Iconic Kontrast Pendant Lamp Poul Henningsen Louis Poulsen 70s
View Similar Items
Iconic Kontrast Pendant Lamp Poul Henningsen Louis Poulsen 70s
About the Item
- Creator:Poul Henningsen (Designer),Louis Poulsen (Maker)
- Design:
- Dimensions:Height: 15.75 in (40 cm)Diameter: 17.72 in (45 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:c. 1970
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Brussels , BE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU6055233937592
Poul Henningsen
The name Poul Henningsen is synonymous with the best and most innovative modern Scandinavian lamps and other lighting. The Danish designer created a signature vocabulary of fixtures with tiered and layered shades in sculptural arrangements that are at once naturalistic and geometric.
Henningsen grew up in a town on the outskirts of Copenhagen and studied architecture at the Technical University of Denmark. He would become a noted art critic, journalist and screenwriter, but his first love was lighting design.
Henningsen’s childhood home was illuminated by oil lamps. When his family switched to electrified lighting, he was alarmed and repelled by the harsh glare cast by an incandescent bulb, and in his late teens he began conducting quasi-scientific experiments to measure which materials and methods best diffused or reflected light to give it a warm brightness. His work came to the attention of the lighting-fixtures firm Louis Poulsen, which sponsored the development of a prototype lamp. The design won a gold medal at the 1925 Paris Expositions Internationales des Arts Decóratifs et Industriels Modernes — from which the term Art Deco derives. The lamp, whose three-part shade is said to be inspired by the arrangement of a dinner plate atop a soup bowl atop a teacup, became the basis for Henningsen’s most successful design, the PH 4/3 desk lamp.
All told, Henningsen would design some 100 lighting fixtures in his career. Some of his most notable creations are hanging lamps, which include the Septima (1929), a pendant composed of seven graduated frosted-glass layers; the Spiral (1942), made of a single ribbon of enameled aluminum; and the Artichoke lamp (1958), whose 70 glass or metal fins in a staggered and graduated arrangement on a central steel frame resemble those of its namesake. The last is likely Henningsen’s masterwork and an icon of mid-20th-century design. Like all Henningsen lighting designs, it is striking, sculptural and — thanks to his insistence on the primacy of the quality of the light cast — superbly functional.
Find a collection of authentic Poul Henningsen table lamps, floor lamps and other lighting on 1stDibs.
Louis Poulsen
Louis Poulsen is world-renowned as an innovator in modern Danish lighting, but this wasn’t the goal from the start. Founded in 1874 by Ludvig R. Poulsen as a wine importer, the business went through several incarnations before its first pendant lights came to fruition. Through its designs, the company helped establish the foundations of good lighting — function, comfort and ambience — that are now standard in modern furniture design.
In 1924, Danish architect Poul Henningsen partnered with Louis Poulsen & Co., then an electrical supply company, to create what’s now known as the Paris lamp. This design, which incorporated three layers of curved metal disks, created ambience with its indirect light instead of glare. Shown at the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris — the exhibition that brought Art Deco design to worldwide attention — the Paris lamp was awarded a gold medal. This led to Poulsen and Henningsen working together on several lighting pieces, including the popular PH pendant light with its concentric shades for the Forum Building in Copenhagen. These high-profile projects helped make Louis Poulsen a go-to purveyor of innovative lighting design.
One of the company’s most well-known lamps is Henningsen’s PH Artichoke lamp (1958), with its 72 copper leaves artfully placed to conceal the light bulb, prevent glare and promote a warm, alluring glow in any room. Another is the steel and die-cast zinc AJ lamp (1960), which Arne Jacobsen designed with an adjustable angled shade for his commission for the SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen. The company has also worked with notables such as Verner Panton and Alfred Homann as well as, more recently, Louise Campbell and Oki Sato.
In 2010, the company was awarded the American Institute of Architects’ Honors in Collaborative Achievement Award; it was the first lighting manufacturer to receive this honor. In 2018, the company was acquired by an investment subsidiary of Investindustrial VI L.P. Still headquartered in Denmark, the brand continues to produce its high-end lighting for both indoor and outdoor use, manufacturing both classic icons as well as new designs. “We design to shape light,” states Louis Poulsen. In doing so, they have also shaped culture.
Find a range of new and vintage Louis Poulsen floor lamps, table lamps and other lighting and furniture on 1stDibs.
- Pendant Light by Verner Panton for Louis Poulsen, Danemark, 1968By Louis Poulsen, Verner PantonLocated in Brussels , BEPendant light by Verner Panton for Louis Poulsen, Danemark, 1968.Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsMetal
- Very Rare Louis Kalff Pendant Lamp Model NT 59 Philips, Netherlands, 1950sBy Louis KalffLocated in Brussels , BEVery rare Louis Kalff pendant lamp Model NT 59 Philips, Netherlands, 1950s.Category
Mid-20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsOpaline Glass
- Chrome Pendant Lamp by Sciolari, 1970sBy Sciolari LightingLocated in Brussels , BEChrome pendant lamp by Sciolari, 1970s.Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsChrome
- XXL Belgo Chrom Mirror from the 70sBy Belgo ChromeLocated in Brussels , BEXXL Belgo chrom mirror from the 70s.Category
Mid-20th Century Belgian Mid-Century Modern Wall Mirrors
MaterialsChrome
- Marc Held 2 Seater Sofa for Airborne, 70sBy Marc HeldLocated in Brussels , BEMarc Held 2 seater sofa for Airborne, 70s.Category
Mid-20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsMetal
- Brass Lamp in the Style of Maria Pergay Produced in the 70sLocated in Brussels , BEBrass lamp in the style of maria pergay produced in the 70s. Good vintage condition.Category
Mid-20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Poul Henningsen Kontrast Pendant for Louis PoulsenBy Poul Henningsen, Louis PoulsenLocated in Vienna, ATAluminum lacquered white/orange and chromed parts with black lacquered brass fittings. PH kontrast or snowball designed by Poul Henningsen in 1958-1962 and manufactured by Louis Poulsen. Literature: Light Years Ahead...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
- “Kontrast” Pendant Lamp by Poul Henningsen for Louis PoulsenBy Poul Henningsen, Louis PoulsenLocated in Stockholm, SEStriking “Kontrast” pendant lamp by Poul Henningsen. Lacquered white on the outside and orange red and purplish blue on the inside. Spreads an amazing...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
- 1960s Louis Poulsen PH Kontrast Pendant Lamp by Poul Henningsen DenmarkBy Louis Poulsen, Poul HenningsenLocated in Sherborne, DorsetThis iconic 1960s “Kontrast” pendant lamp was designed by Poul Henningsen for Louis Poulsen. Henningsen began his collaboration with Copenhagen-based lighting company Louis Poulsen i...Category
Vintage 1950s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsAluminum, Steel
- Original Kontrast Pendant by Poul Henningsen for Louis Poulsen, DenmarkBy Poul Henningsen, Louis PoulsenLocated in Haderslev, DKAll original Kontrast pendant by Poul Henningsen for Louis Poulsen. Iconic design piece in very good condition. Comes with both label attached and ...Category
Vintage 1970s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsChrome
- Poul Henningsen Louis Poulsen Ph6 Hanging Pendant LampBy Poul Henningsen, Louis PoulsenLocated in Indianapolis, INA PH6 hanging pendant lamp by Danish designer Poul Henningsen (1894-1967) for Louis Poulsen. This light, white in color, features the iconic design of Louis Pouls...Category
Vintage 1980s Danish Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsMetal
- Poul Henningsen Kontrast Pendant Light, 1960By Louis Poulsen, Poul HenningsenLocated in Los Angeles, CAStunning Poul Henningsen "Kontrast" lamp in excellent original condition, pendant is composed of ten concentric, stacked rings in orange, off-white and polished aluminum that produce...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsAluminum