It’s stress, it’s stage fright, it’s stage fright, what can I say, it’s a frightful fright! Jean-Henri Pagnon transforms himself into Cyrano to take to the stage at TEDx La Baule on April 26, 2025. Fortunately, in his race to be kind and to share, he finds the strength to honor his friends and family present in the room, and the audience who await his performance with curiosity. What’s more, TEDx is a big family, and the encouragement of his peers, who are more familiar with the stage, supports him and gives him some effective advice for the big leap. Time leap, the theme of the evening.
Indeed, La Baule’s 6th edition is themed Chronos. In mythology, Chronos is the father of the Hours, personifying the twelve hours of the day or night. The evening therefore revolves around the clock of time: its presence in our existence, its influence on our decisions and our perception of the world.
https://www.youtube.com/@TEDx/videos
Morta: 5,000 years of history and 15 years of craftsmanship in a 15-minute talk
Passionate about knives from an early age, Jean-Henri shares in his talk entitled 5,000 ans dans votre poche (5,000 years in your pocket) his feeling of invulnerability when he feels the reassuring presence of his talisman at the bottom of his pocket: his folding knife. A faithful companion which, as soon as he unfolds it, opens up new horizons and frees him from a sometimes restrictive daily routine.
Observation, disassembly, reassembly, innovation, invention – so many steps followed before his first real knife creation. In particular, he remembers his grandfather and uncle, who every year took him to a cutlery shop and gave him his summer knife. The epiphany came when he made the encounter of a lifetime: La Brière. A land so rich in ecosystems, yet lacking in local knives. For him, every region deserves its own knife, a vehicle for its history. And the Brière is home to the ideal material for his story: Morta, buried in peat for 5,000 years.
Jean-Henri recounts the 15 years of daily struggle that is the life of an artisan cutlery business, the incessant rollercoaster ride of emotions, disappointment and determination. But the Atelier JHP team does not fail in its vocation: every day, it thrives on the dreams it realizes and the customers it serves with humility and care.
So, what can we learn from the passage of time? Jean-Henri simply invites us (but as we know, the simplest ideas are the most powerful) to return, whatever our dreams or pretensions, to what’s essential: living!
TEDx 2025 in La Baule – Time is the master of ceremonies
TEDx is an international series of conferences organized since 2009 by The Sapling Foundation, an American non-profit foundation. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment and Design. The X indicates that this is an independent event.
Experts from all fields (scientists, philosophers, business leaders, adventurers) share their experiences and thoughts during talks, which last around fifteen minutes.
In addition to Jean-Henri Pagnon, 11 other speakers present their vision of time through their expertise.
- Karine Limouzin, biographer – Inheriting our life stories.
- Diane Benhamou, influencer – Social networks and AI, building yourself differently.
- Myriam Meyer, teacher (and her magnificent eloquence) – Begging for our children’s future.
- Marion Moriceau, scuba diver (the embodiment of strength and femininity) – Time under the ocean.
- Joseph Chedid, artist (whose delicate, comforting voice was discreetly offered to Jean-Henri to support and congratulate him) – Take your time.
- Juan Arbelaez, chef – Life lesson from breakfast.
- Jean-Philippe Hoang, innovation expert – Living in harmony with algorithms.
- Maxime Pelillo and Martin Dimier, dancers – The weight of time.
- Morgan Loret, lawyer (who doesn’t hesitate to shake up codes of propriety rather than penal ones) – Judicial time.
- Virginie Lesdemia, artist – The best anti-wrinkle after 50.
- Pascal Picq, paleoanthropologist – Fixed time, deep time and lost time.
Jean-Henri will remember, above all, the wonderful encounters and would like to warmly thank each and every one of them. Stéphane and Francia Craineguy, for their invitation, Juliette Guerrault for her guidance, and all the others: Céline Thiriet, Delphine Filloux, Julie Fiore, Corinne Denuet, Houdoux Christian, Guy Uzan, Laura Jumiaux, Simon Questerbert, Steven Baconnais, Julia Ghiloni, Maëlane Thorel, Jean Christophe Naudon, Kiliann Gautier, Cassandre Aufauvre, Arthur Manneville.
All of them brought their own dose of humanity and food for thought, offering us a different, innovative vision and changing the way we look at the clock that says yes, that says no, that says, I’m waiting for you. That evening in La Baule, time stood still. And a knife, forged in the depths of the past, cut through the silence.
If you too would like to defy time by slipping 5,000 years of history into your pocket, discover the Morta knife collection.
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