Zopfli / installation
Exhibition in Galaxy Village, Antananarivo, Madagascar
ZOPF
When I first visited my partner's family home, I immediately fell in love with the atmosphere of this place: an old stone house located in a mountain village, quiet, surrounded with snow-capped peaks. I was warmly welcomed by a loving family, who made me discover their delicious cuisine, including the Zopf.
Zopf is a Swiss bread, whose cooking method is passed down from generation to generation. Traditionally, Zopf is eaten with the family on Sunday mornings, but its preparation and cooking are done on Saturday evenings. The whole house is then perfumed with its aroma. This is a particularly magical time – a time of peace, prosperity, security and love.
So I've learned to make this bread, according to the recipe of my partner's mother, so that we can recreate this energy of love wherever we live.
ZOPFLI – installation
During my postings in different countries, I regularly bake miniature version of this traditional Swiss bread in order to introduce them to our guests and friends. This way I express my love for my partner, for our family, for traditions, for Switzerland, but also my friendship with places where I live.
By weaving two pieces of dough into a uniform braid, I weave two worlds into a coherent, unique and tasty whole.
To reflect all these ideas and emotions, I’ve created an installation consisting of 1000 ceramic Zopf miniatures. The objects were made with clay of Madagascar, with help of local craftsmen.
Each piece has its own serial number.
“Zopfli” is a project circulating around dualities:
love can be about two individuals intertwining, building a new quality
diplomacy can be about two countries collaborating
zopf is about two pieces of dough braided for a delicious bread
me, baking it for our guests on Madagascar was about culinary exchange connecting two cultures
and showing the “Zopfli” project to public, both on Madagascar and in Switzerland, closes that duality loop.
To build my bridge between the two countries, the project was fist shown on exhibition in Galaxy Village in Antananarivo (Madagascar), and one year later in Tuor Ardez (Switzerland), in summer 2024.
