13 March 2010

Beaux Arts reborn with Siematic

100 years ago, American architects flocked to the École des Beaux Arts in Paris to be schooled in the decorative arts. The ideas and inspiration they brought home spawned the Beaux Arts movement and they yielded what's arguably the most famous example of the Beaux Arts style in the US, 1911's New York Public Library.

The Reading Room

The Map Room

Now that is what my friend Tom would call a Beaux Arts pile.

The Beaux Arts movement of a century ago was the great amalgamator. Beaux Arts buildings and the Beaux Arts style borrowed heavily from the decorative styles that preceded it and combined everything into fanciful and exuberant buildings and rooms. Beaux Arts embraced the modern by absorbing the past.

Around 100 years later, Siematic teamed with superstar designer Mick de Giulio to interpret Beaux Arts for the 21st century. As was the case 100 years ago, Siematic's Beaux Arts honors the many forms that came before it and presents something utterly new.

Beaux Arts Flannel Grey

Beaux Arts Flannel Grey

Beaux Arts Magnolia White

Beaux Arts Magnolia White

Beaux Arts Magnolia White

Beaux Arts Salvia Green

Beaux Arts Salvia Green

Beaux Arts Salvia Green

That my friends is some amazing kitchenry. The photos above from the Flannel Grey kitchen pretty much do it for me. Bravo Siematic!

19 comments:

  1. The SieMatic magazine ads always stop me in my tracks. Theirs is my favorite style kitchen ever.

    Sharon

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  2. They get me every time too. They lead the pack for a very good reason!

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  3. For me, who loves all things Beaux Arts, I don't see them as Beaux Arts or really different than anything else on the market. Heavy on the "interpretation", yes. Contemporary with a bit of trim, yes. Nice marketing, yes.

    Maybe they need that library ceiling...

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  4. I don't think they're Beaux Arts in style so much as they in spirit. And damn it Kelly, you're supposed to agree with me.

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  5. I know; I'm sorry.:P I really wanted to agree but the coffee hadn't kicked in yet. I can't help it if my brain sees it as the lovechild of Christopher Peacock and Pottery Barn...

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  6. At this price point, Pottery Barn doesn't figure into it. It's a breath of fresh air if you ask me. If I never see another damn Vegas-inspired Mediterranean it will be too soon.

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  7. Ha! You guys crack me up! I really do like it, albeit with a few "cherylisms" thrown into it:) but I am not sure if it Beaux Arts either..but for sure an "influence". It most definitely is fresh. And, I for one, could not see another maple glazed door for a very long time! I like the table as island from a looks persepective if you have the room for it. And LOVE all the sconces. I am big fan of sconces in kitchens. Easy and inexp thing to do to add tons of classic charm to any kitchen and I have used them also flanking a sink window in a very modern kitchen. I have always liked Mick's use of the marble closing in space behind range area but for the life of me cannot figure out how to make it work and not be unwieldy.....

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  8. Nothing says home to me like a kitchen table. Especially one with a marble top. I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one out here who welcomes something new like this from the higher end. From this designer's perspective at any rate, simple is so much more challenging.

    Mick's sliding stone amazes me too. I've never seen one in person and I'd love to see the hardware that makes that work. Paging Hafele!

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  9. I don't see the Beaux Arts, either unless they mean a bit of rounded trim here and there. To my eye that last Salvia Green example is a door and a drawer that don't match. Not that the kitchens don't look lovely, because they do - but it's just modernism slightly softened, isn't it. I guess "a little bit of everything" isn't a very catchy name, even if it is what people really want.

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  10. I think that's a paneled dishwasher to the left of the sink in that last photo. It's either that or some sort of a tilt-out trash bin.

    I think the first flannel grey image shows what they're trying to do here best. I wish their new aesthetic didn't involve hanging pot racks though.

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  11. Yeah, I agree with you on the Vive Las Mediterranean faux everything.

    Does this banter make us the Siskel and Ebert of kitchen design?

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  12. Well if that's the case I want TV deal. Pronto. Maybe we should revisit the Death to the Work Triangle thing...

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  13. Do you still have the back and forth we did wa-a-a-a-y back in June? I just found it in my Google Docs if you want to revisit it.

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  14. I do, thanks! Also, I'm sure we can find other things to discuss for fun too (even if I agree with you on just about everything else!) ;)

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  15. Paul If you have time, you can see Mick's marble sliding doors at his showroom in the whatchadoodle place ( obvs can recall name) unless he has changed display.

    I want in on ANY discussion on triangular death by homicide. I did a post on it and never printed because I reread it and realized It was just a rant and not really a post! Ha!!

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  16. That's right! De Giulio's showroom is in Chicago. Oh man, there's one more agenda item for what will be the most eventful four days I've spent in a long time.

    Kelly and I have been bandying around that Death to the Triangle thing since last summer. Let's make it a three-way!

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  17. I love Siematic kitchens! I personally like the 2002 (it's similar to the Beaux Arts but with a more minimalist moulding). Also it doesn't have the problem of the door moulding and the drawer bead that, I agree, does not match well. People here at Konst (Siematic dealer in Bethesda MD) say that they can substitute the drawer style with a slab front which will certainly make it look more modern. At Konst they also have the "sliding cabinet behind the range" on display and I love that idea. Unfortunately the sliding doors will (when closed) will not be flush with the wall (it's staggered). Salvia Green is not available anymore. I like Flannel Grey best (not available on the 2002).

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  18. Thanks for your informative comment. I'll see the de Giulio signature stone pocket doors in Chicago this weekend and I cannot wait.

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