Tableau presents previously unseen Poul Gernes flower lamp

During 3 Days of Design 2023 this year, Tableau unveiled a collaboration with the Gernes Foundation, which also marks the Danish design studio’s first reissued design.

Tableau founder Julius Værnes Iversen (whose studio focused on floral compositions and opened a flower shop before branching out into design) had been fascinated by the work of Danish artist Poul Gernes since he was a child, and a lucky encounter with his foundation led to this new project, the first historical reissue by Tableau. 

Tableau and Poul Gernes

'The pieces by Gernes have been very influential in Denmark due to the many works in public spaces,' says Iversen. 'One of the most significant for me was Palads, a cinema in central Copenhagen, which I thought was a castle for kings and queens. His use of colours was very significant for the late 1980s period. I grew up in an area where he decorated Ordrup high school, and it made a big impression on me. I believe the colours in his work appealed, and still appeal, to my childish side, creating a joyful aesthetic that still impacts my work.'

The project was the result of Iversen’s deep dive into the archives of the Gernes Foundation, where he had access not only to the spatial colour interventions for which the artist was well-known, but also discovered less-documented functional artworks. Originally designed between the late 1980s and early 1990s, when Gernes was a professor at The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, the prototype has been at the Gernes Foundation’s headquarters since its creation but it was never shown to the wider public. 

It was a lucky encounter that made the project possible. 'I met Bibi Saugman [of the Poul Gernes Foundation] at our concept store in Copenhagen, where we sell collectible design, functional art, and flowers,' he recalls. 'We started discussing Gernes' work with florals and how well it aligns with Tableau's work.

'This chance meeting led to the collaboration, and we began discussions with Ulrikka Gernes about showcasing Gernes' works and dusting off old prototypes. To me, it was essential to recreate Gernes' exact version of the lamp. Technical drawings were never made, so we had to create them based on the single prototype we had. We decided to scale the prototype to 150 per cent size to fit contemporary homes better, but both the original and the larger version are available.'

'Through conversations with Bibi Saugman and Ulrikke Gernes, it was clear that the lamp was intended to be a design rather than a unique artwork, which allowed us to reissue it,' explains Iversen. The lamp is defined by a sheet of aluminium, sliced and bent by hand to create the shape (a process that Tableau does in-house, in the very space where the lamps made their debut back in June).

It's also a project that marks a new era for Tableau: 'the concept of collaborating with the Gernes foundation is to do more of this type of work,' explains Iversen. 'Gernes created many objects that have never been published, and we plan to produce more items in the future. In general, we would like to engage in collaborations to bring forth historical archival works by functional artists and designers.'

tableau-cph.com