Louis Poulsen Doo-Wop Pendant Lamp | Vintageinfo

Louis Poulsen Doo-Wop pendant lamp design: Henning Klok brass lampshade white metal conical tube 1950s 1960s

Louis Poulsen Doo-Wop Pendant Lamp – Navy Pendant (Søværnspendlen)
1960s Catalogue Picture

Prescolite 1966 Lighting Catalogue

Doo-Wop pendant lamp – Chrome and copper versions

Lamps In The Movies

Two Jørn Utzon Søværnspendlen pendant lamps were used as a set decoration in the 2015 Nordic noir crime television series The Bridge (Broen – Bron). Starring Sofia Helin, Thure Lindhardt and Dag Malmberg. As you can see, these lamps are very similar, but much bigger. On the left the Arne Jacobsen AJ floor lamp designed in 1957 for the SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen (Radisson Collection).

Louis Poulsen Doo-Wop Pendant Lamp – Navy Pendant

Materials: Polished curved brass lampshade, painted white on the inside. Round white lacquered metal conical reflector inside. Some metal parts. Porcelain E27 socket.

Cord Length: 60 cm / 23.62’’

Height: 24,5 cm / 9.64”

Width: ∅ 28,3 cm / 11.14”

Electricity: 1 bulb E27, 1 x 100 watt maximum, 110/220 volt.
Any type of light bulb can be used, not a specific one preferred.

Period: 1950s – Mid-Century Modern.

Designer: Henning Klok in collaboration with Søværnets Bygningsdistrikt (Navy building district).

Manufacturer: Louis Poulsen, Copenhagen, Denmark.

Other versions: The Louis Poulsen Doo-Wop pendant lamp exists in several colours. Since 2012, black, brass, white, copper and chromed versions have been reintroduced into production under the name Doo-Wop. The original name of the lamp was Navy Pendant (Søværnspendlen), and it was produced by Louis Poulsen until the 1980s.

This pendant lamp is often attributed to Jørn Utzon. While Utzon did design a similar naval pendant lamp, his Søværnspendlen was produced for Nordisk Solar Compagni, not for Louis Poulsen. The Utzon version also exists in a significantly larger size, measuring 43 cm (16.92 inches) in diameter, as shown below.

Navy pendant lamps were also sold in the United States by Prescolite. Today, Prescolite is part of LBC Lighting. It is likely that additional companies were involved in the distribution or production of similar versions over time.

Henning Klok

At present, no reliable biographical information has been found about the designer Henning Klok. Further documentation is needed to clarify his role in relation to this lamp.

Søværnets Bygningsdistrikt

The Søværnets Bygningsdistrikt (Navy Building District) was originally known as Søværnets Bygningsvæsen (the Danish Navy Building Agency). It was a unit within the Danish defence responsible for the construction of naval buildings, often working in collaboration with civilian architects. In 1952, the organisation was merged with the Navy’s Building Department and the Coast Guard’s Maintenance Department into the newly formed Armed Forces Building Service.

Louis Poulsen

Louis Poulsen is a Danish lighting manufacturer with roots going back to 1874, when Ludvig R. Poulsen started a business in Copenhagen. The company later shifted from general trading into tools, electrical supplies and, eventually, lighting. In 1896 his nephew Louis Poulsen joined the firm, and after Ludvig’s death in 1906 Louis continued the business. In 1911 Sophus Kaastrup-Olsen became a partner and the company name changed to Louis Poulsen & Co A/S; in 1917 Kaastrup-Olsen became the sole owner.

A key turning point came in the 1920s with the long collaboration with Poul Henningsen (PH). His work on glare-free lighting and shade systems became central to the company’s identity and strongly influenced modern lighting design. Since then, Louis Poulsen has continued to collaborate with architects and designers, producing both classic catalogue models and large-scale architectural lighting for public buildings.

Designers

The most famous designer associated with Louis Poulsen is Poul Henningsen (PH), followed by major Danish and international names such as Arne Jacobsen, Verner Panton, Vilhelm Lauritzen and Vilhelm Wohlert.

In later years Louis Poulsen also worked with a wide range of designers and studios, including Alfred Homann, Louise Campbell, Øivind Slaatto, Andreas Hansen, Eila & John Meiling, Henning Klok, Axel Wedel Madsen, Jørgen Bo, Ole Valdemar Kjær, Christian Flindt, Clara von Zweigbergk, nendo (Oki Sato), Olafur Eliasson, Jens Møller-Jensen, GamFratesi, Bent Gantzel-Boysen, Anne Boysen and many others.