Aix-en-Provence is a place made famous by friendship. And not just once. The first time was when two young boys were challenged by a bully in the schoolyard. The bigger boy defended the smaller, who the next day bought a basket of apples as thanks. Those boys, Paul Cézanne and Émile Zola became inseparable friends then inspirational colleagues, and apples became a signature motif in Cézanne’s paintings. When Émile later encouraged Paul to visit the capital, Cézanne said ‘With an apple, I will astonish Paris!’ How different their lives could have been. Ah, the power of friendship and food…

Province still boasts life-changing apples, and for all the academic analysis of Cézanne’s work, creating a link between the joy of impressionism and the architecture of abstraction, my theory is that his genius is irrevocably linked to food. Have you seen those bakeries in Aix-en-Provence?!? The intense colour of framboise tarts was surely the inspiration behind the pigment that Cézanne was at first criticised for and then became a cause célèbre. The madeleines that have become a defining taste experience of this small town effuse such an aroma when they are baking, that people queue down the cobbled streets just in the hope of a whiff, let alone a taste, of these easy-to-eat-while-you-paint treats. Cézanne became a diabetic in middle age, this is no coincidence. Even the painting of his father reading the revolutionary newspaper ‘L’Événement‘ was an edition devoted to the ideal that food can make you happy.

Last week the cafes in Aix-en-Provence spilled into the leafy sunshine, empty chairs waiting for a random reunion or a precious rendezvous after many years. The spirit of Cézanne and Zola, along with their friends Pissarro, Renoir and Monet filled the market square. It was a magic day, and for the second time, or the umpteenth time, Aix-en-Provence played host to friendship. Fantastic to see you Bronnie, and yes, let’s not wait another 20 years. I know our friendship will hold, but those tables do fill up very quickly….