Master of Light: Poul Henningsen

The highly influential Danish designer, architect, writer, and cultural critic, Poul Henningsen (1894-1967), has had a huge impact on Danish thinking and design. He is known as the original master of light to Scandinavians. For a short period at the beginning of WWII, Henningsen was the head architect of the Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen. But like many other creative people, he was forced to flee Denmark during the German occupation, and soon became a vital part of the Danish colony of artists living in Sweden.

His lifelong collaboration with Louis Poulsen began in 1924 and lasted until his passing. The PH series has long been one of my favorite collections and considering the series was in my grandparents home in Frederiksberg, Copenhagen it feels particularly nostalgic for me and why I always have one over our own dining area. It’s truly iconic in its design has this exceptional glare free lighting.

Some of my favourites from the series are:

PH 5

Known as the PH lamp, the iconic PH 5 design is based on Henningsen’s renowned three-shade system. The pyramid-like fixture effuses both descending and lateral light to illuminate itself. This ensures the light is soft, rich, and completely glare-free.

The PH 5

PH Artichoke

This is a statement Iconic piece of lighting by Poul Henningsen. He was asked to develop a pendant for the state-of-the-art Copenhagen restaurant Langelinie Pavilion in 1958 and it features in some of the most famous buildings around the world to this day. The Artichoke consists of 72 metal leaves form 12 precise rows with six leaves each to ensure a flawless non-glaring light no matter from which angle the remarkable pendant is viewed. The name refers to its characteristic design that distributes the light both inwards and outwards and thus providing a wonderfully pleasant light.

PH Artichoke

PH Snow Ball

Poul Henningsen designed Snowball in 1958, and it was exhibited together with PH 5 at the Danish Museum of Decorative Art. However, Snowball received no particular attention on this occasion, and was only re-launched and manufactured from 1983.
Longer in length than the PH5 This light can still be used in a dining set up and looks beautiful in a bedroom or hallway

The PH Snowball