Decorative panels from Flammang pastry shop in Paris, c. 1830–1850. Paris, Musée Carnavalet
The Great Kitchen in the Royal Pavilion at Brighton, in Views of the Royal Pavilion by John Nash, 1826
Top: Artistic cakes, in The Encyclopaedia of Practical Cookery by Theodore Francis Garrett, London 1890, plate
Between the late 18th century and early 19th century, the fashion for serving extremely beautiful food, which had begun back in the 16th century, met a real innovator in the Parisian chef Antonin Carême. Initially a pastry chef, Carême became famous for his pièces montées: decorative confectionary constructions used as centrepieces throughout the meal. The "materials" used were primary nougat, marzipan and sugar paste, bread crumbs, lard, gelatine and fish glue, while the favoured forms were inspired by architecture. Carême, who considered the culinary art to be a branch of architecture, studied the prints and engravings at the Royal Library in France, drawing inspiration from them for many of his creations. Pyramids, temples, ancient ruins, columns and arches were the favourite subjects of the pastry chef, who went on to devote himself to gastronomy tout court. He was cook to the future King George IV of England, the politician Talleyrand, the Emperor of Austria Francis I and Baron James de Rothschild. He also shared his knowledge with others by publishing numerous books on the subject, including: L'Art de la Cuisine française (1833–1834), an encyclopaedia in five volumes, and Le Pâtissier royal parisien. Traité élémentaire et pratique orné de quarante et une planches par l'auteur (1810), which contains explanations and illustrations of the elaborate edible centrepieces he created. .
