I had the chance to sit down with world-class faux finisher Joe Stallone in his apartment, fresh off his latest job, Robert De Niro’s new Greenwich Hotel. Joe’s work surrounded us as we sat and talked on his sofa, from the gorgeous faux doors and cabinets, to the Tondo he made on the wall in the style of the Renaissance greats. Though this Tondo used to be a hose, it now sparkles gold, flawlessly framing a giant painting of a nude.

What is the best part of the job? Is it seeing clients’ expressions after you transform a steel door to antique rosewood—or what?
JS: The actual doing of it, I’d say. That’s the fun.

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