Pronunciation: bO-zär'; or bO-zar' in French
In French, the term beaux arts means fine arts. Based on ideas taught at the legendary École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, the Beaux Arts style flourished between 1885 and 1920.
Combining ancient Greek and Roman forms with Renaissance ideas, Beaux Arts is an eclectic Neoclassical style. Colossal masonry buildings are highly ornamented with garlands, flowers or shields. Often you'll find a profusion of columns, pilasters, balustrades and window balconies. Because of the size and grandiosity of these buildings, Beaux Arts became the favored style for court houses, museums, railroad terminals and government buildings.
Grand Central Terminal
Photo Copyright © Matt
Rosenberg, About Guide to Geography
The Beaux Arts movement was also concerned with formal design and city planning. In the United States, these ideas inspired planned suburbs with vast parks and wide, manicured boulevards lined with large, showy houses.
Beaux Arts architecture fell out of favor by the mid-20th century. The massive, elaborate buildings were considered ostentatious. Frank Lloyd Wright called them "Frenchite pastry" (In the Course of Architecture). However, later in the 20th century some postmodernist theorists awakened a new appreciation for Beaux Arts ideas.
The New York Public Library, New York's Grand Central Terminal and the Boston Public Library are celebrated examples of the Beaux Arts style. The firm of McKim, Mead & White was known for designing lavish private homes using Beaux Arts ideas.
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