Inspired by Vilhelm Lauritzen’s iconic work, Louis Poulsen has teamed with Elsewhere founder Ethan Gaskill for a creative collaboration. A meeting of light and scent, consisting of a new take on the classic Louis Poulsen VL 45 portable and an accompanying “Radio House” scented candle.
For Ethan, the connection to heritage design has always been present in his life, and because of that Louis Poulsen felt like a natural fit, both to him and to his brand Elsewhere.
“My relationship with Louis Poulsen began when I was furnishing my first place in LA and in a process of discovering my own style. I’ve always been someone who has a deep appreciation for brands with rich heritage and storytelling, so when they reached out to me back then it felt very intuitive. I love that all their lighting come from some of the most iconic names in design, and being able to work with these icons has been a real treat.
The VL 45 Radiohus Portable felt like the most natural fit with my brand, Elsewhere, because of candlelike similarities. The braided rope handle has such a lantern-esque quality to it that feels unmistakably fitting for this particular project.”
Radiohuset in Copenhagen is one of Vilhelm Lauritzens most famous architectural works and carries his distinct design expression from outside to inside, in the warm wooden interior and the soft lighting, of where the VL 45 design was customized for.
“This first thing that struck me about the space was the warmth. I’m a huge fan of any environments that use wood as a primary finish and I knew when I saw photos of the environment, it would serve as great inspiration for a scented product.
I also really loved the idea of recreating the sensation of a concert hall in scent form. It all just made sense.”
The combination of Aged Brass and White Opal Glass came naturally to Ethan and the team at Elsewhere, as it created an intuitive bridge between the products as well as the history.
“With Elsewhere, nothing we produce is ever meant to feel too modern, in terms of the narrative and materiality. So, for us, the aged brass would help drive home this feeling of timelessness, like the lamp itself was plucked from a different era. And the opal glass, to me, feels like a nod to the color of the candle wax.”
But how do you translate the history and the feeling of a space into a scent? Perfumer at Elsewhere, Jacqueline Steele, has the answer.
“We wanted to capture the real, specific details of Radiohuset, the things you'd notice if you were actually there, so the candle makes you feel like you're sitting in the room.
Crushed velvet is one of those rare notes. It's soft and smooth, like the seats and drapery of the concert hall. Warm static is another. Audio equipment and the VL 45 itself, which was originally designed for this very space, give off a faint electric warmth that has a smell of its own, and it adds a sense of excitement to the scent. Underneath it all is a wood accord built from craftsman's woods like cedar and oak, which brings the polished but natural textures of the interior to life.”
A performance at Radiohuset is full of contrasts: thoughtful formality alongside modern materials, crackling excitement alongside hushed anticipation, deeply intimate moments in a space of expansive modernist grandeur.
“We wanted the candle to do justice to all of it.”
We explore the world around us by using all senses, but scent in particular is heavily connected to spatial memory and awareness. To Ethan and Elsewhere, light carries some of the same abilities.
“I think both lighting and scent have the magical ability to make the same room feel a multitude of ways. With light, you get a totally different feeling depending on whether it’s bright and cold and coming from overhead or diffused and warm and coming from a lamp on a side table. Scent is a similar story. Some notes stimulate, and others comfort.
We want our scents to feel like a natural extension of the space, where you can’t tell if that sweet, antiqued smell of old wood is coming from the candle or the 100-year-old cabinet across the room. Both light and fragrance give you so much control. It could be 100 degrees and sunny outside, but if I close the curtains, dim the lights, and light a fall candle, suddenly I’m ready to watch a scary movie. It’s a kind of mental and emotional transportation.”
At Elsewhere, they always describe their products as a “sensory experience,” and that’s the exact intention of the VL 45 and Radio House candle coming together.
“The story of this scent is really about that special feeling right before a show starts. The lights dim, you’re sat comfortably in your seat, there’s a coziness to the space, and yet there’s this buzzy feeling of anticipation.
I want the scent to bring that same feeling into someone’s home, in an office while doing creative work, or right before friends arrive for a dinner party. Those moments where you’re at ease but know something brilliant is about to happen.”
The Louis Poulsen | Elsewhere by Ethan collaboration is available in the US only.
