Maria Berntsen studied at the Academy of Art in Copenhagen and L’Ecole d’Architecture de Bordeaux and finished her studies in 1992. She opened her own studio in 1992. Maria Berntsen started her cooperation with Georg Jensen in 2000 and her collections for Georg Jensen include the Quack thermos, an eponymous line of cutlery, the jewellery series Mirror, and the Christmas Classics Advent and Season candlesticks.

It is important to Maria Berntsen that her designs have a lasting value and express both an era and life itself. About her work Maria Berntsen says, “A good design should be simple and functional. It must be harmonious and well conceived."

That she has delivered some of the best-loved Georg Jensen collections across such a range of design genres is a testament to her genius as a designer. Rather than specialising in one type of product, she is adept at all of them, applying her facility for great design to any manner of product. Her Quack thermos, for example, combines high function and whimsy–so successfully in fact that it won one of the most prestigious design awards in the year it debuted. It continues to be a top seller and a modern classic. Perhaps most importantly, it proves that serious design can still bring a smile to your face.