VL 38 Floor Lamp

The VL 38 Floor Lamp updates Vilhelm Lauritzen's original 1930s design for the Radiohuset building. First appearing in Louis Poulsen catalogues after WWII, it was relaunched in 2016 with modern LED technology; the 2017 black edition sharpens its outline while preserving the soft, curvy, retro expression — timeless yet contemporary.

Vilhelm Lauritzen was one of the defining architects of Danish functionalism, and Radiohuset — the Danish Broadcasting House in Copenhagen — ranks among his most celebrated works. True to the era's ideal of the total work of art, Lauritzen and his studio designed not only the building but the fittings inside it, lamps included, and Louis Poulsen produced them. The VL 38 carries that pedigree lightly: a small, tiltable metal shade on a slender curved stem, drawn with the warm, organic functionalism that distinguished Lauritzen from his more austere contemporaries. The shade's rounded form directs light precisely where it is needed, while its modest proportions keep the lamp visually quiet — a reading companion rather than a statement piece, though its lineage gives it plenty to say. Today it sits alongside the Poul Henningsen classics in our Louis Poulsen collection as a quieter strand of the same Danish lighting tradition.

In the home, the VL 38 Floor is the rare floor lamp that thrives in small spaces. Its slim stem and compact head tuck neatly beside a reading chair, a sofa arm or a bed, delivering focused, glare-controlled light for books and handwork without flooding the room — ideal when one person reads while another sleeps. In compact city apartments, including the smaller floor plans typical of Asian urban living, it adds a layer of low, warm light that makes evenings feel calmer than a single ceiling fixture ever could; our guide to designer lighting for small apartments covers this layering principle in detail. The adjustable shade also lets you bounce light off a wall for a softer mood. Explore more standing companions in our floor lamps collection.

Light source: built-in LED, 9.6 W. IP20, indoor.