Lasse Bæhring

Silversmith | Copenhagen, Denmark

Innovation through play

Lasse is a silver hollowware craftsman
He was artist in residence in London in 2018
His silverware pieces capture the Nordic glow

Lasse Bæhring is a silversmith artist educated at the famous Georg Jensen Silversmithy in Denmark. Since 1993, he has taken this tradition to innovative, award-winning heights on his own. For Lasse, everything begins with play, and he insists on keeping a natural curiosity, wonder, and openness as his point of departure. Once a design is born, his honed crafting skills take over. This phase is controlled, but he is always open to things taking a left turn by chance. In fact, he invites it. Lasse is inspired by nature and decay – his shapes are organic, his surfaces are raw and beautifully worn-looking.

Interview

©Lasse Bæhring

©Lasse Bæhring

How do you continue to develop and improve your craft?: I feel confident that I have a solid foundation from having been educated at Georg Jensen, which gives me some security to take risks. If or when I fall because I try new things, I do not fall that far. Beauty lies just above perfection and to get there I practise and play.
What made you choose silver?: Silver is an ingenious material. For years I did not get why it acted as it did. I wanted to control it, but it eluded me. I fell in love with that. Working silver is like an echo: you can control what you shout, but not what comes back at you. It is healthy not to understand your medium completely.
Is collaboration a part of your creative process?: I have my designs made in other materials such as glass, ceramics, leather, and plastic. This teaches me a lot about the possibilities and limitations of the process in other areas that I can use for my work with silver.
What bespoke piece has made you most proud?: Recently I did another take on my award-winning Tivoli pitcher. The invasion of Ukraine somehow entered my creative process, and I twisted the clear lines of the original and they now look like flames. I called it 'Ukraine Flame.' My work is not usually political, but I found their courage inspirational.

Lasse Bæhring is a master artisan: he began his career in 1981 and he started teaching in 1983