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Embrace the Copy: Plaster Casts and Modernity in Art Education in Japan

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Destroy the Copy – Plaster Cast Collections in the 19th–20th Centuries
This chapter is in the book Destroy the Copy – Plaster Cast Collections in the 19th–20th Centuries

Abstract

This paper analyzes the history of plaster casts and cast drawing in Japan from the 19th century to the present. It demonstrates how, despite the enthusiastic introduction of Western artistic traditions by Japanese art institutions, the fate of plaster casts in Japan was very different from in the West. Japan’s social and cultural context strongly influenced the selective adaptation of Western artistic traditions, and Japanese art institutions focused on the technical aspects of Western art in order to reconcile the Western artistic tradition with Japanese aesthetics. Also, due to the simultaneous influx of cast drawing and Western modern art to Japan, cast drawing was interpreted as the foundation of various artistic practices, including both modern and traditional Japanese art. As a result, plaster casts in Japan were not completely abandoned, even after the anti-cast drawing movements of the 1960s. Japanese art schools continued to use plaster casts throughout the 20th century, resulting in various styles of cast drawing that mixed the academic with the modern. At the same time, plaster casts were appropriated by contemporary art and pop culture. Since the 1990s, the tradition of cast drawing has been the subject of critical rethinking for Japanese contemporary artists, while plaster casts have been commodified and fetishized in pop culture in a way that reflects Japanese artists’ love-hate relationship with plaster casts. In conclusion, this paper argues that the fate of plaster casts in Japan is the result of a process of cultural negotiation, and that this example shows an alternative to the widely accepted destroy-the-copy narrative.

Abstract

This paper analyzes the history of plaster casts and cast drawing in Japan from the 19th century to the present. It demonstrates how, despite the enthusiastic introduction of Western artistic traditions by Japanese art institutions, the fate of plaster casts in Japan was very different from in the West. Japan’s social and cultural context strongly influenced the selective adaptation of Western artistic traditions, and Japanese art institutions focused on the technical aspects of Western art in order to reconcile the Western artistic tradition with Japanese aesthetics. Also, due to the simultaneous influx of cast drawing and Western modern art to Japan, cast drawing was interpreted as the foundation of various artistic practices, including both modern and traditional Japanese art. As a result, plaster casts in Japan were not completely abandoned, even after the anti-cast drawing movements of the 1960s. Japanese art schools continued to use plaster casts throughout the 20th century, resulting in various styles of cast drawing that mixed the academic with the modern. At the same time, plaster casts were appropriated by contemporary art and pop culture. Since the 1990s, the tradition of cast drawing has been the subject of critical rethinking for Japanese contemporary artists, while plaster casts have been commodified and fetishized in pop culture in a way that reflects Japanese artists’ love-hate relationship with plaster casts. In conclusion, this paper argues that the fate of plaster casts in Japan is the result of a process of cultural negotiation, and that this example shows an alternative to the widely accepted destroy-the-copy narrative.

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Preface V
  3. Contents VII
  4. Acknowledgements XI
  5. Introduction 1
  6. I (Post)colonial Contexts
  7. Introduction 19
  8. The (Mis)Performance of Cast Collections 25
  9. The Rise and Fall of the Museo de Copias: On the History of the Collection of Sculpture Replicas in the National Museum of Fine Arts in Santiago de Chile 51
  10. Embrace the Copy: Plaster Casts and Modernity in Art Education in Japan 77
  11. II Contested Classification: Art vs. Archaeology vs. Anthropology
  12. Introduction 103
  13. Hidden in Plain View: The Plaster Cast Collection at the National Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian Institution 109
  14. Falling Between the Cracks: UC Berkeley’s Plaster Casts 131
  15. “Museum of Ancient Art” or White Elephant? The Battle Collection of Plaster Casts at the University of Texas at Austin 151
  16. Through Athena’s Eyes: The Henry W. Sage Collection of Casts at Cornell University 175
  17. From Pillar to Post: Classical Casts at the British Museum 201
  18. III The Contingencies of Value
  19. Introduction 221
  20. Burnt, Destroyed, Sold, Lost: The Fate of Cast Collections in the 18th and 19th Centuries 225
  21. What Archival Records Do or Do Not Say: The Destruction of Plaster Casts in Geneva 239
  22. Die Abguss-Sammlungen im Museum Fridericianum und in der Gemäldegalerie Kassel 261
  23. Von systematischer Vernachlässigung bis absichtlicher Zerstörung: Gipsabgüsse in Jenaer und Wiener Antikensammlungen im 20. Jahrhundert 285
  24. IV The Contingencies of Authenticity
  25. Introduction 309
  26. Keep the Copy! Die Gipsabguss-Sammlung der Kunsthalle im sog. Hamburger Faksimile-Streit 313
  27. Verkauft, verschenkt, zerstört. Vergessen? Die Frankfurter Abguss-Sammlung(en): Versuch einer Rekonstruktion 329
  28. The Fate of the Berlin Plaster Cast Collections: From Veneration to Destruction, Defacement, and Disposal 349
  29. Smashing Casts: Replication of Scottish Early Medieval Sculpture as a Case Study on the Fragility of Value 375
  30. V Revolution and Iconoclasm
  31. Introduction 401
  32. Destruction of Plaster Casts in Workshops and Collections of Important French Institutions in the 19th and 20th Centuries 407
  33. The Fate of Cast Collections in French Education: Between Destruction and Abandonment 435
  34. “A Rampage by Vandals”: The History and Destruction of the Plaster Casts of the National College of Art and Design of Ireland 455
  35. Models for Eternity: The Changing Role of Plaster Casts at The Maryland Institute 469
  36. VI Envois
  37. ‘Classical’ Plaster Casts in Enlightenment and Colonialist Discourses on Race 491
  38. Destroy the Copy? Destroy the Copy! A History of (Non-)appreciation 527
  39. About the Authors 585
  40. Indices
  41. Locations and Collections 589
  42. Individuals 595
  43. General 601
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110757965-005

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Preface V
  3. Contents VII
  4. Acknowledgements XI
  5. Introduction 1
  6. I (Post)colonial Contexts
  7. Introduction 19
  8. The (Mis)Performance of Cast Collections 25
  9. The Rise and Fall of the Museo de Copias: On the History of the Collection of Sculpture Replicas in the National Museum of Fine Arts in Santiago de Chile 51
  10. Embrace the Copy: Plaster Casts and Modernity in Art Education in Japan 77
  11. II Contested Classification: Art vs. Archaeology vs. Anthropology
  12. Introduction 103
  13. Hidden in Plain View: The Plaster Cast Collection at the National Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian Institution 109
  14. Falling Between the Cracks: UC Berkeley’s Plaster Casts 131
  15. “Museum of Ancient Art” or White Elephant? The Battle Collection of Plaster Casts at the University of Texas at Austin 151
  16. Through Athena’s Eyes: The Henry W. Sage Collection of Casts at Cornell University 175
  17. From Pillar to Post: Classical Casts at the British Museum 201
  18. III The Contingencies of Value
  19. Introduction 221
  20. Burnt, Destroyed, Sold, Lost: The Fate of Cast Collections in the 18th and 19th Centuries 225
  21. What Archival Records Do or Do Not Say: The Destruction of Plaster Casts in Geneva 239
  22. Die Abguss-Sammlungen im Museum Fridericianum und in der Gemäldegalerie Kassel 261
  23. Von systematischer Vernachlässigung bis absichtlicher Zerstörung: Gipsabgüsse in Jenaer und Wiener Antikensammlungen im 20. Jahrhundert 285
  24. IV The Contingencies of Authenticity
  25. Introduction 309
  26. Keep the Copy! Die Gipsabguss-Sammlung der Kunsthalle im sog. Hamburger Faksimile-Streit 313
  27. Verkauft, verschenkt, zerstört. Vergessen? Die Frankfurter Abguss-Sammlung(en): Versuch einer Rekonstruktion 329
  28. The Fate of the Berlin Plaster Cast Collections: From Veneration to Destruction, Defacement, and Disposal 349
  29. Smashing Casts: Replication of Scottish Early Medieval Sculpture as a Case Study on the Fragility of Value 375
  30. V Revolution and Iconoclasm
  31. Introduction 401
  32. Destruction of Plaster Casts in Workshops and Collections of Important French Institutions in the 19th and 20th Centuries 407
  33. The Fate of Cast Collections in French Education: Between Destruction and Abandonment 435
  34. “A Rampage by Vandals”: The History and Destruction of the Plaster Casts of the National College of Art and Design of Ireland 455
  35. Models for Eternity: The Changing Role of Plaster Casts at The Maryland Institute 469
  36. VI Envois
  37. ‘Classical’ Plaster Casts in Enlightenment and Colonialist Discourses on Race 491
  38. Destroy the Copy? Destroy the Copy! A History of (Non-)appreciation 527
  39. About the Authors 585
  40. Indices
  41. Locations and Collections 589
  42. Individuals 595
  43. General 601
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