emlyon business school Lifestyle Research Center organized the Taste Research Day on April 25th. The goal of the event was not only to enhance our understanding of taste, but also to establish three bridges.
The first bridge connected separate academic fields exploring taste, and the production and consumption of cultural products. For this reason, invited speakers were scholars in Sociology and Consumer Research. We were honored to listen to leading scholars among which Pr. Antoine Hennion (Ecole des Mines de Paris), Pr. Susanne Janssen (Erasmus University), Pr. Alan Warde (University of Manchester), and Pr. Pierre-Marie Chauvin (La Sorbonne University). In addition to these outstanding scholars, we welcomed promising scholars among which Massimo Airoldi (emlyon business school), Lucile Dumont (EHESS) and Laura Dupin (emlyon business school). Fruitful and mutually beneficial discussions could emerge from this blend of established and emerging scholars.
The second bridge connected academic and professional worlds. In this respect, practitioners were included in every session. In the “wine session”, Bernard Ricolleau (Premier Maître d’Hôtel and Professor at Institut Paul Bocuse) talked about wine service in restaurants. In the “literature session”, Marie Garaev (Professional Reader for a leading French publishing house) explained the criteria she uses when assessing the quality of a manuscript. In the “food session”, Jean Dupin (Baker and Professor at Institut Paul Bocuse) retraced the evolution of bread in France over time. In the “music session”, Le Couteau et l’Archet duo (a Cellist and a Chef) performed a show blending sounds and flavors.
The third bridge connected academia and education. Two groups of emlyon students who did an outstanding research project on taste presented a poster. The first poster tackled the reception of contemporary artworks. The second poster explored the glocalization of French gastronomy.
The spirit of the Taste Research Day was in line with the history and the identity of Lyon city. Weavers crafting silk in the 19th century are the core of this identity. To produce a piece of fabric, Lyonnais weavers needed three types of threads: two vertical threads crossed with one horizontal thread. The Taste Research Day was organized to revive this heritage. Every session was composed of two researchers from different fields and one practitioner who crossed their talks to produce pieces of knowledge on wine, literature, food and music. As the Lyon History Museum, Musée Gadagne was the perfect venue to organize the Taste Research Day.
Consumption, Markets & Culture will host a special issue on Taste edited by Pr. Anissa Pomiès, Pr. Zeynep Arsel, and Pr. Jonathan Bean. Researchers who did not give a talk at the Research Day are allowed to submit a paper.
The deadline to submit manuscripts is November 1st. The call for paper will be available very soon on the Lifestyle Research Center website.