Foundry Michelangelo

What Foundry Michelangelo does

Foundry Michelangelo, doing business as Treasure Investments Corporation, is a privately held fine art company headquartered in Battle Ground, Washington that designs, casts, and distributes limited-edition sculptures in bronze, .999 fine silver, and .9999 fine gold using a proprietary 12-step lost wax casting process. The company's central asset is a master mold collection of approximately 2,000 originals representing more than 230 artists, with sources including the Vatican, Villa Borghese Museum in Rome, the Uffizi, the Louvre, the Archaeological Museum of Naples, and the Chiurazzi Foundry (Naples, Italy) — independently appraised at more than $900 million and more than 35 years in the making. Foundry Michelangelo holds exclusive rights to produce posthumous first-edition originals limited to editions of nine per the original, including Michelangelo's David (#1/1), Bernini's Ratto di Proserpina, the Laocoon Group, and 50 commissioned grandmaster works by the Ghiglieri family (Lorenzo E. Ghiglieri and Laran R. Ghiglieri).

The company operates four revenue streams: limited-edition sculpture sales priced individually (from thousands to $7.5M for a single gold edition); a charity auction program running since 1998 that places bronze castings and Americana currency/scripophily into nonprofit galas with 50% of the final sales price returned to the nonprofit; an art leasing division launching Q3 2025 offering 1-5 year term monthly leases with insurance, delivery, and display stands; and gallery channel sales via a distribution agreement with American Design LTD across 9 galleries in Aspen, Vail, Beavercreek, Santa Fe, and Denver. Manufacturing runs through the wholly owned Bend Bronze foundry in Sandy, Oregon (acquired October 2017, capable of castings over 50 feet) and sculpting facilities at Lorenzo Ghiglieri's 80-acre Aurora, Oregon estate. Customer segments include high-net-worth collectors (cited collectors include Al Gore, Tiger Woods, Ross Perot, Pope John Paul II, and King Juan Carlos of Spain), nonprofit organizations, businesses leasing art, fine art galleries, alternative-investment collectors buying precious-metal pieces, and monument commission clients (e.g., Boyne USA for the Gatlinburg SkyLift, Oregon Coast Aquarium for Megalodon jaws).

The business is founder-led by Mark Russo (Founder, Chairman, and CEO) and Casey Powell (President and CEO), with 11-50 employees, a museum (Museo Michelangelo) opened in November 2022, and disclosed revenue growing from $391,650 in 2017 to $2.4 million in 2020. The company completed its first round of equity finance ($1M) in 2017 and announced preparation for an IPO in 2018 but has not completed a public listing.

Name

Foundry Michelangelo

Legal name

Treasure Investments Corporation

Website

https://foundrymichelangelo.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Foundry Michelangelo (Treasure Investments Corporation) is a private fine art company that designs, casts, and distributes limited-edition bronze, silver, and gold sculptures using traditional lost wax casting. It serves high-net-worth collectors, nonprofit charity auctions, businesses, and galleries via direct sales, a 9-gallery channel partnership, and a forthcoming art leasing program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Fine Art Sculpture Foundry

NAICS

Jewelry and Silverware Manufacturing (339910), Jewelry and Silverware Manufacturing (33991)

SIC

Jewelry, Precious Metal (3911), Jewelry, Silverware & Plated Ware (3910)

akta.pro primary industry

Fine Jewelry Manufacturing & Atelier Production (CRAKAAAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Fine Jewelry Manufacturing (Precious Metals & Gem-Set) (CRAKAIAA)

Keywords

• Fine art sculptures
• Bronze casting foundry
• Lost wax casting
• Fine art leasing
• Charity auction art

Headquarters

HQ city

Battle Ground

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Sculpture Sales (Bronze, Silver, Gold): One-time direct sales of limited-edition bronze, .999 pure silver, and .9999 fine gold sculptures via own e-commerce storefront, galleries, and direct sales. Edition sizes range from 30 to 500.
2. Charity Auction Program: Places high-end limited-edition bronze sculptures into nonprofit galas and charity fundraising events. 50% of the final sales price goes to the nonprofit with no strings attached, with the company retaining the other 50%. First piece sold for $63,000; model has generated tens of millions of dollars in revenue for nonprofits.
3. Art Leasing Division: New recurring-revenue leasing program (announced Oct 2017, targeted launch Q3 2025) offering 1–5 year term leases on a monthly basis; includes insurance, delivery, display stands, and rotation options. Lease payments are business-expense deductible.
4. Gallery Channel Sales: Sales through premier fine art galleries including American Design LTD's 9 galleries in Aspen, Vail, Beavercreek, Santa Fe, and Denver.
5. Americana Currency & Scripophily Auctions: Released Americana currency collections (2–10 framed uncirculated US Treasury banknotes) and scripophily (historical stock certificates) for donation through the charity auction business model. Approximately 1,000 framed pieces planned.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion4 records

Core offering

Foundry Michelangelo designs, casts, and distributes limited-edition fine art sculptures in bronze, .999 fine silver, and .9999 fine gold using a 12-step lost wax casting process, drawing on a master mold collection of approximately 2,000 originals spanning more than 230 artists including works originating from the Vatican, Villa Borghese, the Uffizi, the Louvre, and the Chiurazzi Foundry in Naples. Beyond direct sculpture sales, the company runs a charity auction program that donates 50% of final sales prices to nonprofits, a forthcoming art leasing subscription division, the Museo Michelangelo Italian Renaissance museum and event center, custom monument commissions, and an Americana currency and scripophily collection for charity auctions.

Product overview

Foundry Michelangelo (doing business as Treasure Investments Corporation) is a profitable fine art company that operates an integrated fine art platform spanning bronze, silver, and gold sculpture creation, distribution, and leasing. The core offering, the Foundry Michelangelo Sculpture Collections, encompasses eight themed sub-collections (Gold & Silver Sculptures, Monuments, Patriotic, Western, Wildlife, Eagles, Harlequins, and Fantasy) supported by the company's Master Mold Collection of over 2,000 molds and its 12-step Foundry Process (lost wax casting). The platform extends into multiple business divisions: the Charity Auction Program (active since 1998) distributing pieces through nonprofit fundraising; the Art Leasing Division (launching Q3 2025) for business and collector leasing; the newly launched Museo Michelangelo museum and event center; the acquired Bend Bronze Foundry casting operation; and the Americana Currency Collections & Scripophily auction product. Individual flagship sculptures such as Stage Coach Gold, the Laocoon Group, the Ratto di Proserpina, and The American Patriot anchor the catalog, while commissioned works like the Legacy Sculpture Collection by the Ghiglieri family and special pieces such as the Battle of the Centaurs in pure silver and the Pietà (the world's largest pure silver sculpture) drive ongoing product launches.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Museo Michelangelo: Italian Renaissance museum and event center located in Battle Ground, WA, displaying a spectacular collection of Renaissance and classical sculptures by the greatest artists in history.

Products and services

• Foundry Michelangelo Sculpture Collections Multi-category fine art sculpture catalog including Gold & Silver Sculptures, Monuments, Patriotic, Western, Wildlife, Eagles, Harlequins, and Fantasy collections, available in bronze, pure silver, and solid gold castings, sold to collectors, galleries, and at charity auctions.
• Foundry Process (Lost Wax Casting Service) 12-step lost wax bronze casting process — from original sculpture (clay/plastiline) through rubber mold, wax casting, spruing, investing, burn-out, casting at 2,100°F (bronze alloy of 85% copper and 15% nickel/zinc/tin), breakout, sand blasting, finishing, and patina application — producing museum-quality bronze castings for internal use and external casting clients.
• Charity Auction Program Philanthropy-focused business division providing fine art bronze castings (and Americana currency/scripophily) for nonprofit gala fundraising events since 1998, with 50% of the final sales price given to the nonprofit no strings attached; has generated tens of millions of dollars in revenue for nonprofits.
• Americana Currency Collections & Scripophily Limited-edition framed collections of uncirculated late-1800s to early-1900s US Treasury bank notes and historical stock certificates, created for the charity auction program (sufficient inventory to build approximately 1,000 framed pieces).
• Precious Metal Casting Service (.999 Silver / .9999 Gold) Casting service for sculpture images in .999 fine silver and .9999 fine gold, including landmark Bull and Bear, American Patriot eagle, and Stage Coach Gold pieces.
• Art Leasing Division Leasing program launching Q3 2025 offering fine art bronze sculpture collections for businesses on 1-5 year term leases with monthly payments, insurance, delivery, and display stands included, with optional lease-to-own and rotation of pieces; lease payments are business-expense deductible.
• Stage Coach Gold Sculpture Historically accurate 1860 Concord stage coach bronze sculpture by Laran R. Ghiglieri, cast in the lost wax process with over 3,000 individual parts, available in bronze edition of 350 at $38,500, 35 in pure .999 fine silver at $175,000, and 1 in pure .9999 gold at $7.5 million.
• Laocoon Group Masterpiece Life-size (7' x 8') posthumous first-edition original bronze casting of the Laocoon Group (42-20 BCE), priced at $2.5 million per bronze cast (4 remaining) and $10 million for the 25,000-ounce .999 pure silver version (1), available for lease or purchase.
• Ratto di Proserpina (Bernini) Masterpiece Posthumous first-edition original from the Chiurazzi mold collection depicting Bernini's 1621 Baroque masterpiece, available for lease or purchase.
• The American Patriot (Lorenzo Ghiglieri) 46" tall bronze sculpture of a bald eagle landing on Article One of the U.S. Constitution, originally commissioned in 2006 and redesigned in February 2019; also produced in pure silver and chrome editions.
• Guardian Sculpture Bronze sculpture by Bill Toma weighing 120 lbs, dimensions 21 x 19 x 38 inches, in a limited edition of 30.
• Dragonscape Sculpture Fantasy-category bronze sculpture with dimensions 18 x 85 inches, available via the Foundry Michelangelo e-commerce storefront.
• Battleground Sculpture Fantasy-category bronze sculpture weighing 55 lbs, dimensions 14 x 16 x 32 inches, in a limited edition of 45, available via the Foundry Michelangelo e-commerce storefront.
• Battle Cry Sculpture Fantasy-category bronze sculpture in a limited edition of 75, available via the Foundry Michelangelo e-commerce storefront.
• Next (Small) Sculpture Fantasy-category bronze sculpture weighing 21 lbs, dimensions 11 x 5 x 11 inches, in an edition of 500, available via the Foundry Michelangelo e-commerce storefront.
• Proper Study of Mankind Sculpture Fantasy-category bronze sculpture weighing 48 lbs, dimensions 11 x 17 x 23 inches, available via the Foundry Michelangelo e-commerce storefront.
• Dragon Keep Sculpture Fantasy-category bronze sculpture weighing 61 lbs, dimensions 15 x 20 x 31.5 inches, available via the Foundry Michelangelo e-commerce storefront.
• Legacy Sculpture Collection (50 Ghiglieri Grandmaster Works) Commissioned collection of 50 grandmaster sculptures by Lorenzo E. Ghiglieri and Laran R. Ghiglieri, ranging from life-size eagles over 8 feet to small desktop pieces approximately 24 inches, cast in bronze and pure silver using the lost wax process, with limited editions between 50 and 350.
• Megalodon Jaws and Teeth Commission Custom commissioned life-size Megalodon jaws and teeth sets, currently being created for the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport, Oregon.
• Gatlinburg SkyLift Heroic Monument Heroic monument commissioned by Boyne, USA for the Gatlinburg SkyLift attraction in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.
• Museo Michelangelo (Italian Renaissance Museum & Event Center) Italian Renaissance museum and event center opened in Battle Ground, WA in November 2022, displaying a spectacular collection of Renaissance and classical sculptures by the greatest artists in history.
• Pietà in Pure Silver (World's Largest Pure Silver Sculpture) The Pietà cast in pure silver, unveiled by Mark Russo as the world's largest pure silver sculpture ever created.
• Battle of the Centaurs in Pure Silver Michelangelo's original sculpture 'Battle of the Centaurs' cast in pure silver, unveiled by Mark Russo.
• Michelangelo's David #1/1 (Exclusive Production) Exclusive rights to cast #1/1 of Michelangelo's David — the only #1/1 cast ever — announced by Mark Russo as the most valuable art piece in human history.

Named customers6 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature5 records

Scale indicators12 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Others

• Artnet: Online art marketplace and pricing database; adjacent to Foundry Michelangelo as an infrastructure and price-discovery platform relevant to the same gallery/collector ecosystem, though not a direct competitor.
• Masterworks: Art investment platform that securitizes shares of blue-chip artworks; adjacent to Foundry Michelangelo because it competes for the same HNW alternative-investor capital pursuing art-linked returns, though via fractional shares rather than physical sculpture.

Direct peers

• Walla Walla Foundry: Well-known U.S. fine art bronze foundry using lost-wax casting for limited-edition sculpture; comparable to Foundry Michelangelo as a competing production partner for high-end sculptors selling limited-edition bronze works.
• Polich Tallix Fine Art Foundry: Fine art foundry specializing in bronze casting and patina services for contemporary sculptors; closely comparable to Foundry Michelangelo in serving the same limited-edition sculpture market with traditional lost-wax techniques.
• Modern Art Foundry: Long-standing U.S. art bronze foundry offering mold-making, casting, and finishing services; comparable as a competing fine art foundry serving the same sculptor and gallery customer base.
• American Bronze Foundry: Art bronze foundry offering lost-wax casting services to sculptors and collectors; comparable as a competing specialty foundry serving the same limited-edition fine art sculpture segment.
• Johnson Atelier Technical Institute of Sculpture: Fine art foundry and sculpture fabrication facility producing monumental bronze works; comparable to Foundry Michelangelo/Bend Bronze in scale, lost-wax process expertise, and monumental casting capability.
• Paul Zueger / American Design LTD: Premier fine art gallery operator with 9 locations in Aspen, Vail, Beavercreek, Santa Fe, and Denver displaying Foundry Michelangelo pieces; comparable as a fine art gallery channel overlapping on the same high-end bronze sculpture inventory.

Broad incumbents

• Christie's: Global auction house handling fine art and decorative objects; comparable as an incumbent channel for HNW art collectors whose bidding activity sets the price-discovery backdrop for Foundry Michelangelo's limited editions.
• Sotheby's: Global auction house and fine art marketplace dealing in high-end sculpture and precious-metal works; comparable as a broad incumbent competing for the same HNW collector dollars across categories, though not a specialized bronze foundry.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/foundrymichela1
• Facebookfacebook.com/FoundryMichelangelo
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/foundry-michelangelo

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Foundry Michelangelo