The castle-like building was built in 1928 for noted muralist Anthony Heinsbergen (1894-1981), and designed by Curlett & Beelman in a Late Gothic Revival and Romanesque style. The building's notable features include the prominent cylindrical tower, a Renaissance-style mural in the tower arch, and the detailed friezes displaying artisans at work. At least 11 buildings designed by architect Claud Beelman have been listed on the National Register. The building was constructed while Heinsbergen was employed to create murals for Los Angeles City Hall, and he had his building on Beverly Boulevard built using bricks from the old city hall.[3]
History
The building served as the office for Heinsbergen's mural-painting business for more than 50 years.[4] Heinsbergen's company, called Heinsbergen Decorating Company or A.T. Heinsbergen & Company, employed 185 artist painters, and created murals for movie palaces and many important buildings, including the U.S. Department of Commerce Building in Washington, D.C., the Witkin Library & Courts Building in Sacramento, and the Sir Francis Drake Hotel in San Francisco.[4] In Los Angeles, Heinsbergen's murals can still be seen at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, the Beverly-Wilshire Hotel, Los Angeles City Hall, the Wiltern Theatre, the ceiling of El Portal de La Paz Mausoleum at Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier and the Park Plaza Hotel.
After Heinsbergen died, his children continued to operate the business at the Beverly Boulevard building, in many cases working to restore murals that their father had designed decades earlier.[4]
The building was later converted to retail space and was occupied by "Lloyd Klein Couture", the West Coast store for New York fashion designer Lloyd Klein.[5] Klein's customers include Nicole Kidman, Renée Zellweger, Gwen Stefani and Kate Beckinsale.[6] Though Klein's name was prominently featured on the building, the name "Heinsbergen Decorating" is still seen above the door at the base of the tower.
After 12 years at the Beverly Hills location on Robertson, fashion designer Claire Pettibone's Flagship Salon has moved and now occupies the Heinsbergen Building and is officially open as of July 10, 2013.
^Ruth Ryon (1985-04-28). "Old Firm Keeps Young Remolding Past: Theaters and Hotels Among Its Major Restoration Projects". Los Angeles Times. ("It is still in the castle-like building that its founder, Anthony B. Heinsbergen, had built on Beverly Boulevard in 1927 from the bricks of the old Los Angeles City Hall.")
^ abcRuth Ryon (1985-04-28). "Old Firm Keeps Young Remolding Past: Theaters and Hotels Among Its Major Restoration Projects". Los Angeles Times.