Bernhard Hegglin

solidified finger, 2025

Honey, flour, sugar, wrapping

Unnumbered and unlimited
 

COOKIE LAUNCH
Wednesday, December 10   17 - 20h

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About five years ago, I started creating my own versions of traditional Zurich holiday baking. They are hard, thin, not very sweet, and made from honey, flour, and sugar. They are enjoyed in small bites, requiring saliva to enhance the honey’s flavour. This is Zurich’s version of the popular gingerbread tradition, and they are called „Triggel“.  

The dough is rolled out thinly and pressed into wooden moulds with a negative design (the so-called 'models'). The embossed piece of dough is then released from the mould onto a tray and baked at a high temperature for just a few minutes.

About 200 years ago, they were made with then more affordable ingredients such as honey and flour. These edible prints were more accessible and were produced using the same moulds created for the exclusive and costly marzipan cake decorations. They were quickly claimed by guilds and the church. Nevertheless, they remained popular at a more trivial level. This is proven by examples of models showing postcard views of the city or wordplay and jokes. Nowadays, they are a staple of local culinary traditions. Throughout the year, tourists can buy them at supermarkets, and some locals purchase them to decorate coniferous trees at the end of the year.

I was tempted to interweave my own work with the edible traditions of my hometown to amplify the qualities I am interested in and take part in this play of imagery and consumption.

This year, the cookies are made by the St. Jakob Bakery, which acquired the recipe from one of the last retiring tirggel bakers, ensuring these cookies continue to be enjoyed.

Safely consumed within the next 150 days, or looked at for much longer.

- Bernhard Hegglin