Porta Palazzo: The Anthropology of an Italian Market

Introduction: Going to Market

introduction Going to Market The piazza heaved and jostled in front of me. I did not know which way to turn. Warm bodies invaded my space, and elbows jammed into my ribs as I squeezed along the narrow corridor. My eyes searched for a focal point among all the moving shoppers and the stands, something to steady this uneasy shopper. Zucchini and tomatoes were piled in mountainous displays . The shrill voice of vendors burst out close to my ears, their songs like nursery rhymes gone wrong. A pungent stench of rotting meat and pressed citrus attacked my nose. The world was spinning around me, and I feared I would lose my way. I felt as if this huge market would swallow me whole. Intrigued from the start, the first few times I came to the Porta Palazzo market alone I never imagined I could know this complex, bustling place, let alone come to think of this market as my second home. This fascination with markets is odd coming from someone who had never been a big fan of grocery shopping. Back home in North America, buying food was always part of domestic drudgery, carried out in giant, impersonal supermarkets; these were solitary outings in which I rarely met or talked to a soul, not even in the long check-out lines. In contrast, the markets in Europe were alive with people, heated conversations, amazing produce, and delicious food. Living in Europe, I found that markets offered an entry into the social world of my adopted country. I also began my gastronomic apprenticeship at the market. My interest in markets started from a practical necessity and slowly became a focal point for academic research as I delved below the surface of my everyday experiences. In 1998, I moved to Lyon, France, to complete my Master’s thesis in 2 introduction history. Afterward, I decided to stay on and work for a few years before returning to North America to pursue a doctorate. In 2001, I moved to Turin, Italy, from Lyon to join my fiancé Alberto, a native Torinese. While living in France, I had visited Turin a number of times and was enchanted by the sharp lines of the Alps that marked the skyline on clear, sunny days of spring and the hum and glow of the neon signs on via Roma on rainy days of fall. Initially, I spent my time exploring the city and doing the shopping each morning in the markets. This is where I learned about Piedmontese culture for myself—the food, the dialect, etiquette, and mannerisms. When I was given the opportunity to start a PhD in cultural anthropology at the Universit à degli Studi di Torino in fall 2001, I jumped at the chance. In 2002, Alberto and I were married; I settled into life in Turin, and my research on markets became a more formalized, structured endeavor. Before meeting Alberto, I do not think I even knew where Turin was on the map. This northern Italian city lies just south and east of the Alps at the start of the Padan plain. Turin is the capital of the Piedmont region. Despite its historic and economic importance, it is a city that that has often been left off the tourist map and, therefore, has been largely unexplored by outsiders. What I found was a city in full renaissance—Turin had begun preparing for the spotlight of the 2006 Winter Olympics. After my French market experiences and newfound love for shopping al fresco, I was immediately drawn to the city’s biggest and liveliest market, Porta Palazzo, fabled to be the largest open-air market in Western Europe. While thousands of kilos of fruits, vegetables, and other foodstuffs are sold here each day, friendships are made, families are reunited, ethnic and cultural tensions are negotiated, and local identities are constructed through the daily workings of the market. Located in Turin’s historic center, Porta Palazzo (“palace gate” in Italian) has been one of the city’s most important markets since the mid-nineteenth century. For the people living in the areas surrounding the market, it is an integral part of their daily lives. The market shapes the neighborhood as it transforms the immense public square known as Piazza della Repubblica into a commercial and social space, drawing shoppers and vendors from all over the city and surrounding areas. The transient nature of the market and the people who frequent the square make the area a liminal...