In the Italian-speaking high valleys of Grisons where Giacometti came from, they don't separate into starter-main-dessert: they set a mountain table where what the cold preserved (air-dried meats, alpine cheeses) sits alongside a warm, hearty base (polenta or barley soup) and, for special days, a gratin of greens or a walnut pastry. They eat late, without ceremony, coffee and glass keeping company with work. The marenda is that modest, warm meal shared by peasants and artisans between tasks.

In Val Bregaglia, where winter is long and the land poor, preserving is an art: they salt and dry meat in the cold wind of the passes, age alpine cheeses, caramelize nuts so they keep for months. This cuisine of frugality and patience — that of Stampa — resonates with the man who whittled his material down to the bone.