Designer: Poul Henningsen (1894-1967)


Designed: 1958 in collaboration with Louis Poulsen for the Langelinie Pavilion in Copenhagen


Manufacturer: Louis Poulsen


Materials: 72 blades, divided into 12 rows in white lacquered, copper, brushed steel, polished steel, matte black, brushed brass or glass. Frame in high-gloss chromed steel.


Dimensions: Ø: 48, 60, 72 or 84 cm, both with or without LED.


Socket: E27


Cord: 4 meters, white fabric



About the Artichoke:

Poul Henningsen's collaboration with Louis Poulsen started in 1925 and continued until PH's death. The very first Artichoke was designed in 1958 for the restaurant Langelinie Pavillonen in Copenhagen, where it still hangs today. It took them 3 months to design and the original version was in solid copper with a rose finish on the inside. The Artichoke has since become an international design icon with its unique look that provides a glare-free light no matter what angle you look at it from.


The old models are hung with 1 wire, whereas the newer models from around the 1990s are hung with 3 wires. This change is due to the fact that they no longer produce a cord with a built-in steel wire, and therefore they switched to 3 smaller steel wires.


About the designer:

PH was a trained mason, but became known as an architect, writer and cultural critic. His most famous work is the PH lamps, which were first designed in 1926. The idea stemmed from PH's desire to create a lamp that shone into the room without dazzling. PH's big breakthrough came when he met the director of Louis Poulsen & Co., Sophus Kaastrup Olsen. Their collaboration led to PH winning top awards in all six luminaires for the international exhibition, Arts décoratifs et industriels modernes, in Paris in 1925.


PH was an advocate for everything reflecting their function and thus was not happy with unnecessary details. PH's courage to criticize, provoke and go against the flow promoted the individual's freedom and the democratization of Danish consciousness. Before his death, PH bequeathed his torso to the Panum Institute (now the Panum Building). A death wish characterized by functionalism.