Crystal clear reflections

It is widely believed that mirrors reflect both illusion and reality. Illusion because the image one is seeing on that smooth place of glass is, technically speaking, but a mere reflection. On the other hand, that same reflection forms a portrait of reality, or at least what we think as one.

It’s this need to face reality that enabled Rafael Bengzon of Antiques as Accents Inc. to go into the mirror business – a move that prompted him to finally let go of an illusion.

In 1990, after much thought and weeks of driving around the US and Canada testing potential markets, Bengzon decided to leave his stint as an investment banker and put up an antiques export company. He didn’t think twice about this business because, from what he observed, "you’d see ‘antiques for sale’ signs in stores and malls in just about every small town in the US and Canada so you could see a big market in antiques or antique reproductions." As luck would have it, his first order was a container truck-full of Philippine-made antiques and reproductions.

With such a promising start, the company began manufacturing three different product groups at the same time – classical furniture made from hardwood, country-style products of light materials like palo china, and mirrors.

But problems started piling up. Sourcing of raw materials became a major concern, the suppliers couldn’t be relied upon, the quality was inconsistent, delivery requirements were not being met, and so on. "We made a lot of mistakes. We went into a business that we knew nothing about and we were manufacturing three different product groups at the same time instead of focusing on just one," confesses Bengzon.

"Mirror, mirror on the wall, what’s the best business of them all?" This is probably what Bengzon’s mind was asking when, four years into the business, all he saw was a murky image of a future as far as his business was concerned. Getting his act together, he dropped the furniture business altogether and focused on his Venetian-inspired mirrors.

"The mirrors were holding their own and I began to suspect that there was a niche market that we could strive to be a major player in," he says.

What is it about mirrors that, according to a book titled Mirror, Mirror by Mark Pendergrast, made the ancient rich Romans build mirrored rooms for their notorious orgies and almost got Isaac Newton blind because of his endless experiments with mirrors and sunlight? What is it about Venetian mirrors – those highly decorative framed mirrors of old – that endangered the lives of master craftsmen in medieval Venice when they attempted to look for greener pastures elsewhere and bringing their mirror-making skills with them? Similarly, what is it about Venetian-inspired mirrors that drew Bengzon and consequently foreign buyers, to these fascinating looking glasses?

"You have products and you have products. Why is there a Louis Vuitton logo expressed as a luggage? Because it embodies certain elements that stand the test of time. I think Venetian mirrors have those elements," says Bengzon.

He adds, "There has to be a certain design element that has the makings of a classic, which determines the difference between a poorly designed product, or a fashionista type of product and one where you’re aspiring to be classical."

Bengzon is proud of the fact that their mirrors are tasteful, elegant, simple and, not surprisingly, on the high-end spectrum. We’re still using traditional techniques here but we’re interpreting it in ways that are much more attuned to the needs of our market," explains Bengzon who makes it a point to participate in international shows as Ambiente and Tendence in Frankfurt, Highpoint Furniture Show in North Carolina, as well as several trade fairs in Hong Kong and in Manila.

Unlike traditional Venetian mirrors heavily adorned with rose-shaped glass, molded and even tinted glass, Antiques as Accents’ products are far less cluttered with simple and clean lines.

Apart from wall mirrors, the company also offers table top products such as picture frames, pencil holders, obelisks, table lamps and furniture pieces like cabinets, drawers, writing desks, console tables – all made of mirrors.

The mirror designs may look simple but the process involved in creating the products is a complicated one, which needs highly skilled and creative artisans. In a nutshell, the work begins with the making of designs. In Antiques as Accents (located at # 1 Narra St. cor. Kalayaan Ave., Marikina Heights, Marikina City with tel. nos. 948-5523 and 924-4786, website www.antiqueasaccents.com), there is a team of designers tasked to come up with new designs every day. Once the pattern is approved, the glass sheets are cut into different shapes using a cutting wheel. The cut glass sheets are then grinded to smoothen the jagged edges before the finishing stage is done to smoothen it a bit more. The glass is then polished to perfection before turning the glass over to the wheel engraving section. Wheel engraving must be done by a skillful person as this is where the designs are engraved. A slight mistake would be costly. From there, silvering where the sheet of glass is transformed into a mirror using special chemicals is done. "Clean One" is the term used to rid the mirror of the chemicals from the silvering. Then it’s on to the assembly process where, like a jigsaw puzzle, the parts of the mirror borders and all are put together. "Clean Two" is the final cleaning before the finished product is packed and shipped to their owners.

The company’s biggest markets are the US and Europe including Germany, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Italy and even Turkey as well as Japan. They have started to sell locally but only on a very small scale. In fact, those who are really curious about these mirrors may drop by anytime between today, Feb. 28, until March 2 at the Philippine International Furniture Show 2004 at the World Trade Center-Metro Manila at the CCP complex, to see Antiques as Accents’ exhibit. Organized by the Chamber of Furniture Industries of the Philippines, the show gathers over 100 of the country’s leading furniture manufacturers and exporters. This year’s theme is "Obra" which describes the Filipinos’ creative talent in furniture-making. And Antiques as Accents’ latest obra –the Veneziano collection – is out to dazzle curious onlookers and serious buyers alike.

Every day is a learning experience, says Bengzon. Like a sheet of raw glass, he and his staff are continuously grinded and polished into near perfection if they want to come out looking like shining mirrors – mirrors that reflect the creative skills of Filipinos. Maybe then, we could finally make the rest of the world see that our image as a nation of world-class furniture makers is real, and not mere illusion.