What Gualtiero Marchesi learned from the Troisgros brothers in Roanne, was, above all, the importance of simplicity.

Gualtiero Marchesi had the opportunity to witness the beginnings of "nouvelle cuisine" in France before it arrived in Italy. The Troisgros family, with whom he worked, were famed for their innovative cooking. Their restaurant was in an area with no gastronomic legacy, and they had to rely on their skill, rather than on characteristic local ingredients.

Alberto Capatti talks about his first culinary experiences as an Italian in France, not knowing how to choose wine, etc. Gualtiero Marchesi talks about how he sought to take the elements he admired in French cuisine and apply them to his own style of cooking in Italy.

Alberto Capatti shares his memories of the grand restaurants of Paris in the sixties. Velvet curtains, low lighting, fires in the fireplaces, ten kinds of cheese — a far cry from what would become known as "nouvelle cuisine."

Gualtiero Marchesi talks about his experiences in Paris, learning from the chefs there. Actually, he already knew much of what was taught to him, because he'd had chefs in his family who were well-versed in both every day and fancy fare. He, on the other hand, was looking for something new and different.

Giovanni Ballarini talks about Paris being the capital of haute cuisine, and about the birth of bourgeois cuisine at the time of the French Revolution. Chef Mariasole Capodanno talks about her experiences, as a young girl, with real French cuisine and how even the presentation was so amazing. Neapolitan and Sicilian cooking came out of the work of chefs who had been employed during the reign of the Bourbons, especially in Naples and Sicily, where the chefs were called Monsù, or Monzù a corruption of the French, Monsieur.

Eugenio Medagliani, expert on the world of Italian cuisine, talks about the days when Gualtiero Marchesi wasn't yet very well known, but refused to make pasta dishes. He describes a trip they made together through the desert from L.A. to Las Vegas where Gualtiero started getting inspired about pasta.

Art critic Gillo Dorfles talks about Milan in the fifties, sixties and seventies, and how, thanks to the war and to fascism, it developed as it did. Gualtiero Marchesi talks about the high standards of his cuisine, and some of the personalities who frequented his restaurant.

Ciro Immobile, offense player, talks about his fantastic season with the Turin team. He now plays offense with the Borussia Dortmund team and with the national Italian team.

Is beauty in the eye of the beholder? That's what they say--but to Gualtiero Marchesi, that's not necessarily so. Sometimes beautiful is beautiful, period. As we've seen in other segments, cooking as an art form is a topic that's close to this chef's heart.

Gualtiero Marchesi talks about the chef as an artist, and how different chefs can be recognized by their distinctive artistic styles. In defending the choice of simple, genuine food, he goes on to talk about the art of slicing, and how it used to be "performed" right in the dining room.

Some artists, including Gualtiero Marchesi, talk about the past: horse-drawn carts for delivering produce, artists exchanging news from abroad before the widespread use of telephones, tripe for breakfast, still-life paintings reflecting the food of the times and its preparation. There's even talk of the desire to eat paintings! Buon appetito!

Martina has almost completed her degree at the university, which will qualify her to work in the juvenile courts. She would like to evaluate the situations and problems of kids, especially immigrant minors, who have trouble in school and in their social lives, and to help them adjust. Follow the interview by Serena.

In this segment, cooking is seen as an art form, starting with a white plate as the artist's canvas...

When does an artist become an artist? Join Gualtiero Marchesi in his musings on art and the art of cooking in this new chapter.

Filmmaker Lina Wertmüller, in this interview, explains that when she was a young girl, one little incident at school had a great impact on the course of her life and career.

Francesco Totti, captain of the Rome soccer team, gives an interview on his thirty-sixth birthday in which he has to guess which goals television viewers chose as his best three out of thirty-six.

Andromeda tells us about her job as a copywriter. She explains what a copywriter does, and what kind of studies can help prepare you for this kind of job.

Andromeda introduces us to her other cats: Bella, Briciola, and Fiocco. She also recounts an anecdote from a book of Tiziano Terzani, a noted journalist [interviews with Terzani featured in videos 2708, 3105, and 3106].

Dorian is a cat that Andromeda had as a kitten, and then entrusted to her mother-in-law. After six years, Dorian came back to the family.

An interview with Annamaria Mazzetti, Italian triathlete, Italian champion in 2009 in three categories, Aquathlon, Duathlon sprint, and Olympic distance triathlon. London 2012 is her first Olympics and it's been a fantastic experience.

Serena is a university student from Maratea. She's just come back from an internship in Russia. She tells us about Russia, and also about her plans for New Year's Eve.

Marika takes a small poll of Italians to find out how they spend Christmas Eve, what they eat, and, above all, whether or not they follow particular traditions.

Antonio is a teacher and we find him at Somma Vesuviana, on the slopes of Vesuvius, near Naples. For some time he has tending a small garden, where he grows vegetables, which he sees as miracles of the earth, with seeds developing into fruits.