Scenic Art Studios

What Scenic Art Studios does

Scenic Art Studios, Inc. is a privately held, B2B professional services firm specializing in theatrical scenic painting for Broadway and live-performance productions. Founded in 1994 by master scenic artist Joseph Forbes (Tony Honors recipient, 2019) and headquartered at 511 Route 17K in Walden, New York, the company creates hand-painted backdrops (up to 200' x 80'), carved sculptures, murals, built scenery, and architectural/decorative treatments for Broadway shows, ballet and dance companies (New York City Ballet, Miami City Ballet, Joffrey, Alvin Ailey, The Australian Ballet), film and television productions, theme parks, and select residential and commercial clients. The company self-reports 450+ Broadway production credits, upwards of fifty scenic artists deployed across five locations on a given day, and a staff roster of predominantly United Scenic Artists Local 829 members.

The studio's underlying technology is traditional scenic craft rather than digital tooling: sophisticated color layering and glazing techniques inspired by oil painting traditions, indirect color application, and the ability to translate delicate paintings and designer artwork onto challenging theatrical materials such as sharks tooth muslin at epic scale. Differentiation rests on domain specialization (decades of innovations that became industry standards), scale reliability (200' x 80' hand-painted backdrops), and content library (an extensive portfolio across Broadway, ballet, film/TV, and specialty venues).

The business model is professional services revenue generated through project-based contracts with production companies, scenic designers, and theatrical producers, with pricing determined by scope, scale, and complexity and no public pricing available. The go-to-market motion is enterprise field sales — primarily reputation-, portfolio-, and relationship-driven, supplemented by website portfolio marketing, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube content, and earned media in trade publications such as Playbill and Broadway World. Studio tours are offered by appointment to prospective clients. Beyond the core studio, the founder separately established the non-profit Studio and Forum of Scenic Arts in 2004 to train the next generation of scenic painters, and teaches scene painting at SUNY Purchase College.

Name

Scenic Art Studios

Legal name

Scenic Art Studios, Inc.

Website

https://scenicartstudios.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Scenic Art Studios is a privately held, B2B scenic painting firm in Walden, NY, founded in 1994 by Tony Honors recipient Joseph Forbes. It creates hand-painted backdrops, sculptures, and built scenery for Broadway, ballet, dance, film/TV, and specialty venue clients, with 450+ Broadway credits.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Theatrical Scenic Painting Services

NAICS

Other Performing Arts Companies (711190)

SIC

Services-Allied To Motion Picture Production (7819), Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Scenic Fabrication & Set/Stage Carpentry (MPAGAKAG)

Keywords

• Scenic painting services
• Theatrical backdrop painting
• Scenic art studio
• Broadway scenery production
• Custom mural painting

Headquarters

HQ city

Newburgh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Scenic Painting Services: Professional scenic painting services for theatrical productions including Broadway shows, ballet/dance performances, film, television, and specialty venues. Services include creating backdrops, sculptures, built scenery, and architectural/decorative treatments. Revenue is generated through project-based contracts with production companies and scenic designers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Scenic Art Studios is a B2B professional scenic painting studio that hand-paints large-scale theatrical backdrops (up to 200' x 80'), sculptures, carved built scenery, murals, and architectural/decorative treatments for Broadway productions, ballet and dance companies, film, television, and specialty venues. The studio employs upwards of fifty scenic artists across five locations and works under project-based contracts with scenic designers and production companies, combining traditional oil-painting-inspired techniques with innovative scenic artistry.

Product overview

Scenic Art Studios operates as a single unified scenic painting studio offering theatrical scenic artistry services. The company specializes in creating hand-painted backdrops, sculptures, and built scenery for Broadway productions, with additional services including architectural/decorative treatments and on-site work calls. Founded in 1994, the studio also includes an affiliated not-for-profit educational institution, the Studio and Forum of Scenic Arts, which teaches scene painting skills to future generations. The core offering is their theatrical scenic painting service, supported by their team of professional scenic artists who work with designers and creatives to bring theatrical visions to life.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Theatrical Scenic Painting Services Hand-painted backdrops (up to 200' x 80'), sculptures, and built scenery for Broadway and theatrical productions, created using traditional and innovative scenic painting techniques including color layering and glazing inspired by oil painting traditions.
• Architectural/Decorative Treatments Decorative painting and finishing services for architectural spaces and specialty venues beyond theatrical productions, including custom murals for residential and commercial clients.
• On-Site Work Services Customizable crews that handle on-site work calls including carving, murals, and other scenic finishing work at production locations, providing painters on-site at venues for installation and touch-up work.

Quantifiable outcome

• 450+ Broadway productions painted since founding in 1994
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers21 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Kanai Scene Shop (Tokyo)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 April 2021Tokyo-based Kanai Scene Shop sends artists annually for workshops held at Scenic Art Studios. Students receive both group and one-on-one instruction from SAS instructors Jane Snow and Joseph Forbes, training with professional American Scenic Artists. Reciprocal exchange of scenic painting knowledge between US and Japan.
• The Studio and Forum of Scenic ArtscoreOthers · 1 January 2004Not-for-profit school founded by Joseph Forbes in 2004 to teach skills of scene painting used for generations while incorporating new materials and techniques. Many students have gone on to outstanding careers in scenic design. The school represents SAS's educational mission and industry leadership.
• SUNY Purchase CollegeminorOthersJoseph Forbes teaches Scene Painting and Rendering at SUNY Purchase College in Purchase, New York, sharing industry expertise with the next generation of theatre professionals.
• UnshatteredminorOthersSocial enterprise organization that offers handbags and accessories made from repurposed materials. SAS donates backdrops and sample pieces no longer in use to this organization, which employs women in recovery from addiction.
• William Green & Associates ArchitectureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAS was commissioned by William Green & Associates Architecture to create a custom floral mural for a residential client in New York City, demonstrating expansion into architectural/decorative treatments.
• Southern Arkansas UniversityminorOthersUniversity theatre program students visited Scenic Art Studios for experiential learning. SAU's Dean of Liberal & Performing Arts noted visiting 'the best in the industry' for their students, including one student attending graduate school for scenic painting.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• TAIT (TAIT Towers): TAIT is a global leader in live event staging, scenic automation, and experience engineering for concerts, theater, and themed attractions. While TAIT's core is engineered staging and automation rather than hand painting, it competes with SAS on large-scale theatrical and themed scenic contracts.
• PRG (Production Resource Group): PRG is one of the largest global providers of entertainment and event production solutions, including scenic fabrication, staging, and scenic automation for Broadway, concerts, and corporate events. Compared to SAS, PRG operates at far greater scale and breadth, but its scenic fabrication arm overlaps directly with SAS's theatrical scenic painting work.
• 4Wall Entertainment: 4Wall is a large national provider of entertainment lighting, rigging, and scenic solutions serving Broadway, concerts, and corporate events. While broader than SAS, 4Wall's scenic and event-production services overlap with SAS's theatrical and themed scenic work.

Direct peers

• Brilliant City Scenic Studios: Brilliant City is a Brooklyn-based scenic fabrication and painting studio serving Broadway, dance, film, and themed entertainment. It competes with SAS for scenic painting and built-scenery contracts in the same NYC talent pool.
• Hudson Scenic Studio: Hudson Scenic is a long-standing NYC-area scenic fabrication shop producing built scenery, painted drops, and custom scenic elements for Broadway, opera, and themed entertainment. It is the most direct like-for-like competitor to SAS in the Broadway scenic painting and fabrication niche.
• Fisher Technical Services: Fisher Dachs Associates / Fisher Technical Services is a major scenic and theatrical engineering firm designing and fabricating scenery for Broadway, opera, and touring productions. It overlaps with SAS on end-to-end scenic delivery, including painted elements.
• Nolan's Scenery (historic): Nolan's was the NYC scenic shop where SAS founder Joseph Forbes worked before founding SAS in 1994, painting Broadway productions including Annie, Cats, A Chorus Line, and Evita. It represents the heritage peer against which SAS's growth is benchmarked.
• Showmotion Inc. Showmotion is a motion-control and scenic equipment provider that frequently co-delivers Broadway scenic installations alongside SAS (e.g., King Lear). It overlaps with SAS on integrated scenic and rigging delivery for theatrical productions.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCG-29BBz8LkOKpcXRY-PwHg
• Facebookfacebook.com/ScenicArtStudios/?ref=br_tf
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/in/joseph-forbes-37729919
• Instagraminstagram.com/scenicartstudios
• Xx.com/scenicartstudio

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

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 Scenic Art Studios