Finished like a set piece. Built around your object.
Display cases, vitrines, plinths and preview platforms for museums, auction houses, studios and brands. Drawn to your object list by a shop with Imagineering, Marvel and Lucasfilm pedigree.
Built in our LA shops and finished by our scenic studio: painted, veneered, gilded or aged. Crated and delivered by your date.
Who we build for
Film museums, studio archives & touring shows
Costume, prop and model cases, plus plinths and decks for every rotation.
Case types →Auction houses & galleries
Preview sets and plinths, re-skinned and reused sale to sale.
Rapid turnaround →Museums & exhibit firms
Plinths, decks and ventilated cases built to your drawings and case schedule.
Drawings & submittals →Luxury retail & hospitality
Heritage cases for flagships, VIP rooms, lobbies and bars.
Heritage cases →Rapid turnaround
Under a week
Painted plinths, pedestals, platforms and risers, delivered finished in under a week. We cut, build and paint under one roof in LA, so a tight preview, opening or press date doesn't wait on freight.
Plinths, pedestals, platforms and risers painted to your show color
Cut, built and finished in our own shops
Delivered finished, ready for your crew on site
Cases run on a schedule we set together
What we build
Display cases & vitrines
Wood, acrylic and metal, sized and lit to the piece.
1 Light channel in the cap, dimmable
2 Acrylic glazing, standard to Optium Museum
3 Mount made for the object
4 Deck in fabric, veneer or gilding
5 Locked access panel
6 Leveling feet behind a toe reveal
Options: lift-off hood, hinged or sliding door. Tabletop, pedestal or tower height. Freestanding or wall-hung. Storage drawer in the base.
Plinths & pedestals
Painted, veneered or gilded, drawn to object weights.
1 Top sized to the object
2 Painted, veneered or gilded
3 Ballast chamber for top-heavy pieces
4 Shadow-gap base
Options: square, rectangular, round, stepped or shaped tops at any height. Leveling feet or casters. A matching acrylic cover to turn it into a case later.
Gallery & auction platforms
Platforms and risers on preview timelines, painted to your show color and ready in under a week.
1 Painted to your show color
2 Bolts together from underneath, no hardware showing
3 Splits to fit the freight elevator and the van
4 Floor-safe feet
Options: single or stepped levels, in the same shapes as our plinths plus L, U and curved runs. Painted, fabric-wrapped or veneered tops. Edge trim or a shadow reveal. Built to be re-skinned for the next show.
Prop & costume cases
Tall lit cases for FYC events, premieres, archives and showrooms.
1 Lit crown, dimmable
2 Form or armature built to the piece
3 Acrylic on three or four sides
4 Label and graphics rail
Options: three- or four-sided acrylic. Dress form, mannequin or armature built in. Crown or base lighting. A powered lift for reveals.
Ways to work with us
Most of our cases are custom: your object, your room, your finish. At the top end, we invent. A modular display wall, cases that float in midair, a chandelier of vitrines. Whatever you're picturing, we'll engineer it and make it real.
One-off commission
A case, plinth or set drawn and built around your object.
Preview sets
A reusable kit re-skinned for each sale, from film and sports to design.
Rotation retainer
Plinths, decks, bases and refinishing for every changeover, on a standing schedule.
Refurbish and repaint
Scheduled sweeps that bring scuffed plinths and cases back to show-ready.
Paid mock-up
A full-size sample to approve before a program is built.
Invented
Structures and mechanisms that haven't been built before, prototyped and proven in our shop before anything leaves. The spec guide shows how a custom build runs.
Signature
The finish most case makers can't offer. Our scenic studio gilds, letters and ages the bases, fronts and friezes, so the case reads as part of the story.
Verre églomisé
Gilded and painted reverse-glass panels set into bases, fronts and friezes.
Glue-chip glass
Frost-patterned glass, clear or gilded, for heritage fronts.
Gold leaf lettering
Titles, numbers and marks lettered by hand.
Gilded and aged bases
Gold-leafed, patinated or faux-finished bases and frames that look like they've always been there.
What you can choose
Glazing, light, finish, mounts, security and motion. Make them with us, or send the object list and we'll spec it for you. Our spec guide covers cases, plinths, pedestals, platforms and custom builds, with a worksheet to send back with your list.
A patinated finish on a cylindrical plinth.
Walnut veneer with lit shelves, ready to crate.
Aged and rusted paint finishes, by hand.
01 Glazing
All acrylic: standard for short runs, UV-filtering for fabric and print, Optium Museum Acrylic for hero pieces and camera work.
02 Lighting
Linear LED, pin spots, uplight and lightboxes, built in, dimmable and matched to the room.
03 Finish
Laminate, color-core, paint in any color and sheen, wood veneer, faux finishes and gilding, sampled before we build.
04 Mounts & risers
Mounts made for each object, risers and decks, and ballast that keeps tall pieces steady.
05 Security & access
Set screws, keyed locks or hidden magnetic latches, matched to a staffed preview, a lobby or a public floor.
06 Motion
Actuated hoods, lifts, turntables and tracks, built into the base for reveals and heavy hoods.
How it works
01
Send the list
Sizes, weights and photos, or a floor plan. We reply within 24 hours and send an approach memo within 72.
02
Drawings & sample
Shop drawings, a finish sample and a materials list, signed off before we build. Paid mock-ups for museum and studio programs.
03
Built in LA
Cut, built and finished in our shops, so revisions don't wait on freight.
04
Crated & delivered
Labeled by object and delivered finished. Your preparators place the work, or we bring an art-handling partner.
Assembly in our East LA shop.
Solid oak profiles, routed in house.
Carved walnut, before finishing.
What to send
Object list with sizes and weights
Any pieces with lender or handling requirements
Glazing, light, finish and access, if you know them
Deadline, venue and who places the work
Whether the crates come back for reuse
For museums, universities and public buyers
Purchase orders accepted, Net 30 after delivery
Shop drawings, finish samples and a materials list for submittals
Paid mock-ups before a full program
Send the pieces, the room and the date. We'll come back with options, priced side by side.
The case and what goes in it
