Poul Henningsen designed the three-shade system between 1925 and 1926. The first luminaires to use it were designed by PH in collaboration with Louis Poulsen for an exhibition in Paris. This partnership continued until his death in 1967. Throughout his life, PH sought to create glare-free light, to direct light where it was most needed, and to create soft shadows, using incandescent bulbs as his light source.