Set and Exhibit Designers

Summary

What Set and Exhibit Designers Do About this section

Set and exhibit designers prepare drawings by hand or using CAD programs.

Set and exhibit designers develop visual and tactile spaces for entertainment productions or for a variety of displays. Set designers work on movies, television, theater, and other productions. Exhibit designers create spaces to showcase products, art, artifacts, or other displays.

Duties

Set and exhibit designers typically do the following:

• Evaluate scripts or objects to be exhibited
• Collaborate with directors, curators, and others about intended audience in order to determine specific design features
• Design sets or exhibit spaces to tell a story based on factors such as narrative, budget, and location
• Prepare drawings by hand or using computer aided design (CAD) programs of proposed sets or exhibits
• Prepare budgets for all necessary sets or exhibits
• Coordinate with the design team and others to create sets or exhibits that include objects, graphics, and media

Set and exhibit designers create spaces that communicate a message to an audience. They may analyze scripts or other research documents to determine how these spaces can best support a story or theme.

In film, theater, and television, set or scenic designers communicate the author’s or director’s ideas to the audience through the look and feel of scenery, furniture, and props. They consider the scene’s historical period, time of day, season, and other aspects of the story.

Exhibit designers take into account the lighting, size of the space, message, and other qualities of a display. For interactive exhibits, they integrate multimedia effects, such as video and sound, into the space to create a multidimensional experience.

Set and exhibit designers may work on traveling shows and displays, such as concert tours and museum exhibits. These sets must be easily erected and dismantled for transport to new venues and must be flexible to accommodate performing or exhibit spaces of different sizes.

Set and exhibit designers may specialize in designing for a particular purpose. For example, set designers for performing arts companies develop stage sets for live shows, while those who work in television or movies design sets for live or recorded programs, in-studio broadcasts, or motion pictures. Exhibit designers may focus on a specific type of museum display, such as artifacts, or on trade shows or conventions to demonstrate products.  

Work Environment About this section

Set and exhibit designers may need to take precautions when handling some items, such as artwork.

Set and exhibit designers held about 29,600 jobs in 2023. The largest employers of set and exhibit designers were as follows:

Set and exhibit designers may move from one short-term, full-time job to another, working for a series of employers rather than only one. They may be hired on a per-project or contract basis. Some designers, such as those who work on traveling shows or exhibits, need to travel as part of the job. They may be away from home for weeks or months, depending on the project.

Their work may be stressful at times. For example, they may face deadline pressure while incorporating late changes into the final design or completing a project before the scheduled opening.

Work Schedules

Most set and exhibit designers work full time. They may work evenings or weekends, such as when overseeing the installation of a set or exhibit.

How to Become a Set or Exhibit Designer About this section

Set and exhibit designers need interpersonal skills to collaborate effectively with others.

Set and exhibit designers typically need a bachelor’s degree in theater design, exhibit design, or a related field. Some employers prefer to hire candidates who have a master’s degree.

Education

Set and exhibit designers typically have a bachelor’s degree, but their field of degree varies. Common courses of study include theater design and exhibit design, fine and performing arts, interior design, and architecture. Employers sometimes prefer to hire candidates who have a master’s degree or allow a master’s degree to substitute for desired experience.

Academic programs may train students to research the history, period, and story of a production. They also provide technical instruction in subjects such as reading architectural plans and using computer-aided design (CAD) programs. Other relevant courses include drawing, painting, model building, and hand drafting.

Other Experience

Employers may seek candidates who have work experience in a creative discipline, such as art or design. Students often have an opportunity to build a portfolio—a collection of completed designs that demonstrates artistic style and ability—while they are still in school. Their portfolio may include examples from classroom projects, internships, or other experiences.

Important Qualities

Computer skills. Set and exhibit designers do much of their creative work on computers with specialty design software, such as CAD programs.

Creativity. Set and exhibit designers must be able to interpret scripts and use their artistic abilities to conceive a set or exhibit that will help tell a story. 

Interpersonal skills. Set and exhibit designers must be able to collaborate effectively with directors, curators, craftspeople, and others involved in developing sets or exhibits.

Organizational skills. Set and exhibit designers need to keep track of multiple tasks and deadlines related to the design projects they coordinate.

Problem-solving skills. Set and exhibit designers must find ways to carry out an artistic vision for a set or exhibit while ensuring that the finished version can be constructed on time and within budget.

Pay About this section

The median annual wage for set and exhibit designers was $59,490 in May 2023. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $32,240, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $113,740.

In May 2023, the median annual wages for set and exhibit designers in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:

Most set and exhibit designers work full time. They may work evenings or weekends, such as when overseeing the installation of a set or exhibit.

Job Outlook About this section

Employment of set and exhibit designers is projected to grow 5 percent from 2023 to 2033, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

About 2,400 openings for set and exhibit designers are projected each year, on average, over the decade. Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.

Employment

Projected employment increases will be driven by growth in live-action film and television. Set designers are required in the entertainment industry for a variety of projects, such as developing the scenery for a live-action movie or re-creating the landscape for a historical play. Most set and exhibit designers are self-employed as freelancers and are contracted by theater companies, museums, television and film studios, and other entertainment industries.

State & Area Data About this section

Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)

The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program produces employment and wage estimates annually for over 800 occupations. These estimates are available for the nation as a whole, for individual states, and for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas. The link(s) below go to OEWS data maps for employment and wages by state and area.

• Set and exhibit designers

Projections Central

Occupational employment projections are developed for all states by Labor Market Information (LMI) or individual state Employment Projections offices. All state projections data are available at www.projectionscentral.org. Information on this site allows projected employment growth for an occupation to be compared among states or to be compared within one state. In addition, states may produce projections for areas; there are links to each state’s websites where these data may be retrieved.

CareerOneStop

CareerOneStop includes hundreds of occupational profiles with data available by state and metro area. There are links in the left-hand side menu to compare occupational employment by state and occupational wages by local area or metro area. There is also a salary info tool to search for wages by zip code.

Contacts for More Information About this section

For more information about scenic design, visit

United Scenic Artists, International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 829

For more information on accredited college degree programs related to set and exhibit design, visit

National Association of Schools of Art and Design

National Association of Schools of Theatre

CareerOneStop

For a career video on set and exhibit designers, visit

Set and Exhibit Designers

O*NET

Set and Exhibit Designers