Parasoleil: Miracle metal for homeowners

BOULDER – Uriah Bueller’s career has had its share of interesting twists and turns in the last decade.

Bueller owns Boulder-based U.B. Arts and is the brains behind the Parasoleil copper shade panel. He also has a background in education – specifically ethics and world religion. He got into copper and steel sculpture in 1999 after building an artistic copper bird cage for his home.

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After taking part in several programs at the Anderson Ranch Art Center in Snowmass, Bueller made the leap from educator to artist in 2001. He was simultaneously launching a second business, Distant Destinations, to take travelers to remote destinations.

His original plan was to market sculptural copper bird cages – not meant to actually house birds – as a high-end art object.

“The idea was to make five-foot-tall copper bird cages for people all over the world, and everyone would want a five-foot copper bird cage,” Bueller said. “In reality, only a few people wanted a copper bird cage five feet tall. I branched out into a lot of other artwork.”

For the next five years, Bueller made copper and steel sculptures for clients, including the copper fountain in the St. Julien Hotel’s courtyard.

His current focus is on one product, the Parasoleil copper panel, which provides shade for decks and other outdoor areas. After coming up with the concept for a residential client in 2002, Bueller used that installation as a guinea pig to see how the panels weathered the elements. In early 2006, Bueller made Parasoleil his full-time job.

“It’s certainly enough to take all of my time,” he said. “The other business (Distant Destinations) is more like a nonprofit than a business. It’s to do good work and to teach kids different cultures and to travel to some cool places.”

Made from copper that is mined and milled domestically and water jet-cut in Denver, each $440 Parasoleil panel measures three feet by eight feet and weighs about 20 pounds each. Available in five water jet-cut patterns – dubbed Lemon Drop, Flanigan, Onion, Kenyan and Continental Flower – the panels are an eco-friendly, maintenance-free material for deck and patio shade cover.

“It’s thin enough that you can flex it to form just about any structure,” Bueller said, noting that the average Parasoleil installation includes 10 panels.

Bueller said it’s a premium and versatile product. “I haven’t found an architectural style that doesn’t fit with one of the patterns,” he touted. Aside from serving as a shade cover, the panels can be used as a privacy screen or even outdoor art.

On the Front Range, the natural patina of copper is not the hue of the Statue of Liberty, Bueller noted. “Most people think of copper turning green,” he said. “In this climate, it actually turns dark bronze.”

Parasoleil customers can also opt for a “quick treatment” that will immediately give the panel the patina of their liking – either green or dark bronze.

The product won the “Best Innovative Product” showcase at the 2006 Home and Garden Show in Denver. “From there, it got some recognition,´ said Bueller, including an appearance at the 2006 Parade of Homes in Commerce City.

Bueller said he sells the panels wholesale to designers, landscapers, deck builders, custom homebuilders and architects who retail it to their clients. He also has a handful of distributors who wholesale it to their professional clients. While the resellers are exclusively distributors and professionals, the panels can be installed by an able do-it-yourselfer, Bueller added, but there are guidelines that need to be heeded.

“It was a marketing decision,´ said Bueller of his business model. “As a one-man business, I had to focus on a particular market. Because it’s just me, I had to get some other people on board with a vested interest in the product.”

Today the Parasoleil panels are sold by professional retailers across Colorado as well as Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Kansas City, Mo. His only distributor is Denver-based Deck Superstore. Bueller said he hopes to have retailers and distributors in 10 states by the end of the year.

Denver-based American Dream Decks has installed Parasoleil panels on a few projects since becoming a retailer earlier this year, said owner Jeff Nixon. “Everybody loves them,” Nixon said. “I do a lot of shows, and that’s the first thing people see when they walk up. They say, ‘Oh, wow.’ I think they’re gorgeous. It’s definitely for the high-end client.”

Bueller said he can make custom patterns or use custom materials, noting that the price of copper has more than doubled in price since late 2005.

“Copper prices have been crazy lately,” he said.