, expressing the sheer scale of the work.

The Holy Family with the Infant St. John the Baptist/’Madonna of the Rose’ (1516-17)

The holy family with infant John the Baptist are again the main figures and the theme remains Christ’s sacrifice. However, this is a much more intimate work with no distracting backdrop (there’s nothing but a dark background). The children’s happy faces are welcome contrasts to the overall sombre background hue and Joseph’s downcast demeanour. Worth noting is the delicate depiction of the noses: the two children have been given plump little noses while the Virgin’s seems to perfectly compliment her lips and chin. But, it’s Joseph’s nose that really stands out: sharp but proportionate, adding a fatherly gentleness to an ageing face.

For the aesthetes, it’s the depiction of the Virgin’s veil that really stands out. Portraying its transparency, flow down the right side of Mary’s face and its eventual curling around her shoulders could only have been pulled off by an exceptional artist.

Although named ‘Madonna of the Rose’, this is inappropriate since the rose was added in much later. As with the other Madonnas, John is holding his cross and Jesus seems to be interacting with John. Mary however is holding the infant protectively, whilst looking at John, and Joseph can be seen in the background looking withdrawn. This could suggest that the parents know, and wish to protect, Jesus from his fate though inevitable.

God the Father accompanied by Symbols of the Evangelists/‘The Vision of Ezekiel’- (1516-17)

This work consists of two parts: a grand painting and a large tapestry. Though the tapestry has slight alterations, it is a rather faithful and impressive recreation of the painting. The work depicts God breaching the clouds, silhouetted in golden light. With him are two angels and the four evangelists, represented in their animal forms. The sheer size of these works mean viewers have to look up at God descending from a gateway to heaven, as they would in the real event. This exemplifies how scale can be used in order to immerse a viewer in a painting. It’s one of the rare works in which Raphael relies on more than one animal to, as it were, do the heavy lifting.

The Holy Family with St. Anne and the Infant St. John the Baptist/‘Madonna of Divine Love’ (1516)

This work is one of Raphael’s which was widely replicated. This demonstrates the influence he was having on the art world at the time. It shows the holy family with Saint John the Baptist and Saint Anne. We can see that John does indeed have his cross, and Jesus is pointing at it with his right hand, again foreshadowing his eventual sacrifice. Everyone is painted in a warm glow, except Joseph in the background who is in shadow, perhaps lamenting the coming sacrifice of his son.

Barely noticeable is the wide-eyed and genuflecting Infant John the Baptist placing a hand on his chest, perhaps pledging loyalty to the future Saviour. This could be an attempt by Raphael to depict the nascent forces of good growing despite the dark period, symobolised by the dark walls in the background.

The Holy Family with Raphael, Tobias and the Angel and St. Jerome/’Madonna of the fish’ (1513-14)

Conceived as an altarpiece, thisis one of the few works not to depict John the Baptist or Joseph. Rather, we can see the Archangel Raphael and Tobias to the Virgin and Christ’s right, with Saint Jerome to their left. The attention of Mary and Christ are so directed toward their right that the work’s earliest names do not acknowledge Saint Jerome at all.

Raphael chose a large green drape, rather than end-to-end blue skies, or architecture, or celestial beings as a backdrop for this interior-set piece. Consequently, the green overpowers the other colours.

The tilt of the winged Archangel Raphael’s face and the position of his eye make it look like he’s focusing on something on the ceiling, rather than at Jesus and Mary. Interestingly, Tobias’s face seems blurry and lacking in definition. This is not one of Raphael’s most well-executed paintings.

Study for the Judgement of Solomon & Massacre of the innocents (1510)

The identity of the artist of these sketches remains unclear to this day. Some say the idea was Raphael’s but the execution was Marcantonio Raimondi’s while others say both artists collaborated on the creation. The topic will inevitably be debated for many more reasons but what’s noteworthy is the relation between both works. The reason I have combined these works is because Raphael himself did. By this I mean, in the sketches for Judgement of Solomon viewers can see the form of a soldier. This soldier, however, was repurposed in Massacre of the innocents. This again points to the fluidity of art, how it can be adapted and changed in the hands of an expert. Outside of this, Massacre of the innocents is fascinating for another reason. I reinforced earlier the idea that Raphael often portrayed gruesome events in a bright, colourful and non-violent fashion. That practice has been abandoned here, with a colourless portrayal of violence. With the bodies of numerous infants on the ground, Raphael appears to be moving away from his “shiny”, devotional pieces to exploring the violence that presaged Judeo-Christianity.

The sketch might be devoid of colour but the violence is unrestrained (swords fully drawn and about to strike, soldiers reaching for the mothers and their children) and this is possibly the most violent of the exhibits. The fear of the mothers seeps in to the viewers and turns in to rage. Indeed, some of the women in the sketch are depicted as muscular and ready to confront the soldiers. One can’t help but wonder what it might have looked like had Raphael (or Raimondi) gone ahead and added colour. Even in its basic form it probably influenced the Bruegels, Rubens, Reni and Poussin.

Portrait of Valerio Belli (1517)

A very small piece, this tondo represents Raphael’s now mastery of the practice. Here we see an immaculately intricate and proportioned tondo, absent of all the mistakes seen in Virgin and Child with Infant Saint John.

Iconic Column Base owned by Raphael(1518-20) & Letter to Leo X(1519)

I have written about these together as they help to realise Raphael as a person. Iconic Column Base owned by Raphaelacts as another exhibition of Raphael’s architectural growth, the exhibit shows an old book, a codex, containing a design by Raphael. Seeing his real works in a codex helps to visualise how his concepts may have been stored at the time. Following this is a real letter addressed to Pope Leo X. This is truly moving as we can read first-hand Raphael’s thoughts on being an architect and archaeologist. For me, seeing a letter by Raphael realises him, outside of being a legend of renaissance art.

Architecture

The Ecstasy of St. Celia (1515-16)

This piece, designed to be an altar piece in Bologna, returns to Raphael’s brightly coloured biblical scenes. We can observe Saint Celia with Paul, John Evangelist represented by an eagle, Augustine and Mary Magdalene. At their feet is a pile of broken instruments and above their heads the clouds are parted to show heaven. One interpretation can be that they are rejecting earthly music in favour of heavenly music, music here representing behavioural practices and belief systems.

Saint Paul Preaching at Athens (1517-19)

This work consists of several elements. One element is a massive tapestry, with a golden decorated boarder. The other element is a large painting, which is mirror flipped to the tapestry. These awe- inspiring works make us feel as though we are part of the audience, watching in real time, rather than observing a glorified recreation of the event.

Portrait Room

This is the final room of the exhibit. As mentioned Portraiture was really reserved for friends or important political figures at the time. Therefore walking through here is very immersive, since I felt as though I was walking through a snapshot of Raphael’s life and those around him. When comparing it to the commonly religious works, a room full of those in Raphael’s life almost feels like a room of photographs. It also shows off his extreme skill with fine details, for example La Fornarina (1519-20), possibly Raphael’s sexiest work (and the one that has feminists tied in knots wondering if the work is exploitative or empowering! Agonising over whether they’re supposed to find it sexy – here’s a tip girls: if you feel a little moistening, a little tingle and a hardening ofthe nipples then, yes, it’s sexy! Enjoy!) is covered in a barely visible veil, similarly to the Madonna of the Pinks. We also see all the portraits are level with, and looking at, the viewer which highlights the decision to show Pope Julius II looking downward was a significant choice.

Self Portrait with Giulio Romano(1519-20)

Of these portraits, arguably the most famous is Raphael’s Self Portrait with Giulio Romano. Romano was Raphael’s apprentice, which is clearly seen in the portrait. Raphael is slightly above Romano, looking directly at the audience, while Romano is looking up at Raphael. It suggests that while Romano is looking for guidance, Raphael is confident in his ability, therefore cementing his position in the hierarchy. We also see Raphael’s left hand on Romano’s shoulder, while his right hand blends with Romano’s, suggesting his is actively guiding Romano here. This is one of Raphael’s most poignant works. The age and weariness is visible on his face. No artistic vanity here. The vigour and energy has been injected in to the younger Romano, who already seems to be pointing to the future, (a talented but frequently overlooked Renaissance artist, his ‘Donna alla toeletta’, painted soon after Raphael completed his ‘La Fornarina’ is arguably inspired by the latter and it’s a sexier, raunchier and darker variation of the themes in ‘La Fornarina’. Raphael would surely have been proud of ‘Donna all toeletta’) while the master contemplates his own work and life).

Progression in Raphael’s career

The exhibit was laid out in a semi-chronological order and I touched on each piece in this order. Raphael had a brief career due to his untimely death at the age of 37, though this exhibit provides a unique opportunity to follow that entire career from beginning to end. When one combines the subject of each room with the art on display, there is a very natural progression in his work. In his early works we see brightly coloured, non-violent representations of biblical events which is likely a symptom of living with a priest. As time progresses, Raphael turns his attention away from biblical events and looks outward towards Florence and other artists. We can see works such as La Muta orThe Bridgewater Madonna, inspired by Leonardo Da Vini and Michelangelo respectively. We then begin to see the introduction of Raphael’s other skills such as architecture, poetry and archaeology creeping into the exhibit. We begin to see darker, more violent depictions in his work such as Massacre of the Innocents again exemplifying a desire to experiment and leave behind his youthful tendencies.

Getting to see not only Raphael’s whole portfolio, but how is evolves as he grows results in a unique learning experience for viewers. As mentioned earlier, art can send a message or tell a story. Usually, the story of Raphael’s life such as his interests, people of note and his key works, would be told in a wall of exposition. However, the National Gallery, being one of the few exhibition hosts to house his complete works, is able to tell this story through his art. The works alone tell the story of the boy who took over his father’s workshop before learning from the other great artists to find his voice and become the legend he is today. It is fitting that the first image of the exhibit could be a faded self portrait of a young boy, nearly forgotten and the final painting is an immaculately preserved, very famous portrait of an older, confident Raphael as a master of his craft, others looking to him for guidance. From boy to legend.

My personal experience

There was a lot to process with an exhibit of this magnitude, but that only means everyone has an opportunity to learn more. I learned a significant amount, not just about Raphael but Renaissance art in general. Is that very clichéd? Yes, but growing up I never had the best exposure to art and so exhibits such as this are key to teaching myself about this aspect of our world. For example, I learned that tondos are a type of circular painting originating in Florence and that the most common subject matter in Renaissance art were madonnas.

I also learned a lot about how we consume art. Arguably my favourite piece in the exhibit was the portrait of Pope Julius II.Raphael made many deliberate choices with this portrait that were absent in all others. Putting the viewer slightly above Julius suggests that we should look down on him, and Julius himself is avoiding our eye contact, sheepishly looking at the ground. The only other portrait that played with perspectives in this manner was the Self Portrait with Giulio Romano, though this was to boost Raphael’s own stature. When observed with the context that Julius recently suffered a crushing military defeat it is clear that Julius is ashamed, disappointed and since he was regarded as a militaristic leader, embarrassed. This is why I quite like it because, as childish as it sounds, it makes me chuckle. Of every moment Raphael could have immortalised, he chose one of the lowest points of the man’s life. The piece is causing an emotional response (laughter) in the message it conveys (military defeat of a once strong leader), which is why I was drawn to it.

Another piece I was drawn to is the School of Athens. Having studied Philosophy when I was younger, I’ve had an interest in the subject for most of my adult life. Seeing a massive mural depicting the greatest philosophers in history was fascinating, and even allowed me to explore that interest in a new manner. Rather than reading about the philosophers, I was looking at them. This tells me that art which reflects our interests or views on the world is likely to grab us, though this is another form of emotional response. This can be negative however, such as the guest who found the exhibit overwhelming. Sometimes our emotional relationship with a piece may actually drive us further way, not pull us closer.

Not all who visited found the exhibit to be this enlightening, though. Alongside the previously mentioned guest who regarded the exhibit as “overwhelming”, another guest I spoke to noted a lack of connection between Raphael’s works and modern culture (well, that guest doesn’t know shit: a quick look at the album covers, designed by Mark Kostabi, for Guns n’ Roses’ Use Your Illusion 1 &2 will notice the obvious allusion (Use your allusion?) to Raphael’s School of Athens. Epic artwork referenced in an epic album release). Understandably it is not necessary for the exhibit to create a link to our current culture, especially since a complete collection of Raphael’s career could be considered overwhelming as it is. It does make a difference to those who are already well versed in Raphael’s works, hoping to see a fresh perspective on his career.

Moving forward, this exhibit has inspired me to seek out art more actively, rather than just reading about it or watching the odd documentary. Finding new exhibits, learning about different periods, and ultimately finding my avenue in the world of art. I also want to try to open up people I know to art more often, suggesting exhibits and discussion works. I think it would be hard, after experiencing the complete works of someone such as Raphael, not to motivated to seek out more.

Closing Thoughts

Usually, these works are spread throughout the world. As a result of this,having the opportunity to view them all in one place is a rarity but a welcome one. I genuinely learned not just about Raphael’s key works but all his works, how his life and career evolved in sync. I could also see first- hand how technical terms and skills are represented in his work. I think everyone, not just art lovers, could really benefit from an experience such as this and when the opportunity for a similar exhibit arises, I highly recommend it.

In 2019 the National Geographic Traveller magazine hosted its first ever Food Festival. Following the success of this event, a second one was inevitable though not possible the following year. The COVID 19 Pandemic meant that for the following two years no such event could be hosted. The second Food Festival, three years after the first, ran over the 16^th and 17^th of July 2022. Hosted at the Business Design Centre in Islington, London, guests had the opportunity to try delicacies from around the world, support young new businesses and meet interesting entrepreneurs from the food-and-beverage industry. Outside of food stands, there was a range of guest speakers, prominent and obscure,slated to give talks on all things Food Journalism and Cooking. While some may debate the validity of food journalism, I feel inclined to speak to its favour (but not as it currently stands). Food is an integral aspect of human existence. We all need to eat. Not only this, but food tells a story – national dishes can link back to core aspects of culture. Take Spain and Paella, which originally came about as an easy way to feed farmers and farm labourers who were out in the fields for long stretches of time.

Yet food comes with issues too. We all know that there are areas of the world with extremely limited access to food, most famously regions in Africa. Feeding issues are not just far flung, however. There are families in our home towns struggling to feed their children three meals a day and the rising homeless population struggle daily to scrape together barely edible scraps. Eating disorders have led to the hospitalisation of millions (worsened by the advent of Social Media and the standards that accompany it). More recently, global warming has fired the debate on subjects of veganism and farming practices, while rising energy prices mean many will have to choose between heating and eating this winter.

I think the practice of Food Journalism can evolve. Lets forget “I tried Starbucks’ new winter themed latte” and move towards “the best meal plans for those on a budget”, “The best methods to transport your excess food to those in need”, “Meet London’s newest Food Bank” or “How to cook for your loved ones moving recovering from an eating disorder”. Jaimie Oliver has recently moved from cooking to campaigning for more free school meals for kids, which is the sort of movement I think the industry needs to magnify. So is Food Journalism real journalism (such as when The Economist publishes a story on a food crises) or just food porn (think self-indulgent reviews in the weekend supplements and, of course, in advertisement-driven magazines) for the middle class, or a movement for more equitable distribution of food? Right now it’s all of the above, but it can be better by focusing on the latter. Hopefully, budding journalists will pursue this angle.

All this raises the question: “Why cover the National Geographic Food Festival?”. As you may imagine, a food festival represents the former point, the ‘food porn’ so to speak. Guests can pay a fee to come and try food from all over the world then go home and book their luxurious holidays to whatever destination had the best tasting samples.Well, GVis in a position to provide a fair yet critical view of the event, commenting on both the positive and negative. Hopefully, looking at the event in a more critical view can spark readers into reimagining their approach to the role of food journalism and, indeed, the food industry

On arrival, outside the Business Design Centre, guests already got a taste (pun intended) of what to expect moving forward. I was greeted with staff from a couple of the stalls, all handing out little snacks such as crisps from their respective countries. It’s a nice welcome (especially if you’re feeling peckish), setting up the mindset that all the guests should be open to interaction and trying bits of food from around the world. It’s no coincidence that the event was held in Islington, one of London’s most cosmopolitan boroughs. Upper Street has a variety of restaurants and bars, all serving cuisines and drinks from all over the world. It’s a cosmopolitanGuardian-reader’s dream come true!

Passing through the entrance to the building, we were handed a free copy of the National Geographic Traveller Food Magazine. This is issue focused on “food”, of which a large emphasis was placed on Spanish “dishes”. Notice my quotation marks. While you may flick through the edition hoping to learn about different dishes, the ingredients, history behind them and how to prepare them, you’ll actually find that the magazine reads like a series of advertisements. I’m not just talking about the advertisements, but the features as well. See each one reads like a tour guide, telling you what restaurants to visit or the stores to peruse in order to try the foods. In other words, book a trip out to try it using us as your guide. Perhaps this is what some would expect from a global food magazine, though my expectation was to learn about different cultures, histories and learn new skills. Even those seemingly addressing food such as the feature on the West African dish Jollof Rice, merely teases you with information such as desired consistency (they say it “shouldn’t be too saucy”) before directing you in small print to the Nat Geo website for more information.

It is clear, however,that this issue of NGTFM is designed to supplement the Food Festival, as major features in the edition such as Azerbaijan mirror the key stalls in the Food Festival. The second resource guests were handed was a card leaflet. This was filled with information on the Food Festival, such as which shows were on which stage, on which day. Interestingly, there was a section in this handout dedicated to a scavenger hunt. In order to complete the hunt attendees had to collect a series of stickers from most of the stalls at the event, though these were not on the table to grab. You needed to speak to the people at the stall in order to get a sticker from them. The end result of this? Guests who complete the scavenger hunt were entered in a giveaway including a lunch for two and an assortment of foods…and they got a nice little buzz going from mixing various drinks along the hunt.

Before one even stepped foot into the main hall, we were made aware of a few key things:  who had set up the event, what to expect from the event and how to approach the event.In order to maximise our experience, we should be open to visiting each stall and having a chat with those running it. We’ve also been shown that samples of local food will be found throughout the exhibit which we are recommended to try. While this may seem like common sense considering visitors will have paid for a ticket to the National Geographic Food Festival, there were a range of guests. I spoke to one visitor who had recently moved to London from Italy, and was visiting the Food Festival as a way of getting her bearings in a new environment though she didn’t comment on the authenticity of the Italian offerings.First time guests such as these, visiting for reasons other than learning about culinary culture, would benefit from the simple yet efficient introduction to what a Food Festival is. What a ‘food festival’ should be is up for contention. Firms will see it as an opportunity to showcase their products and customers will often expect it to be more like an art exhibit, showcasing foods from around the world. As a journalist, one is caught in the midpoint, wanting to learn everything about the firm but also the culture behind it meaning more than ever you need to enter with an open mind.

Once guests filtered into the main hall, they found themselves on the main level. This was an open floor with a number of large, unique booths each pertaining to a separate country. The open floor was encircled by several stages and smaller, more uniform booths. These larger booths were reserved for the key players -sponsors of the Food Festival. These included Wales, Greece, Montenegro, Italy, Azerbaijan, Louisiana and Michigan to name a few. Each of these had a stall decorated with imagesfrom their countries, advertising the activities one can try there other than eat. This is because the Food Festival presents an opportunity to drum up tourism in each location, though the intensity of this varied between stalls.

The Montenegro staff seemed genuinely passionate about their country, with one chef remarking to me that he feels as though his country is undervalued as a land of beauty, culture and adventure. He explained to me of how he’d be thrilled if Montenegro began to receive the recognition, he believed it deserved through events such as these. The passion from the staff is quite infectious and it was genuinely brilliant to meet people with a genuine love for their home. I once looked at travelling to Montenegro, only refraining as the timing hadn’t worked out, though after my interaction here I’ve pledged to one day finally make the trip.

On the other hand, the Ecuadorian stall was much more open ended about inspiring tourism to the country, by flashing holiday deals and pictures of beaches. Speaking to the staff will result in a business card and daydreams about hiking some fantastic scenery. It is all very well for economies overly reliant on tourism and the magazine obviously caters to people who like to travel. It’s easy to make a link between the Food Festival and the underlying message: go book holidays, preferably with tour operators who advertise in NGT and NGTFM, to exotic destinations after trying exotic cuisines! Unfortunately, tourism comes at a price to the environment and I struggled to see any message at the Festival that highlighted the effects of carbon emissions caused by aircraft. The November 2022 issue of NGT carries a full-page advertisement from an aircraft charter company. That should give you an idea about where the magazines’ priorities lie.

Environmental concerns were very much swept under the carpet. Island nations like Grenada and Barbados are in the firing line. As oceans rise, more and more of these islands will lose their land mass. But, hey, if we want frequent long-haul, environmentally detrimental holidays we’ll book ‘em, right? We’ll just make the right noises at the right time about environmentally-conscious travel and Global Warming. Greenwashing-by-numbers.

And, as you knock back another cocktail from Louisiana or enrol for the prize at Michigan’s stand, know that both states are home to two of the most violent cities – New Orleans and Detroit- in the USA (the phrase ‘cap in yo’ ass’ springs to mind). Of course, this isn’t the kind of information the tourist boards and travel magazines won’t divulge but GV isn’t beholden to tourism boards and travel fairs and we’ll tell it like it is.

Between sips of rum and chunks of chocolate sales reps tell you about package holidays, the activities and travel opportunities one could expect. Similarly, Barbados was recording customer testimonials in order to showcase to others how much fun the country could be.

This is by no means meant to be a negative comment on the Food Festival. Guests are still exposed to a number of local dishes, and if anything, this encourages the staff to be more enthusiastic when talking to guests visiting each booth.These stalls also tend to provide recipes for the foods you try, such as Louisiana’s curried shrimp or Azerbaijan’s Qutabs(also known as Chudu). Alongside recipe cards there were often giveaways to package holidays, pizza ovens and more. All of this is designed to hold your attention past the end of the eventand encourage guests to do their own research at home. Though one may argue that Food Festivals are an inherently commercial event used to create business globally, I find it to be worth noting, as some guests I met were casually attending to fill an afternoon. Those entering on a whim to learn about food may be taken aback by this,seeing it as detracting from the cultural potential of the Food Festival.

Not each of the stalls fall under this category, however. The Welsh stall, for example, was comprised of a few smaller Welsh businesses rather than a singular example of culture. One such stall was Velfry Vineyard, a very young family-owned sparkling wine brand. As their first harvest was only in 2019, they cannot attend many of these shows since they only have 600 bottles, which are sold locally or from their website. Therefore, they need to reserve their attendance at shows for the significant ones, such as a National Geographic Food Festival, in order to maximise the benefit. Adjacent to Velfrey Vineyardwas the Snowdonia Cheese Company. Operating out of Wales, their brand has been active for over 21 yearsand therefore has the means to sell cheese all over the UK. Despite their reach and longevity, I’d not heard of them before which suggests that shows such as these may compensate for exhibitors’ low-key or non-existent advertising campaigns.While they previously attended shows like these often, since COVID much of their advertising has been done online, similarly only coming to significant shows such as these. Much of the time however, when asking stalls if they felt the show was a significant boost to exposure, they returned a similar stock answer: “Oh yes, it’s always good to introduce our products to new people!”. Whether or not a Nat Geo show or a show local to the headquarters is more useful, then, remains to be seen,

Here, we’re seeing something far different. The purpose of the Welsh stall, rather than to encourage tourism, appears to be giving opportunities to small Welsh brands old and new. Those who often do not have the means to attend Food Festivals are granted, for a fee, achance to have their voice heard by those who are fascinated by travel, food and culture. While this may seem more inline with what visitors may have expected from a Food Festival, it is important to remember the event is based in London. In comparison to Ecuador, Wales does not feel far away and many guests are likely to even be Welsh. Furthermore, these companies are aiming to sell to the UK whereas many of the other countries’ products have limited opportunities outside of their home country.Therefore, the priorities of attending a London based Food Festival are likely to be different from some of the more far-flung guests than they are for London’s neighbours.

This is not to say that these stalls had little to offer outside of tourism deals and business cards. One stall here stood above the rest: Azerbaijan. This stall would consistently see long queues, I waited no less than 25 minutes, and for good reason. This seemed to be the only stall on the main floor which was not trying to sell guests anything, the primary focus appearing to be sharing Azerbaijani culture and dishes with attendees. The food in question also stood apart from the rest. While the majority of stalls would batch produce taster samples, and hand them out to guests while discussing other matters, each guest at the Azerbaijan stall could order a custom made Qutab. This was a flour flatbread filled with either meat, pumpkin or herbs and could come with a range of side dishes and seasoningsincluding green onion, cheese and what I guessed to be Pink Pitaya.A core feature of the Qutab is the range of ingredients that can be employed to fit all dietary requirements, or simply preferences in flavour. This level of customisation at a food festival, in this quantity, really let the food do the talking. This was my first time trying Azerbaijani cuisine and I was immediately hooked, I think personally, it was primarily because of the intensity of the flavour in the face of the simplicity. I think the Qutab has single-handedly convinced me to travel to Azerbaijan one day.I asked a staff member why she thought the stall had such a long queue, her answer simply being, “our food’s really good”. Not only this, but later in the day they started producing a new meal entirely, a traditional rice dish by the name Plov. Seen as Azerbaijan’s national food, and similar to the Qutabs, a key feature of this dish is how versatile it is in its creation. While there are core components, such as raisins, chestnuts and lamb, chefs are free to improvise as they see fit.Personally, this was most in linewith what I expected from a Food Festival: broadening people’s minds by exposing them to new foods and cultures. It felt more as though they were sharing culture with us, not selling it to us.

There were five stages dotted around the Main floor, each with a different set of speakers which changed dependant on the day attended. The speakers ranged from celebrity guests to staff from the core stalls, and there was a variety of content touching on subjects such as food journalism and cookery classes. I found that these stages, and the way shows were approached, could have benefitted from being slightly more removed from the core stalls. Each stage consisted of a grouping of stools for guests to perch on and was located in a corner of the main hall. There are benefits and drawbacks to a setup such as this, all depending on the type of experience you are hoping for.

This structure lends itself extremely well to casual guests: between trialling delicacies at each stall, it is easy to turn your attention momentarily and listen while eating before moving onto the next stall. Alternatively, after a few hours of wandering it’s easy to take a seat and rest a bit, listening to a lecture while you do. Yet, the environment can be a bit distracting to those genuinely trying to learn attentively. In my experience, when listening to a lecture at the main stage people would commonly push past every other minute as they navigate the hall and additionally performances would spontaneously breakout nearby. One example of this was midway through Jay Rayner’s lecture, when immediately to my left a traditional Ecuadorian dance broke out among a group in traditional dress, which admittedly drew my attention away from the lecture at hand.

The first of the stages was the Wine Theatre, found on the right of the entrance door to the hall. This stage usually had the least guests because attending this stage was highly limited. It had to be pre-booked and each guest was only allowed one slot a day. I imagine few guests caught on to this, and there was an abundance of wines to sample around the Food Festival outside of the Wine Theatre so attendance was not necessary in order to get your fix.

Following this were the Cinnamon Theatre and the Saffron Theatre. These stages, unlike the Wine Theatre, did not require pre-booking to attend and were often filled with listeners. They were very similar in the content they released, showcasing speakers from each of the key stalls demonstrating how to cook a traditional dish from their country. The Cinnamon Theatre was fairly dominated by Greek cuisine, having four sessions on the first day and three on the second. The Saffron Theatre was more balanced with a wide range from all the stalls. Greece also had one of the largest stands, so their domination of the Cinnamon Theatre, I imagine,resulted from being a key sponsor for the Food Festival.

The Speaker’s corner was a more intimate experience. Smaller, slightly removed and with less seating it reminded me of sitting around a campfire with a few people. This stage was intended to allow guests to converse with the speakers in attendance, granting better opportunities to learn from experts and glean knowledge otherwise unobtainable. This goes hand in hand with the nearby table where guests could buy copies of speakers’ books and subsequently have them signed by the speakers.

Finally, the creatively named Main Stage was interestingly placed in a back corner of the room. I understand that this was to allow extra room, but as mentioned before this is surrounded by stalls and performances which were distracting and claustrophobic.By this I mean that there really wasn’t much room to move around near the main stage – there was already seating and standing onlookers, but now people also had to clear space in the walkways for dancers piling into the already crowded area. I’d have swapped the Wine Theatre and the Main Stage’s locations. Since the Wine Theatre required pre-booking, having fewer guests would have meant it was less impacted by all the activity around it. Furthermore, the Main Stage would have been more recognisable being by the entrance. This stageshowed iconic guest speakers known for their works in Food Journalism, such as MasterChef champion Ping Coombes or broadcaster Andi Oliver.

These shows were highly advertised when booking tickets for the event, so they likely would have been an important element for many of the guests. However, I found that the website had quite undersold the rest of the Food Festival, such as the stalls, thescavenger hunt, the giveaways and more. I got the feeling that these elements ultimately overshadowed some of the lectures, though this will likely be adjusted in future years.

Circling the main floor was a balcony just above. This housed a series of small businesses and start-ups ranging from coffee breweries, Indian street food, craft beer and even dog food. I found this area, away from the stages and the bulk of the crowds, the most conducive to conversing with the stalls. This was the section of the event I found the most interesting because I had the opportunity to encounter lots of small businesses, try their products and speak to their representatives who were quite often the owners.

This marks a key difference between the main floor and the upper balcony. Since the main floor was reserved for representatives from major brands or countries, the experience felt less personal. At the Italian stall, one staff member let slip that this was a one time gig for her, and while the job description asked for Italian speakers she doesn’t speak a lick of Italian. Compare this to the ring of small businesses, where the majority of staff are passionate about the product since they have a personal stake in it, and the difference in enthusiasm is palpable. For many this is an incredible opportunity to have their young brand heard, Lomitas Green Coffee for example is a Kent-based brand no older than two years. Similarly, Jandosakal is a pop-up Indian street food vendor which usually operates in markets rather than fixed locations. Events such as these open a new avenue to gaining online followers, who may then visit the popup vendor down the line.

Surprisingly, not each of the smaller companies massively benefit from attending a National Geographic Food Festival. One such firm is Black Lion Vodka. Another extremely young brand with only one year on the market, their product is sold around the Cotswolds and London. They specialise in creating vodka using sheep’s milk. Cheese is created as a by-product of the process which they also sell. The issue they found is that usually they would do outdoor events, meaning they could bring the sheep with them. This naturally attracted more guests as they came to see the animals and increased interaction with their stall. Here though, they could be found in one of the back corners of the upper balcony, and without sheep to attract customers the impact they had was diminished.Then again, do city folk really want to mingle with sheep, step on their droppings and catch a whiff of their odours? That’s more likely a countryside thing.

Similarly, the staff at other stalls also had experiences which worsen the impact. When speaking to the staff at the Parmigiano Reggiano stall, designed to showcase their exquisite parmesan cheeses, I asked the question whether they’d come again. To this one of the girls looked at me sideways and shook her head, and as it turns out hand feeding the British public cheese during a historical heatwave can lead to some poor experiences– the overheating hungry tend to snap at wait staff when cheese isn’t served in an ‘adequate’ quantity or if the queue is too long.Additionally, the woman behind me in the aforementioned, lengthy Azerbaijan queue began to get quite angry with the staff the longer she waited. It seemed outrageous to her that she had to queue, and the staff needed to know it was their fault. This isn’t to gossip, rather highlight the importance of kindness. When attending a Food Festival in the midst of a heatwave, it is important to remember that the staff are affected by this too and that they’re just people trying to make sure you have a good time, and learn a little about the world.

In addition to the food stalls, there was a series of other rooms upstairs. There was a range of seating areas,which enabled guests to take a break and have a meal if they wanted. One offshoot from the main hall led to a green roomfor the presswith free snacks and seating. Interestingly, I have struggled to find mention of any reviews these journalists may have made? Searching for reviews on the web will send you options for pieces posted before the festival, usually explaining what it will be. I did find a piece by Hannah Gregory on houseofcoco.net. The review is built around general confusion, with the key quote for me being “I’m still not 100% sure who this event was directed at”. This speaks to my earlier point of people who are expecting culinary and cultural enlightenment being met with commercial pushes. It can throw some people off, leading to the event feeling more like a small business expo than a food festival. Finally, and I may say cleverly, there was a cool down room. This was a separated area with a much lower temperature than the rest of the exhibit. Since there was an abundance of people and cooking, married with a heatwave, many guests would be at risk of overheating. This made sure there was an area in which people could stay safe, supplemented by free water dispensers found throughout the Business Design Centre. In hindsight, perhaps staging the festival at the height of a very hot summer wasn’t such a good idea and one would hope that NGT will to stage the festival in the spring or autumn next year. However, that’s not the case; the Festival has yet again been scheduled for mid-July in 2023. And, all that alcohol tasting probably just ended up dehydrating a lot of people.

Having now outlined the experience of attending the Food Festival, I want to touch upon the range of stalls to be found. Rather than listing them and what they showcase, the more fun approach would be to have a series of ‘awards’ and assigning stalls to them, whilst also highlighting what makes each one special.

Most Interesting Food

Here I’m going to catch you off guard and nominate Butterbox, a dog food brand. I already highlighted why I found that the Azerbaijani food stood out, so I thought I’d highlight another stall. That being said, Butterbox was interesting for a number of reasons. Principally, it was the only food at the Food Festival not to target humans. I thought it was an interesting gamble, as there was a likelihood that hungry guests skip over the food they cannot eat. Furthermore, I noticed there was a ‘vegetarian’ option for dogfood. Speaking to the staff, I learned that this was filled with all the nutrients to keep your pets healthy. While a debate can often be had whether vegetarian food is unfair on dogs, it is undeniably unique for a business to come to a food festival and showcase vegetarian food humans can’t eat.

Most Interesting Drink

I referred to it earlier, and I’m sure that it caught your attention then, but the Black Lion sheep’s milk Vodka stood out to me. There was an abundance of wine throughout the Food Festival, tea and coffee could be found at a few stalls, and there was more than one rum seller. Black Lion stood out not just by selling a different drink, but one which was produced differently. When we see Vodka, we think potatoes and Eastern Europe, not usually British sheep. Not only this, but I found it to be one of the smoothest Vodkas I have ever tasted. All of this made sure Black Sheep Vodka stuck in my mind long after the Food Festival.

Most Unique Exhibit

Wales had a very interesting addition to their stall which was unavoidable since it stood opposite the Wine Theatre by the entrance. This may seem unfair, as the Welsh stand benefited by being a sponsor of the Food Festival therefore having a larger exhibit, though there was a clever marriage between modern technologies and traditional foods. There was a virtual reality tent, filled with tables and chairs. The inside walls of this tent displayed a 360 degree view of the sky, a field and trees. In other words, you were given the illusion of being in a Welsh field as you ate the food. I imagine this is not for everyone as you’re being shut into a digital tent, indoors, during a heatwave. Regardless, it was a creative way to bring Wales to London.

The Best Show

I’d argue this is the most subjective of the awards as each show was covered a different topic in a different way. The show which has stayed with me the longest was Jay Rayner’s guest appearance. Jay Rayner is one of the UK’s widest know Food Journalists, acting as an author, a broadcaster and a restaurant critic. What stuck with me is Jay telling us all to kill ourselves. You likely need context. This was his explanation for how we can reduce our carbon footprint,that the most effective way to not have one is to not exist. He compared buying organic food to reduce a carbon footprint with buying clothes from TK Maxx to stick it to Gucci. Truthfully, I agree that most of us could do more to reduce our carbon footprint. Do I think we should all kill ourselves? No not yet, and I can’t expertly comment on the minutia between organic and regular goods in the supermarket. But in my own life, I’ve reduced my meat consumption, water heavy foods such as avocados and soy related foods. On most days I have a near-entirely plant based diet, with the exemption of milk in my coffee or cheese on my pasta.Oh what’s that? Yes, I do get the irony of a travel writer spreading messages about reducing carbon footprints. But, Global Voyagers is a publication that asks readers to limit their travel and, if possible, use less environmentally detrimental forms of transport. The magazine will endeavour to send its writers on trips to Europe using trains as much as possible.

I honestly feel as though there is an intrinsic arrogance which comes with my preaching of carbon emissions, making me hesitant to do so, along the lines of “Carbon emissions are bad so you should all do something about how you eat while I travel to xyz”.Yet, I feel as though encouraging everyone to make slightly different decisions can make a difference which will allow us all to enjoy our planet, as I’ve been lucky to, for longer. Will eating organic steak over regular steak save the world? Like Jay I highly doubt that. Would everyone having one vegetarian meal a week (not even giving it up entirely) make a difference? Different story. Back to Jay, his jovial approach to hosting the lecture and insight to working in food journalism inspired me to continue reading about this myself, ultimately the goal of any good lecture.

Most Diverse Merchandise & Friendliest Host

Originally two separate awards, I ended up combining them as I thought one stall deserved both. Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing gets its name from the product it sells, low or zero alcohol beer which does not compromise on flavour (hence the play on a common phrase). Not only could you buy cans of their various flavours of beer, but there were also various clothing times such as tie-dye t-shirts and hats. They also had a beer tap and plant-based cups to serve ice cold pints of low alcohol beer, which I found to be pretty incredible due to the heat of the room. What’s more, the owner of the company spoke to me openly and enthusiastically for no less than fifteen minutes. He gave me samples of each flavour while he told me the story behind Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing and how it began only a year ago in his kitchen with his dog, Max. Sheep in Wolf’s Clothing stood out to me as one of the most passionate and energetic young brands at the event.

Food acts as a medium through which people can have adventure. This can be applied in a number of ways. Often Food Festivals are seen as an opportunity to travel though taste, and this is absolutely true. I’ve never been to India, Azerbaijan, Cyprus, Barbados, Ecuador or Montenegro and yet I’ve tried some of their most iconic foods. Not only this, but national foods typically tell a story about the place from which they originate. Indian street food, for example, is cheaply made and very filling – perfect for poorer families eating on a budget. I also got to speak to locals from the countries, for example the Montenegrins who expressed their true feelings about how the country is represented, in that they feel it is severely underrepresented. A smaller country, surrounded by tourist titans such as Croatia, Italy and Greece struggles to get its voice heard, despite being stunning. The medieval town of Kotor has been a bucket list destination of mine for years. All of thisallowed me to learn about countries I’ve never travelled.

Furthermore, we can see brave new brands producing adventurous new foods. Fresh takes on the production of Vodka demonstrate our ability to adapt and grow. Young beer brands promoting healthier lifestyles through less alcohol, and greater sustainability through plant-based materials show how one’s love for our planet can lead to progress. On a more ominous note, it’s unlikely that all the companies exhibiting at the festival will remain in business by the time the next festival comes around. Budgets and profits for these start-ups are very thin at the best of times and at a time when inflation has hit multi-decade highs, can people really afford to splurge on £60 bottles of vodka and expensive organic wine?

While some of the staff had issues with the public, others told me they had a good time. The opportunity to teach others about your culture while having the opportunity to wander and learn yourself is a fun day at work and they’d be happy to come to the next one. I’d mirror this statement, though with the added caveat that you can only make the most of an event like this if you are open to interaction. Talking and asking questions to those at each stall provides opportunity to find new favourite brands and foods. In my case there are many brands I intend to buy from in the future.  Moving forward I’m aiming to attend more Food Festivals of various sizes when I can. I enjoyed learning about new small businesses and meeting interesting people, and events such as these provide great opportunities to do this. Ultimately, if you’re interested in food, travel or small businesses then the National Geographic Traveller Food Festival is a great way to explore these interests.