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The Hall of Architecture, with its collection
of over 140 plaster casts of architectural masterpieces from
the past, opened in 1907. At that time, collections of casts
were numerous in both Europe and the United States. The Carnegie
Museum of Art's collection survives today as the largest architectural
cast collection in the country, rivaled internationally only
by collections in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, and
in the Musee National des Monuments Français, Paris. Pittsburgh's
architectural cast collection is distinguished for having remained
essentially intact in the grand skylit space designed especially
for it, Architecture Hall, which was itself inspired by one
of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the Mausoleum at
Halicarnassus. Having persisted through changes of taste and
decades of public exhibition, the Hall of Architecture offers
an opportunity to appreciate a cultural phenomenon of international
scope.
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Guided by the view that a replica of a masterpiece
was superior to a mediocre original, collectors from the time
of Rome's first emperor until the early twentieth century amassed
great plaster-cast collections of recognized masterworks. As
early as the fourth century b.c.e., the Greeks made plaster casts
of famous marble statues. In Roman times, the passion for Greek
sculpture resulted in the reproduction of works of art. Plaster
casts were also popular during the Renaissance, when the "rebirth" of
antiquity influenced artistic taste. By the late eighteenth century,
inspired by new archaeological finds, collections of plaster
casts could be found in most European cities.
In the nineteenth century, the demand for plaster casts skyrocketed. As centerpieces
of the great international fairs, casts nourished nationalistic pride, while
independent cast "galleries" served the Victorian fervor for education
by providing instruction to both the amateur and the art student. Also, the dominance
of historical styles in premodern architecture required that the architecture
student study the outstanding buildings of the past; in this pursuit, plaster
casts played an essential role.
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By 1907, under the enthusiastic leadership of
Andrew Carnegie, Carnegie Institute's collection totaled 144 architectural
casts, 69 plaster reproductions of sculpture, and 360 replicas
in bronze (on view at the rear of the Hall of Architecture). This
collection of casts was, on the whole, representative of the times.
The beloved favorites from classical antiquity-the Apollo Belvedere,
the Venus de Milo, the Nike of Samothrace, the famous discus thrower
by Myron-can all be found here, as well as such Gothic masterpieces
as the Florence Baptistry doors. The inclusion of several Romanesque
pieces, notably the facade of St.-Gilles-du-Gard, which was reproduced
in its entirety directly from the original, added depth to the
collection. By means of plaster casts, the world's masterpieces
of sculpture and architecture were brought to Pittsburgh where
everyone, not just those who could afford to travel, could study
their form and detail in full scale.
Today, due to the widespread reaction against copying works from the past and
to the fragility of original works of art, few casts are being made. While most
other collections have been either dispersed or destroyed, the Carnegie Museum
of Art's collection has endured as an exhibition of world-class significance.
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