Puiforcat: 200 Years of History

The history of Puiforcat begins in the 19th century in Le Marais, one of the Parisian neighborhoods .

Two brothers Emile and Joseph Marie Puiforcat began producing and selling silverware. In a few years their workshop has become one of the best in France.

Later the Puiforcat masters began to produce copies of various antique sets and household items from the 17th and 18th centuries, thus earning the right to become the official supplier of the imperial court.

The Puiforcat House reached its peak with the arrival of Louis-Victor Puiforcat who breathed a new spirit into the production of silverware. Louis-Victor saw his mission in preserving the authentic spirit of the traditional French silverware manufacture.

Jean Puiforcat and a Worldwide Recognition

The beginning of the 20th century brought with it some changes when in 1917, Jean Puiforcat, a Louis-Victor’s son, after returning from the First World War, finished his studies in sculpture, becoming then an innovative designer.

Jean Puiforcat elaborated new types of flatware, imitating some of the patterns from the ancient epochs.

He designed as well a contemporary sets for tea and coffee in Art Deco style. Even today some of its geometric decorations still adorn Puiforcat porcelain tableware pieces.

Jean Puiforcat achieved a great success and a worldwide recognition for the Puiforcat brand.

Jean Puiforcat Signature

The signature of Jean Puiforcat plays an important role in the identity of the Puiforcat brand, because the tradition should be maintained in every way.

The tea and coffee sets designed and developed many years ago are still reproduced with the utmost precision.

Jean Michel Guillot, one of the brand’s designers, makes improvisations, while maintaining the given style by creating for example the handles of a coffee pot in glass or plastic and not in wood.

Puiforcat & Hermès Group

The Puiforcat brand has undergone several changes over the years, including the owners of the Maison.

And the big change came when it merged with the Hermès Group in 1993.

After this big step the workshop moved to Pantin, which is one of the northern suburbs of Paris.

All Puiforcat artworks are crafted by talented skilled craftsmen with exceptional skills and aptitudes.

To give the products the correct shape and beauty, the craftsmen use highly professional metalworking methods.

Puiforcat Special Silverware Techniques

Each Puiforcat work of art is part of more than a thousand design creations. Composing a single piece requires the precise steps to be followed.

First of all, the metal is spread on a thin surface which will be transformed into a bowl or tray with the help of hammers and mallets.

After making the shape that will become the basis for further decorations, the craftsmen add handles, smooth an object if necessary and add different types of embellishments.

The last step to be done is engraving  the object when a craftsman with extreme delicacy adds very small motifs to the entire composition or engraves decorations directly on the metal.

Puiforcat Harmonious Style

Jean Puiforcat taught the artisans the most complex techniques and technologies that are the basis of the art of silver working.

His hallmark has marked products created in a new, harmonious and rigorous style.

The traditions of flawless Puiforcat workmanship associated with his name are still alive today.

The young designers working for the company today have inherited Jean Puiforcat’s aspiration for harmonious proportions and shapes so close to his heart.

Puiforcat: Every Piece is a Work of Art

From the very beginning, Puiforcat workshop focused basically on the production of luxury products.

Anything that appears under this brand can be classified as works of art rather than just everyday objects.

Today like long time ago Puiforcat has earned a reputation of one of the best silverware workshops in the world.

Puiforcat implements the centuries-old traditions of French craftsmanship  in the production of silverware of exceptional quality.

Puiforcat Design

Puiforcat Maison focuses its development in three main different directions that perfectly characterise the peculiarities of the brand.

The first design direction is based on the ancient collections of replicas of royal tableware basicaly from the 17th and 18th centuries.

Thanks to Louis Puiforcat, these outstanding masterpieces have become a hallmark of the Maison, identifying it as one of the most important silversmiths of all times.

Some of these lustrous artworks are kept in the Louvre in Paris, giving them a hilarious value.

Puiforcat Art Deco & Contemporary

The second design direction of Puiforcat is a well-known Art Deco style, originally designed by Jean Puiforcat.

His eclectic style of the early 20th century combines elements of modern and neoclassical style.

The third direction is based on collaborations with modern artists who create an original and contemporary design.

One of the best examples of such fruitful work is a Phi collection from Normal Studio, which goes beyond your everyday experience.

After years of collaborating with various talented artists and combining Puiforcat’s legacy with modern design, the Maison has identified its Arte de Vivre that is an Art of Living.

The perfect mix of techniques, materials and unusual design solutions has created a new concept of artistic style.

The Jacaranda bar collection by Puiforcat puts a luxurious touch of your special occasions in your daily life.

Its Art Deco style stands out in its refined lines with silver-plated coating and with elegant wooden details that revive the style of ’30 of the past century.