We were lucky to catch up with Barth White recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Barth thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What’s something crazy on unexpected that’s happened to you or your business

I grew up in Las Vegas and spent my teenage years working for the casinos. I never got a formal college education as I attempted to start a heavy machinery business out of high school before eventually working jobs at the casinos. After the Aladdin hotel was raided in 1980 by the FBI the casino was shut down and restricted the amount of money bellmen could make dropped significantly. I had a friend in California who was a wallpaper hanger. I visited him and thought it looked like something I could do. I returned to Vegas and decided I would be a wallpaper hanger. I began walking the street advertising. This was at the time Howard Hughes died. While looking for his will they had tore into the walls of his bungalows. I was hired to fill in and repair the holes. After three days I still hadn’t filled the first hole. I then hired some professional paper hangers. They got more work done in three minutes then I finished in three days so I began to apprentice under my employees. I slowly learned the craft and this is how I got into painting. I began to apprentice under painters I employed. Some of the casinos began hiring decorative artisans so I decided I needed to learn decorative painting. I had a natural gift for seeing colors and patterns and excelled in decorative painting until I became the top decorative painter on the strip. I was Steve Wynn’s personal artisan and to this day have artwork in almost every casino on the strip.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My services include theming (designing finishes to make Caesars look Roman/ designing finishes to make the Venetian look like it could be in Venice), faux painting (Painting a variety of different mediums to look like something else/ painting plaster to look like marble or wood or something completely custom), custom decorative finishes to enhance the beauty of any space both commercial (casinos) and residential homes.

I have travelled the world painting the homes of some of the wealthiest people and with international commercial properties.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

Quality and word of mouth have been key in growing my clientele. I’m one of the best in my trade and many designers and past clients refer me.

Have you ever had to pivot?

In 2008 after the market crash I pivoted from commercial to high end residential because only the wealthy were still designing and customizing their homes while the casinos were all greatly affected.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://faux.com/
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/barth.white.1/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barthwhite
• Other: My newest venture is custom pet products for small dogs: https://petlounge.shop/

Image Credits
First image (profile photo) Photographer Credit: Alexandra Sczudlo All other images I’ve taken