Desk Lamp attributed to Vilhelm Lauritzen DSB Conductor from Louis Poulsen, 1940s

Functionalist desk lamp designed by Danish Architect Vilhelm Lauritzen in the late 1940s. Made for “DSB” (The Danish Railway Company) hence the name “Konduktørlampe/Train Conductors lamp”. Its was manufactured by Louis Poulsen. This example is from the earliest production with the old bakelite switch to the base and the Louis Poulsen logo (“LP”) etched in the brass joints. Vilhelm Lauritzen (1894–1984) is one of the most significant architects in the history of Denmark; he was the trail-blazing figurehead of Danish functionalism. A number of his buildings – Nørrebro Theatre (1931–32), Daells Varehus department store (1928–35), Radiohuset (1936-41) and the first airport built in Kastrup (1937–39) – represented the concentrated essence of contemporary life. Other significant buildings to stem from Lauritzen’s drawing board include Folkets Hus (1953–56) better known today as the Vega concert venue, the Shellhuset (1950–51) building and the Danish embassy in Washington (1958–60). In particular the Radiohuset building and the earliest version of Kastrup Airport – both listed today – are considered peerless monuments to modernism in the European genre of construction.