‘There’s a possibility of maybe getting new work and helping people out, too, with a restoration.’

Eugene Orlandini is a third-generation craftsman at Orlandini Studios, an ornamental plasterwork and restoration business in Milwaukee. It was first established by his grandfather, Matthew Orlandini, in 1936. The company is now co-owned by Eugene and his brother, Irvin Orlandini. Eugene was brought up in the plasterwork world, following the steps of his uncle, Julian Orlandini, since he was 13.

Llani Froeber: What would you say your role is here at Orlandini Studios?

Eugene Orlandini: I kind of do a little bit of everything. From drafting to paperwork to doing removal of plaster and making molds and making new pieces, installations. I work with my younger brother too, so we both work on the different aspects of it and kind of both do a little bit of everything.

Llani Froeber: Do you have a favorite piece that you personally or the business overall has created?

Eugene Orlandini: That’s like one of the hardest questions. It’s like asking what your favorite song is. I mean, there’s a lot of projects that I’ve been pretty happy to have been part of, one of which was the Avalon Theater because I used to go there when I was younger. I would ask, “Hey, do you want to fix this?” The owner never wanted to spend the money. So, then it closed down for a number of years, and when I heard there was an auction, I put my foot in the door, and they called me back. I ended up doing a lot of restoration there; it was really satisfying to put the place back together.

Llani Froeber: What do you think the importance of days and events like Doors Open Milwaukee are for your business?

Eugene Orlandini: I think it exposes us to people that maybe have never heard of us before. There’s a lot of people that will come in and say, “Oh, I’ve been past the building and I always thought it was some sort of photo studio or a dance studio,” because of the slanted windows, but then it exposes us to people that haven’t heard of us, and there’s a possibility of maybe getting new work and helping people out, too, with a restoration.

Llani Froeber: Do you sell individual work for those who just pop in?

Eugene Orlandini: Yeah, a lot of pieces that are hanging on the wall are for sale. Some of them have price tags and some don’t, but we can also do custom pieces.

Llani Froeber: This is a family-owned business, and I was wondering how that might effect or change the relationships between you and your co-workers?

Eugene Orlandini: When I first started working here, I was 13 years old, and my uncle offered me a summer job. The guys that worked here always gave me a hard time. I learned a lot from them, too, but it was funny. Everyone was like, “Oh, you’re working for your uncle, it must be easy peasy.” Like, no, I get torn apart every day by this one guy, Tom, but you know, it gave me a thicker skin when I was younger and he taught me a lot of different things with plaster, too, that he knew.