In the late 19th century, American art museums were beginning to take shape, and plaster casts offered communities a way to experience some of the world’s greatest works of art without traveling overseas. These carefully crafted replicas allowed visitors to study celebrated Greek, Roman, and Renaissance sculptures and helped make art education accessible to a wider audience.
Shortly after the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum opened, Springfield residents gained access to their own remarkable collection of plaster casts, thanks in part to support from the estate of industrialist Horace Smith. Acquired from renowned makers in Europe and the United States, the collection included reproductions of masterpieces by artists such as Donatello and Michelangelo, as well as iconic ancient sculptures like the Venus de Milo and Laocoön Group.
Over time, changing attitudes toward museum collections led many institutions to remove or discard their casts. Springfield’s collection was preserved and restored, and today the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum is home to one of the largest collections of publicly displayed plaster casts in New England.
More than historical reproductions, these sculptures tell the story of how generations of artists, students, and visitors have learned from and been inspired by great works of art. Explore the gallery to discover the artists, myths, and masterpieces behind these fascinating casts.
Image above: Tomb of Lorenzo de’ Medici with Dawn and Dusk. Plaster cast by H. de Sachy, Ecole des Beaux Arts, Paris, France, 1890-1900. From marble sculptures, 1526-34, by Michelangelo (Italian, 1475-1564), at the Church of San Lorenzo, Florence. The Horace Smith Collection, 50.1900.24 a,b,c. Photography by JohnPolakPhotography.com.
Mara Sfara’s contemporary art installation In the Gardens of Mount Olympus offers a participatory exploration of the Classical world through multi-sensory experiences: sound, motion, and light. Drawing from the mythology of ancient Greece, Sfara’s work animates the Museums’ historic Plaster Cast Gallery, replicas of Classical and Renaissance sculptures. Sfara’s kinetic sculpture In the Gardens of Mount Olympus envisions the Greek gods as heroic and also wonderfully human—they are depicted whimsically as individuals with personality quirks. Influenced by Greek mythology, Sfara’s sculptural characters have a unique and appealing style that invites wonder and creativity.
