If you’ve ever dreamed of traveling back in time to experience the lavish grandeur of the Gilded Age, Beaux-Arts architecture offers a real-life glimpse into that world. This style originated in 19th-century France and later became popular in American cities like New York and San Francisco. It blends classical Greek and Roman symmetry with the ornate details of French and Italian Renaissance and Baroque designs.

Beaux-Arts was especially favored for grand public buildings—museums, libraries, and government structures—as well as the mansions of wealthy industrialists who could afford such extravagance. Though its popularity faded after the Great Depression, its legacy lives on in iconic structures like Paris’s Opéra Garnier and New York’s Grand Central Terminal.

With The Gilded Age returning for its third season on June 22, now is the perfect time to explore the architectural style that defined the era’s bold opulence.

### What Is Beaux-Arts Architecture?
Beaux-Arts is a grand, classical style that emerged in Paris in the 1800s before spreading worldwide. Known for its symmetry and lavish ornamentation, it draws inspiration from ancient Greek and Roman architecture, as well as the elaborate designs of the French and Italian Renaissance and Baroque periods.

### History of Beaux-Arts
The style gets its name from Paris’s École des Beaux-Arts, where four visionary students—Félix Duban, Joseph-Louis Duc, Henri Labrouste, and Léon Vaudoyer—challenged traditional design norms in the mid-1800s. Combining elements from Romanesque, Renaissance, Baroque, and even Gothic architecture, Beaux-Arts quickly gained favor, earning prestigious commissions from figures like King Louis Philippe.

Originally intended to create a distinct national architectural identity, Beaux-Arts soon crossed the Atlantic, thanks in part to American students like Richard Morris Hunt, the first U.S. citizen admitted to the École in 1846. When he returned home, Hunt introduced the style to America, but it truly took off after the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. The fair’s gleaming white buildings (dubbed “The White City”) helped spark the City Beautiful movement, inspiring American cities to adopt Beaux-Arts principles.

### Key Characteristics
Classical Motifs
Symmetry was fundamental, with designs often featuring columns, pediments, friezes, and rows of arches (arcades), all inspired by ancient Greece and Rome.

Rich Ornamentation
Just as important as symmetry was the lavish decoration, influenced by the intricate details of French and Italian Renaissance and Baroque styles.

Luxurious and Modern Materials
Buildings showcased both opulence and innovation, using materials like marble and limestone alongside modern advancements of the time.

(Note: The original text cuts off here, but the rewritten version maintains the same structure and clarity while improving flow and readability.)Imposing Scale
Many Beaux-Arts buildings feature raised first floors, enhancing their grand and impressive appearance.

Arched Windows and Doorways
Arched windows and doorways are a hallmark of Beaux-Arts design, creating balance and harmony while drawing the eye upward to emphasize grandeur.

Opulent Staircases
Lavish entrances are a defining feature of Beaux-Arts architecture, often highlighted by dramatic staircases that serve as the building’s focal point—like the iconic staircase at Paris’s Opéra Garnier.

Sculptural Significance
Decorative details, from facade sculptures to mythological murals and mosaics, were used to convey a building’s purpose and identity.

Beaux-Arts and The Gilded Age
Though born in Paris, Beaux-Arts architecture flourished in the U.S., becoming synonymous with the Gilded Age’s excess.

“The clash between old and new money is central to the show,” says Bob Shaw, the Emmy-winning production designer for HBO’s The Gilded Age. “The contrast between the Van Rhijns’ modest brownstone and the Russells’ extravagant Beaux-Arts mansion perfectly illustrates this. Old money saw flaunting wealth as tasteless—exactly what the Russells do with abandon.”

To capture this opulence, Shaw focused on scale. “Walking through the Russells’ grand wrought-iron doors—inspired by Newport’s Marble House—should leave you awestruck,” he says, noting the 30-foot ceilings. “The design borrows from famous Beaux-Arts mansions.” For example, the great hall’s fireplaces echo those in The Breakers’ dining room, while the limestone walls draw from Ochre Court. “Research showed most mansions had at least one 18th-century French-style room, which inspired the Russells’ drawing room.”

The Vanderbilt Mansion
The Russells’ fictional home mirrors real-life Vanderbilt mansions, like William K. Vanderbilt’s Fifth Avenue residence, designed by Richard Morris Hunt.

“That house—660 Fifth Avenue—was groundbreaking,” says historian Keith Taillon, author of Walking New York: Manhattan History on Foot. (His Upper East Side chapter highlights surviving Beaux-Arts gems.)

“The Second Industrial Revolution sped up the spread of European trends to America,” Taillon explains. The nouveau riche, unbound by tradition, eagerly embraced these styles.

“While not the first French-inspired building in New York, the Vanderbilt mansion (completed in 1883) was the most dazzling yet,” Taillon notes. It marked a shift from somber brownstones to lighter materials like limestone and marble. Before Beaux-Arts, architecture was far less showy.Architectural styles like Italianate, Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, and Federal—often built with brick, brownstone, and occasionally marble—were common at the time. When asked about his favorite detail of 660 Fifth Avenue, Alva Vanderbilt’s extravagant housewarming party in 1883 stands out. “It was so lavish that it permanently established the Vanderbilts as the undisputed leaders of Gilded Age high society—one guest, nicknamed ‘Puss,’ even wore a dress made entirely of white cat fur.”

### Notable Beaux-Arts Buildings

Musée d’Orsay, Paris
Originally built as a train station for the 1900 Paris Exposition, the Musée d’Orsay is a celebrated Beaux-Arts landmark, famous for its grand clock and sweeping arched windows overlooking the Seine. Designed by Victor Laloux, the building also features intricate stone garlands and classical pediments.

Grand Central Terminal, New York
The current Grand Central Terminal, completed in 1913, replaced an earlier structure and remains one of New York’s finest Beaux-Arts examples. Classical elements like Corinthian columns and perfect symmetry blend with lavish touches, including an ornate facade with a Tiffany stained-glass clock and a celestial ceiling in the main concourse.

Opéra Garnier, Paris
Also known as Palais Garnier, this opera house is often considered the world’s most beautiful Beaux-Arts building. Designed by Charles Garnier, it dazzles with Baroque and Renaissance details, most notably its grand marble staircase, which splits into two sweeping flights.

The New York Public Library
When asked to name his favorite Beaux-Arts building in New York, Taillon points to the main branch of the New York Public Library on Fifth Avenue. “Not just for its breathtaking design by Carrere & Hastings, but for what it represents—a grand, public space dedicated to learning and the free exchange of knowledge.”