from 8 June 2012

Hands, feet and faces in countless variations and sizes along with casts of some of the most famous works of sculpture in world art – Bertel Thorvaldsen’s Cast Collection was a treasure trove of inspiration for the world-famous sculptor. The collection has long lived in obscurity in the Thorvaldsens Museum storerooms. But the new permanent display is now once more seeing the light of day.

A glimpse of the world in which the sculptor worked

Thorvaldsen was a passionate collector, and during the many years he spent in Rome he built up the extensive works of art which along with his own works constitute the Thorvaldsens Museum Collections. Among them was an extensive collection of casts, mainly casts of classical works. Thorvaldsen used the array of forms and motifs in these casts as inspiration for his own works, and this new presentation of the collection will give visitors a rare insight into the artistic process.

A very personal collection

From an international perspective, Thorvaldsen’s Cast Collection is in a class of its own both on account of its high quality and because it is one of the largest extant collections of the kind in existence today. Of the 650 casts he acquired, only 10 are no longer to be found. The collection is also unusual in having been created by a single individual, and the personal combination reflects both Thorvaldsen’s own interests and the aesthetic tastes of the day, but they also show what casts were available in the market during that period. It was by no means always that Thorvaldsen’s interest was caught by casts of entire statues. Typical of a sculptor’s collection, it represents numerous parts of sculptures, for instance hands and feet. They were important for an understanding of the classical idiom and the Danish sculptor often used them as models for his own art.

This can be seen, for instance, in Thorvaldsen’s relief Briseis and Achilleus from 1803, in which he portrays an episode from the introduction to the ancient Greek poet Homer’s great poem, The Iliad, which tells of the Greeks’ ten-year siege of Troy. The body language imparted to the main characters in the relief has been directly inspired by casts in Thorvaldsen’s collection. However, although he might “borrow” for instance arms and legs in to models provided by the casts, Thorvaldsen’s personal expression always remains clearly recognisable.

New Arrangement

From 8 June it will be possible to see a completely new arrangement of the collection in the museum. It has been set up in a concentrated, rather store-like manner in order to emphasise its character of a source of motifs and forms in the sculptor’s work. Five thematically arranged sections throw light on various aspects of Thorvaldsen’s relationship with the casts and the way in which he used them: Training, The Technique of Casting, Restoration, The Market and Inspiration. Factual information on the individual works is kept to a minimum, as this was of less importance to Thorvaldsen than the quality of the works as images. More information about the works will be available in a series of leaflets and books published to mark the new display.

This new presentation is the result of close collaboration between Dr Jan Zahle, the architects Henrik Ingemann and Alexander Damsbo and the curator Kristine Bøggild Johannsen.

New Books on the Collection

When the exhibition opens to visitors to the museum on 8 June 2012, it will be possible to read more about the collection and its history in a small book in Danish written by Jan Zahle. Later in the year, it is expected there will be a more extensive publication in English putting the collection into its international context. Both the new display and the two publications are the results of a research project lasting several years and financed by the Velux Fond. The Danish publication is has been supported with funds from Ny Carlsbergfondet, Konsul George Jorck og Hustru Emma Jorck’s Fond, Ernst og Vibeke Husmans Fond and the Frantz Hoffmanns Mindelegat.