Architect Nikki Butenschön makes porcine sculptures a personal holiday tradition
Oslo-based architect and designer Nikki Butenschön has a wicked twist on the Nordic marzipan pig. Traditionally given on December 24th as a prize for finding a whole almond in your porridge, the pig symbolises good luck for the winner at tables across Scandinavia. Butenschön’s personal tradition, however, is to sculpt satirical and humorous faces from the sweet confection, picking a prominent global figure to imitate from the year’s naughty list.
The pig has always been symbolic at Christmas across the Nordics. During the Viking age, pigs would be slaughtered at the end of the year (yule) and a big feast would take place. In the 19th century, pigs were common farm animals, and pork became a popular meat to eat on Christmas Eve. To this day, many families in Norway eat pork belly (ribbe), in Denmark, it’s pork loin (flæskesteg) – and in Sweden, the traditional Christmas meat is a big juicy cooked ham (julskinka). Based on the Christmas Eve marzipan version, the architect’s surprising sculptures are a witty update to a long history of pigs at the dinner table.
Having studied interior architecture at the Chelsea College of Art and Design in London and architecture at the Royal Danish Art Academy in Copenhagen, Butenschön’s larger-than-life personality matches his passion for good design, and he is well known for creating warm, welcoming and unpretentious interiors. We asked him why he’s compelled to down design projects and luxury materials at this time of year to make his devilish “pigs”.
When and why did you start making your marzipan sculptures?
Ten or 15 years ago, I asked my father if I could help with the Christmas preparations, so life would be less stressful for him. The only thing he could think of was to buy the marzipan pig. It’s the prize for the person that finds an almond in their porridge on Christmas Eve – an old tradition to place a single, blanched almond inside the rice porridge or pudding – said to bring the winner good luck.
After buying the biggest marzipan pig on the market, I thought the next year needed an upgrade, so I started making my own pigs to the delight of my little sisters and family. Early examples are Miss Piggy, Piglet, and a Manga-inspired pig with a bag of fake blood in the centre which ran out onto my parents’ beautifully decorated Christmas table.
How do you pick the character you are going to make?
After a few years of making cute, tacky or vulgar pigs, I started to think the concept needed an upgrade. I thought to make a small political statement of about the year’s biggest pig: such as Trump, Kim Jong Un, Weinstein, Putin and other terrible people.
Can you share your process? How many days does it take to make and what ingredients do you use?
The process is quite easy, though I dread doing it for a few weeks before, not knowing who I’ll make and if I’ll have the time to do it. But after choosing, it’s quite streamlined. The tradition is the same every year. On the morning of the day before Christmas Eve, I go to the shop and buy approximately 5kg of the cheapest marzipan. The cheaper, the less almond and therefore finer grained and easier to sculpt with.
Then I research the chosen pig’s face on Google to find all its different angles. Preferably it has the same facial expression from all angles – which often isn’t the easiest of tasks to find – so a lot of guessing is required. Then I put down two bowls to build on top of and start sculpting. I’m always accompanied by the same Christmas record (Bugge Wesseltoft’s It’s Snowing on my Piano) and a bottle of nice red.
The whole process used to take two to three hours before I made the idiot decision that the pig should resemble an actual person. Now it approximately takes an agonizing six to eight.
How do you celebrate after you have finished?
I celebrate by going straight to bed with a super sore back and neck from sitting awkwardly hunched over the kitchen table half the day – promising myself to scale down next year or even quit entirely.
Did you have a Julekalendar when you were growing up? What was your favourite gift from it?
I probably did but I don’t have any special memories of what the gifts were. I don’t think they were anything more than chocolates and small toys. I have made pretty hefty calendars for girlfriends through the years though. The last one, from five years ago, took two weeks to make. It had 24 small boxes with a story in each that hinted to the gift of the day, each made using a wide range of model railway figures. ;)