Set Director

Heritage Auctions•Beverly Hills, CA

12h•Onsite

About The Position

Heritage Auctions is seeking a full-time Set Director who can do two things exceptionally well: create the vision for immersive auction preview environments and then physically bring that vision to life. This role is ideal for an accomplished set decorator, art director, or physical production designer who can combine creative concepting with hands-on, cost-effective execution across our galleries, trade shows, pop-ups, and special events worldwide. The right candidate will transform exceptional offerings in entertainment, popular culture, music, historical, Sports and related categories into compelling physical settings that help clients see, understand, and connect with the items on display.

Requirements

Significant experience in set decoration, art direction, production design, experiential design, visual merchandising, museum/exhibition design, live events, or a comparable physical design production role.
Portfolio showing immersive environments, set builds, gallery displays, themed installations, or production design work.
Strong creative taste, spatial awareness, and visual storytelling ability paired with practical fluency in materials, fabrication, rentals, props, vendors, budgets, schedules, and installation logistics.
Ability to work hands-on, solve problems quickly, and collaborate across internal teams, contractors, vendors, installers, and specialists.
Highly organized, calm under pressure, and able to manage multiple installations, deadlines, and evolving priorities.
Willingness and ability to travel frequently to Heritage offices, galleries, trade shows, pop-ups, and events worldwide.
Proficient in Microsoft Excel, including data organization, reporting, and spreadsheet management.

Nice To Haves

Background in film, television, theater, live events, retail environments, museums, brand activations, luxury exhibitions, or traveling installations.
Passion for entertainment, sports, music, popular culture, collectibles, history, design, and the stories behind extraordinary objects.
Comfort working around high-value, fragile, rare, or historically significant material.

Responsibilities

Own both the creative vision and the practical build of large-scale set designs, gallery installations, and experiential displays for auction previews, exhibitions, trade shows, pop-ups, and client events.
Translate auction themes, marquee consignments, and brand priorities into environments that feel elevated, immersive, and commercially effective.
Source, rent, purchase, fabricate, repurpose, install, and dress furnishings, props, scenic materials, lighting accents, graphics, and other display elements.
Work quickly and cost effectively while managing budgets, timelines, logistics, object safety, traffic flow, and installation constraints.
Collaborate with specialists, marketing, events, operations, photography, facilities, shipping, and executives to ensure each installation supports the auction strategy.
Prepare practical production plans, including mood boards, sourcing lists, schedules, vendor coordination, install plans, and strike plans.
Lead on-site installation, dressing, troubleshooting, maintenance, and breakdown, including hands-on building, styling, and problem solving when needed.
Coordinate preview and trade show logistics, including calendar scheduling, vendor and freight scheduling, and day-by-day setup and timelines to ensure an efficient, on-track installation and tear-down.