By Patricia H. Szostak

A few fair weather clouds are white wisps against sunlit azure. One, two, three songbirds zoom overhead, little bursts of excitement in an otherwise tranquil sky. But this is not the same sky that greets us each day as we step out the door. Rather, it is a private sky in a little girl's bedroom in Chester Springs-- a fantasy created by decorative painter Edward DiGiorgio.

Ed is owner, manager and chief decorative painter of Picaso Painting -- a small company in Upper Uwchlan that specializes in decorative interior painting, especially faux work (pronounced foe), a French word meaning fake or imitation. While his artistic repertoire includes fantasy, some trompl'oeil and an occasional mural, he is best known for transforming the surface of walls, ceilings and even furniture into intriguing canvasses of color and texture that beg to be examined and touched. From lush suede to farmhouse fieldstone he has mastered faux finishes from the classically subtle to the uncommonly daring.

Raised in Havertown, Ed remembers being artistically inclined from an early age. "I loved art class. I was always doodling and drawing," he said. Yet he came by his passion for painting almost by accident. At 15, thinking only of earning money to buy his own car, he began spending summers in Florida working for his paternal grandfather, a specialty interior painter. "I learned from my grandfather," he said. "It was just incredible what this man could do."

Indeed, Valentino DiGiorgio, who Ed described as a short little guy who spoke broken English, was a master painter. He worked alone, strictly through interior decorators, from the time he immigrated to the United States as a young man until he passed away a decade ago. A meticulous worker, he imparted his ethic to his grandson.

"He used to make me paint closets until I learned how to paint," Ed recalled with amusement. "Here, go inside and faux finish this closet," Valentino would say. "Don't come out 'til it looks perfect."

After completing high school Ed moved to Florida and worked for Valentino full time until his death a year later. "It was sad to see him go because he showed me everything."

Putting his painting career behind him to join the Marines, Ed's military superiors were quick to identify his unique skills. "They put me on special detail painting floors and barracks," he laughed. "Lots of green." They even had him paint camouflage on a Jeep, a finish he thankfully hasn't been asked to replicate since.

After leaving the service Ed painted interiors and exteriors for contractors for several years, during which time his propensity toward perfectionism earned him his nickname. "I was working for other guys and I would always take my time and they'd say, 'Who do you think you are, Picasso?' Next thing you know the guys are calling me Picasso because I would take a little longer to paint a door. Well, my door was perfect when it was done."

The name stuck and in 1985 at his wife Lisa's suggestion, it became the name for his fledgling business, minus one 's.'

In the beginning, Ed and Lisa hustled for work. Lisa scoured the real estate transactions in the newspaper each week and mailed cards to new homeowners. They stuffed mailboxes with flyers. "Years ago we used to beg," he said. But soon they were getting referals from satisfied customers. Today, virtually all of Ed's jobs come by word of mouth and from the recommendations of builders, decorators and real estate agents who know his work. While most of his work is local, he has also done some jobs in New York City and Cape May.

When asked what makes his work unique, Ed was quick to reply. "I'm a perfectionist. I pride myself on doing things correctly."

The quality of Ed's work, he believes, is unique because it's hard to find today. "You don't see it anymore." he said, referring not only to the quality of the materials and the skill of applying finishes, but to preparing the surface properly. "We're big on preparation," he said, pointing out that caulking cracks, filling in nail holes and sanding walls are critical to a professional finish (a throwback no doubt to his training with Valentino).

Although he has three full time employees, Ed's work ethic and attention to detail require him to be on site and intimately engaged in every faux painting job, one job at a time. This means that customers never face the kinds of delays that come from scheduling multiple jobs. "Jobs are completed on time or early," he said. On those rare occasions when he misses a target completion date, it's usually because the customer has changed things or added on work. "Sometimes I get called to do a bathroom and next thing you know I'm doing the whole house."

While he's eager to accommodate such enthusiasm, he frequently cautions his customers who dash from room to room on his first day telling him what they want. "You've got to take a room at a time. Stay focused to get the right look. Let it evolve," he said. "Getting one room done will almost tell you what needs to be done in the next room."

Not surprisingly, Ed has steered away from lucrative, new construction painting jobs with developers. Put off by the rushed pace and inferior paints, he said, "I tried it early on. It's not for me. You can't do quality work."

What Ed most enjoys are challenges, particularly where he can do faux work. "I love working on houses that are in bad need of painting, and transforming them, especially antique homes or newer homes with cathedral ceilings and palladian windows."

In Chester County challenges like these are not hard to come by. One of his regular well-to-do main line customers in a big new house has shocked him more than once with an outlandish-sounding idea. "The more bizarre and wild that it is, chances are the more she'll like it," he said. "But, he added, "she's fun." One such project involved painting her entire master bedroom suite-- ceiling, walls, doors, everything -- in a faux antique gold finish. This was in stark contrast to her black carpeting and contemporary black furniture which she also asked Ed to accent with gold. Another of her artsy brainstorms was to paint the walls in her formal living room flat black. "It's a large room with a high ceiling, lots of glass, hardwood flooring and nice trim work painted off-white for contrast. We did it, and oh my God, it's stunning," he said. "This is a lady who knows what she wants."

A different challenge was presented in a massive new Chester Springs home with twenty foot ceilings and a large expanse of wall which was to be done in a suede finish. "Suede is not that hard to do," he explained, "but you have to keep moving. You can't let it dry because you'll see the stops and starts." To accomplish teh task he and his three employees worked on the wall in a simultaneous sweep.

Occasionally he's called upon to help disguise decorating problems. He recalled a message on his answering machine one day from the owner of Dane Decor, a Scandinavian furniture store housed in a former church on Route 30. "We need you to paint some showrooms," the message said. "I know what you can do. I don't care what you do. There's no budget. So come and have some fun." One challenge he faced there was a wall of white cinder block seventy feet long. "What do I do with that?" he wondered. Many many hours later he had handpainted every block to look like stone, then painted in sprigs of ivy here and there to soften the look.

As a way to show his work to potential customers, in his spare time Ed is busy creating a show room of the home he and Lisa purchased two years ago in an upscale Upper Uwchlan development. Room by room, he is transforming the early '80s builder's grade decore with his favorite faux finishes. Typical of his artistic sensibilities, he first added graceful architectural features like columns, crown moldings, wainscotting and French doors. Then he handsomely set them off with wall colors and textures the average person would shy away from. In the large formal dining room, for example, a slightly iridescent offwhite trim and wainscotting surround walls painted with Ralph Lauren's Teton Range suede finish, a dark olive brown shade that, until you touch it, seems just as soft as a fine suede jacket. The effect is elegant.

In the family room, also a sizable space, Ed wanted a look that was inviting and homey, but subtly sophisticated. Here a warm white ceiling, trim and carpeting show off a custom-mixed terra cotta color in a ragged finish, which gives the walls depth and warmth with an interesting marbled appearance-- all of which compliment the earth tones in the furniture's fabric. If it sounds like he's crossed over into interior decorating, that's not far from the truth. "I often bid on a job at the same time the decorators are getting under way, so I can see what the scheme is -- fabrics and carpeting." This gives him the opportunity to tie everything together with paint.

Apart from the personal satisfaction he derives from creating beautiful decorative finishes, Ed is gratified when customers notice the extra care that goes into high quality workmanship. "It's always nice to have a customer who appreciates what you did -- somebody who comes up to a wall and says, "Look how straigt your lines are. Look at how even this is."

Ed's customers like him, because he delivers personal service. "We're dealing with individuals. It's their home and I want them to be comfortable with me and my company," he said. When he leaves a job the rooms are usually cleaner than when he arrived. He vacuums and washes window. "It's just the way I am," he said.

For more information on Picaso Painting, contact Edward DiGiorgio at (610) 458-4044.