The cast collection is installed in Galleries B-2, 10, 11, 12 and the J
corridors on the First Floor. To view the collection in chronological
sequence, the visitor should proceed from the octagonal Gallery B-2 (V
century Greek sculpture) down the north side of corridor B-3 (V century
Greek sculpture). Returning, the visitor will find in the alcoves on the
south side of the corridor casts of Greek sculpture of the IV century and
Hellenistic periods, and casts of Roman sculpture. The collection is
continued in Gallery B-10 (Gothic sculpture), which should be entered from
the corridor. Casts of Renaissance sculpture are exhibited in Gallery B-1
(Early Renaissance, XV century) and Gallery B-12 (Late Renaissance, XVI
century). Other casts of sculptures of the Renaissance and later periods
are exhibited in the west corridor.
The educational value of a cast collection is beyond question. Through
these mechanical reproductions, it is possible to obtain a fairly adequate
idea of the great masterpieces of sculpture, that are inaccessible to
many, except in this form. In the plaster cast one may study proportions,
composition, style and even technical procedure; but it must be remembered
that the qualities of color and texture, which contribute so much to the
effect of the original, are almost, if not entirely, lost in the plaster
cast. This defect may be overcome in part by treating the plaster in
various ways so that it conveys some suggestion of the original material.
This has been done with our casts, adding materially to the attractiveness
of the collection.
In connection with the casts of Greek and Roman sculpture in our
collection, the following notes on classical art may be of interest. As
to the characteristics of Gothic and Renaissance art, the reader is
referred to the notes on pages 31-32 and 47-48.
A remarkable civilization (Minoan, Cretan, Aegean, or Prehellenic, as it
is variously called), extending over a thousand years, preceded the
classical period of Greek art. This earlier civilization was brought to
an end by the so-called Dorian invasion at the close of the second
millennium, and several hundred years had to elapse before conditions once
again were right for the flourishing of art. Greece of the classical
period begins to emerge towards the end of the VII century B. C. The
Archaic Period (about 625-480 B. C.) was one of experimentation,
preparatory to the age of perfection, when, technical difficulties having
been overcome and aesthetic aims defined, Greek art attained an eminence
never surpassed.
Victorious at Salamis and Plataea, the Greek world arose triumphant from
its struggles with Asia. The birth of national consciousness ushered in a
new period of art, the Golden Age of Greece (480-400 B. C.). The
conventions of the archaic style gave place to a free style, adequate to
the sculptor’s every need. Grace, simplicity, and truth in the
representation of the living form characterize the sculpture of this
period; draperies are rendered with marvelous skill. Liberal patronage
was extended to the arts, particularly by the state. Under these
favorable conditions, which reached their climax in the Age of Pericles
(461-431 B. C.), Hellenic ideals of proportion, sanity and self-command
found perfect embodiment in sculpture. From about the middle of the V
century, Athens was the unquestioned leader in the field of art, her
nearest rival, the ancient school of Argos. Among the great sculptors of
the V century, three stand out in particular prominence: Myron, who
excelled in the representation of bodily forms and action; Polyclitus, the
sculptor of athletes and the exponent of academic perfection; and above
all Phidias, the great genius of the age, who combined technical skill
with the expression of lofty, spiritual ideals.
In the next period, that of the IV century (400-323 B. C.) individualism
began to dominate Greek thought and action, replacing the earlier civic
and religious influences. Art became more individual and more emotional.
Portraiture grew in favor. The austere style of Phidias gave place to the
dreamy sentiment of Praxiteles, to the fiery passion of Scopas. The gods
descended from high Olympus and walked the earth in human guise. The
three great sculptors of this age were Praxiteles, Scopas and Lysippus.
[Gallery B-10: Gothic Casts]