[4] Poulsen was a friend and model for the artist Gerda Wegener, who painted a series of portraits of her.
[9] She later married Baron Christian Carl Otto Rosenørn-Lehn, a member of the Danish nobility.
In 1938, Poulsen was a recipient of the Tagea Brandt Rejselegat for significant contributions to Danish art.
[5][6] In this film, Poulsen is erroneously depicted as being the friend who was instrumental in bringing to life the "Danish Girl" - the new female persona of the main character Lili Elbe.
Poulsen, as played by Heard, arrives late for a modeling session requiring Elbe to fill in, wearing female clothing for the first time which sparks previously unacknowledged desires and Poulsen is shown naming Elbe’s feminine self "Lili".