Profile | Poul Kjærholm

“It’s the inherent language of the materials I want to express.”

- Poul Kjærholm

Today, we celebrate the birth of the eminent Danish designer Poul Kjærholm (1929–1980), a singular figure in 20th-century furniture design whose work redefined the relationship between material, structure, and form. Kjærholm began his career as an apprentice cabinetmaker at Grønbæk, where he developed a rigorous understanding of traditional woodworking techniques and an enduring respect for craftsmanship. He later studied at the Danish School of Arts and Crafts in Copenhagen, an institution to which he would return as a lecturer, influencing a new generation of designers with his disciplined, material-driven approach.

Internationally recognised as a leading voice in modern functionalist furniture, Kjærholm’s work was deeply rooted in the values of Danish design yet set apart by his radical and consistent embrace of steel. Rather than viewing steel as an industrial counterpoint to craft, he treated it with the same sensitivity traditionally reserved for wood, valuing its strength, precision, and expressive potential. His designs sought a meticulous equilibrium between material and form, characterised by linear clarity, structural honesty, and the deliberate elimination of superfluous ornamentation.

Strongly influenced by the modernist principles of Le Corbusier and Marcel Breuer, Kjærholm pursued a universal design language that melded tradition and innovation. Through the restrained pairing of steel with organic materials such as leather and cane, he created works that balanced cool industrial rigor with tactile warmth and human scale.

Central to Kjærholm’s practice was his long-standing collaboration with manufacturer Ejvind Kold Christensen, and later with Fritz Hansen, relationships that allowed him to develop a coherent structural framework across multiple designs. This continuity is evident in some of his most iconic pieces, including the PK20 Chaise Longue and the PK22 Lounge Chair, both of which exemplify his pursuit of formal reduction and structural perfection.

Poul Kjærholm’s legacy endures not only through the continued production of his designs but through their lasting presence in major international museum collections, including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and The Museum of Modern Art in New York. His work remains a benchmark for modern furniture design, quietly radical, rigorous, and uncompromising in its pursuit of timeless form.

Discover Poul Kjærholm's designs here.