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(Photo: Space Furniture)
With more than two decades of experience in the silverware business, American-born Gregory Pepin continues to pursue his passion for sterling silver designs at Georg Jensen, a century-old luxury silverware company based in Copenhagen.
What has your journey with silverware been like?
I started in the trenches. I began by working at a shop in Denmark polishing silver and, as soon as I picked up my first piece of Georg Jensen, I fell in love. It was a small curved nut spoon, and I thought its shape and quality were second to none. When you start at the bottom polishing silver and understanding how things are made, you gain product knowledge and become better at telling its story.
How should one start collecting silverware?
As large sterling silver holloware is not often considered because of its price, a great entry point for anybody is sterling cutlery, one piece at a time. I buy a piece every month for each of my children, and it doesn’t take long before they can build up a set. It also introduces etiquette into the house and when they look at the silverware, I can explain to them its design and the history of its period.
Surely you own stainless steel cutlery as well?
Let’s be honest. If you want to use a product every day and you want it to be functional, sterling silver is probably not the choice for you – unless you have a butler and two maids. I do own stainless steel cutlery – a Georg Jensen pattern called Caravel designed by Henning Koppel. You can put it in the dishwasher because the quality is so good that you can use it every day and it’ll still look fine. The Danes always think about functionality.
What is your relationship like with the silversmiths at Georg Jensen?
I have a love-hate relationship with them. It takes four years to become a Georg Jensen apprentice and another nine years before you can make important pieces – so I don’t know as much as they do about the product, but I know more about the customer than they do. So, sometimes, I’m not popular because I’m involved with quality control as well, and I might see something they don’t.
What is your take on the future of Danish design?
Our products could turn out very differently in the future. As we evolve, everything has to be quicker. But I think people will eventually start slowing down. Everything always ends up where it started, and the same goes for design. Who knows, the next movement might be inspired by Art Nouveau.