About Us

 

Mission Statement

Beaux-Arts Classic Products designs and manufactures classic alternatives to replace industrial elements found in all residential and commercial spaces, such as heating and air conditioning vent covers, return air filter grilles, speakers covers, radiator grilles, crawl space vents, and decorative trims for recessed lights.  Our Mission is to create architectural products that are functional works of art for those design projects that demand the best.    “Our products transform everyday eyesores into Functional Works of Art.”

 Our Story

Beaux-Arts Classic Products is a very unique company.  From our founding in 2002 we understood that certain interior design elements were only available in basic industrial styles.  For instance, decorative options for heating and air conditioning vent covers wee practically non existent, even though fabulous examples of great looking grilles were prominent on historic buildings.  We found it odd that buildings built after World War II only had the stamped metal louvered type heating vents and that if one wanted something nicer looking they had to go to an antique store.

So we founded Beaux-Arts to fill this void in the marketplace.  We re-introduced the decorative arts to the interior design industry.  The decorative arts movement began during the Italian Renaissance when fine arts were introduced to functional elements like furniture, fireplaces and staircases.  It blossomed in mid 19th century England when William Morris created wallpaper with fine arts quality.  The decorative arts flourished as the combination of talented artisans, the industrial revolution and rich Americans rushed to build their own European style castles in the United States.

Initially we concentrated on two main areas, first re-creating historic heating vents, and second making historic looking trims for recessed lights.  We sought out historic composition ornament made from hand carved wood blocks, which was the same approach used by 19th century artisans.  This immediately made us stand out with products that are three-dimensional, while our competitors only made two-dimensional grilles.  Beaux-Arts Classic Products decorative trims for recessed lights were the first available anywhere, in 2003 there were no competitors.

Our first grille designs were, Gothic, French Colonial, Georgian, Italian Renaissance and Louis XIV styles, which were all laid out by hand.

Our first big hotel job was the Grand Hyatt at the Bellevue in Philadelphia, built in the Beaux-Arts style of 1904.  This hotel is where Legionnaires disease first broke out in 1976 and killed 29 and infected 182.  Old hotels, like the Bellevue, built before forced air heat and air conditioning, used the uninsulated space between the outer and inner walls as ducts to circulate the cold air.  Unfortunately the heat outside and the cool air between the walls created moisture which incubated a new deadly pneumonia like disease that spread through every room.  As a result, theBellevue was closed and sold in 1978, then reopened after they cut new ducts for air conditioning through ornate ceilings and paneled walls.  For 25 years ugly louvered vents covered the new ducts, because no other options were available.  Finally in 2005 the Hyatt contacted us to make proper decorative grilles for their classical style hotel.  The grilles are still in use today and look like they were part of the original design.

 

If the Grand Hyatt at the Bellevue proved the validity of Beaux-Arts Classic Products for Historical renovation projects, the new Grand del Mar Hotel built in 2008 proved that new hotels also benefit from using decorative grilles.  The Grand del Mar was designed in the Addison Mizner, Mediterranean Revival and Spanish Colonial Revival style so popular in California, Texas and Florida.  The project required over 4,500 decorative grilles, manufactured by Beaux-Arts Classic Products.

Company Timeline

2002  Stuart and Melanie Kershner founded Beaux-Arts Classic Products to fill a need in the marketplace for classically designed products as alternatives to ‘industrial eyesores’ such as; HVAC vents, recessed lighting, return air grilles, speakers, radiators and foundation crawl space vents.

Industrial Versus Functional Works of Art

 2005-2006   Awarded Top 100 Products by Residential Lighting for our decorative recessed light trims.  In 2006 there was only one size recessed light canister, and we offered 6 different styles, available in 14 different finishes.

2010  Our son, Hudson Kershner, took over manufacturing.  All products are made in the USA.  Hand cast in the highest quality urethane resin and hand finished.  Resin is an excellent choice for the architectural product industry.  It is dimensionally and thermally stable, corrosion resistant, paintable, screwable and appropriate for exterior applications.  All products are available in over 16 beautiful finishes for no additional cost.

2012  We began the transition from making masters by hand to using technology to scan historic elements, manipulate the designs in 3-dimensional software and cut the masters with a CNC to create our functional works of art products line.

2010-2014  Beaux-Arts Classic Products completed the redesign of the Arts and Crafts Decorative Grille Collection which offers 70 sizes.  This was the first series that was completely redesigned in a 3D CAD program and machined on a CNC milling machine.  The stark difference in the quality of this new process made us remove all of our handmade styles.

Arts and Crafts Style Decorative Grille

RR-209 14×14 in Dark Bronze Finish

These grilles were originally made in Brooklyn, New York from 1865 to 1922.  Andrew Carnegie specified them in all of the 1,689 Carnegie Libraries he built in the USA from 1883 to 1929.  Beaux-Arts Classic Products has been manufacturing these uniquely American grilles in the USA since 2010.  They are the most popular style sold by Beaux-Arts Classic Products.

This grille we feel is the finest and most interesting grille ever made in the United States.  There are an assortment of elements interwoven throughout the design, such as the chevron pattern in the moulding, the interlocking diamonds, a rope, a ribbon as well as stylized acanthus leaves.  This grille is most interesting to look at with all the geometric shapes complimented by the subtle curves.

They can be used for historic preservation since they meet U.S. Government’s General Services Administration Code #1501003S Standards for Historic Preservation Guidelines.

2012 We introduced 6″ Recessed Chandeliers with several crystal styles and crystal color options.

2015  Present:  Beaux-Arts Classic Products re-designed the Louis XIV style decorative grilles.  Beaux-Arts had previously sold this style, made from handmade masters.  It was always very popular and the only handmade style we redesigned on a 3D CAD program and machined on a CNC milling machine.

Louis XIV Style Decorative Grille

RR-203 24x24LT in Antique Brass Finish

The Louis XIV style is a very popular grille since it is the only grille of this style in the world.  Its best known as the style of the Palace of Versailles and named after the longest reigning king in Europe, King Louis XIV also known as the Sun King.  But even today most of the diplomatic state receptions in the world take place in rooms decorated in or influenced by the Louis XIV Style.  From France, to Russia to Saudi Arabia the style of Louis XIV has been adopted as their own.

Beaux-Arts Classic Products designed their Louis XIV style grilles to meet the needs of high end design projects and historic preservation worldwide.  They have noticed that there is a certain type of client who wants no other style, only the Louis XIV style will do.  The basis of the design is the acanthus leaf.  They currently make this style in 54 different sizes and plan to add another six sizes soon.

2016 The most popular Victorian Style Decorative Recessed Light Trim is available in sizes to fit all recessed lighting canisters in the market; 3-3/4″, 4″, 5″, 6″, 6-3/4″.  Scanning made it possible to create all these sizes.  While preserving the integrity of the original carvings.

2018 Introduced Decorative Recessed Lighting Trims in sizes to fit all LED Retrofit Baffles and the newest LED Wafer technology.

Victorian Style Decorative Recessed Light Trim
For LED Wafer Technology

Our Process

Every step in the process used to design, manufacture and market products is determined by the fact that Beaux-Arts is driven to make the best, without exception.

It all begins with the design process.  Developing a line of decorative grilles takes three or more years.  It frequently starts with an historic model, or fraction of a model.  The Louis XIV style, started with a small seven inch square, that had been hand carved during the baroque period circa 1700.  Next the fragment is scanned and the search begins for other elements necessary to make a larger design.  The design process involves hundreds of hours of 3D computer engineering on a CAD program.

The next step in the process is to make a mock-up.  Many times a three-dimensional computer drawing looks quite different as a model.  The mock-up points out what needs fixing and what needs to be thrown out.

The next step in the process is to make a mock-up. Many times a three-dimensional computer drawing looks quite different as a model. The mock-up points out what needs fixing and what needs to be thrown out.

Beaux-Arts makes their models on their CNC milling machine. Even a small 6” x 10” piece takes 20 to 30 hours of constant machining on the CNC.  The tooling used to cut the design are a tiny 1/64” tapered ball nose bit, needed to mill the fine detail and smooth surface required. It usually takes five to ten mock-ups to hone a 3D drawing into a model worth pursuing further.

When a new style is agreed upon and the models look great, the real work begins. Usually the smaller size grilles are made first, since most HVAC grilles are the smaller supply size grilles. To make each size, an exact 3D drawing is made, then the tool paths computed so that the CNC can mill the new master. A master is a perfect copy of each grille size made out of an extremely hard material so that it will last forever. From that master, molds can be made so copies can be cast then sold. While the smaller size grilles can be made in a day or two, making the largest sizes can take eight to ten days of continuous milling, day and night. Rough cut bits wear out after fifteen hours, while finishing bits can cut continuously for five days or more. The spindle turns the bits at 17,000 rpm without and vibration. Making 70 different sizes of the same style grille can take three years from start to finish.

After each master is finished, molds are created in the negative, so that exact images of the masters can be cast, again and again until the mold wears out.

Beaux-Arts Classic Products casts their creations in the finest urethane resin, made by one of the world’s best resin producers. Urethane resin is an exterior grade material which is impervious to water and UV rays. Urethane resin is very expensive.  Beaux-Arts uses it because it gives a lost wax quality casting without the cost and wastage of using the lost wax method. In the Decorative Arts era most fine casting was done in the lost wax method. Today the cost of the labor and materials make the lost wax method of casting economically prohibitive. If you examine a Beaux-Arts Classic Products casting you will not see flash, air bubbles or rough or grainy surfaces, like on most other metal or cast iron type castings. They tried some of the best sand casting foundries in the US, but the casting came out grainy and rough with way too much flash. They also tried aluminum casting but that was also rough and grainy and not suitable for the smooth surface detail their designs require.

After casting all products are placed on tempered glass shelves in an industrial oven for curing. Heat curing actually enhances the qualities of the resin, by increasing the tensile strength, dimensional stability and heat tolerance.  Baking at high temperatures also quickens the natural curing process from seven days to eight hours.

After spending the night in the oven  all products spend time in the machine shop, where flash is removed by planing the backs.  This is also where the screw holes are drilled out.

 

 

Beaux-Arts Classic Products offers 16 different finish selections for their grilles. Many of them are hardware finishes, like rubbed bronze, dark bronze. antique brass,  aged copper, nickel, pewter and umber gold. Others are wood like finishes like antique cherry, Chinese red, old wood and old wood gold.

These finishes are created by a method that Beaux-Arts developed in-house, which is somewhat similar to powder coating. The basic difference is that powder coating uses an electrostatic charge to the powder particles, which are then  attached magnetically to the grounded ferrous metal part.  At Beaux-Arts the powders are applied to the front surface of the mold, next the resin enters the mold and chemically fuses with the powder. The strength and durability of this process creates a maintenance free finish.  Finally the finish is glazed to achieve an aged look and some finishes require further highlights.  Other finishes such as white, black and bright gold are sprayed on in the paint booth.

 

In addition to creating a product line that is classical, we also wanted it to be easy to install.  An inspiration for our products arose from designing and installing classical interiors.  Wall panels in particular required skilled artisans.  Our wall panels are designed with a notch in the corner so the moulding is behind the ornament.  Our finished products are ready to install no decorative painting is necessary.  Our panels are perfect for any decor.  We are currently working on one-piece wall panel designs.

Check out our Blog Classical Addiction for wall decor and wall panel inspiration.  Search for Best Dressed Walls and Wall Panels for a focused collection of some of the best ideas you can find on the web.