Out of the square at the bottom or south-west corner and actually on Gammel Strand and looking across the water towards the Palace Chapel is Louis Poulsen. Founded in 1874, this company has always employed top Danish designers including Arne Jacobsen and of course Poul Henningsen who began working with the company in 1924. Henningsen designed the classic PH5 which was launched in 1958. It took its name from the designers initials and the fact that it had a diameter of 50 centimetres. This was the classic metal lamp shade or should I say that this is the classic lamp shade most often used over a dining table and found in many Danish homes in the 1960s and 70s. It has a series of metal shades linked by curved metal columns that enclose the bulb and produce an amazingly beautiful and soft light.
I found an early version of this shade on an antique market in Copenhagen about 5 years ago. It is in deep grey with white - an unusual colour combination as the most common style is white but with a red or soft purple inner shades that slightly tints the light. It throws a soft light up to the ceiling and there is a pool of light over the table and no one sitting round the table gets dazzled.
However long I sit admiring it, I still can’t quite see how it works it’s magic.
Poulsen are a large and successful company and produce a large range of interior lighting, garden lighting and commercial lights. The showroom on Gammel Strand is primarily offices and design studios for their commercial contracts but the showroom on the street front is open to the public - although note that you do have to go to a shop or supplier elsewhere once you have decided on the lamp you want.
