THE ORIGINAL COPY: PLASTER CASTS AND THEIR REPRODUCTIONS

OPEN TO ALL GSA STUDENTS.

The workshop is led by Francesca Zappia, PhD researcher at GSA and is part of her ongoing research in reimagining pedagogical values for plaster casts in art and design schools. During this workshop, we will engage with small plaster casts, drawings and photographs from GSA’s collection alongside selected works from contemporary artists. Through dialogical and thinking-through-making activities, we will critically reflect on, generate, and speculate about questions of originality and authenticity while reimagining and proposing creative re/uses for these objects that are relevant to contemporary creative practices.

Part 1 (11am-1pm) – Creative engagement

This part of the workshop will begin with an introduction to a small display of selected plaster casts and related archival materials held at GSA Archives & Collections, followed by a hands-on activity. You will be able to engage with these objects through a medium of your choice, such as drawing, photography, 3D scanning or writing. By gathering around the table and working directly with these casts, we will collectively reactivate the historical pedagogical traditions of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when plaster casts were central to artistic training, while also opening them up to new, contemporary modes of interpretation.

For this hands-on activity, you can bring your:

• Sketchbook
• Camera
• Phone with 3D scanning app

Other materials will be provided.

Part 2 (2-4pm) – Collective conversation and remaking of display

In the afternoon, you will be invited to share the outcomes of the hands-on activity, opening up a collective conversation. Using your work as a starting point, we will reflect together on the role of reproductions and the questions they raise about originality and authenticity. Following this exchange, we will collaboratively rework the display, incorporating both the shared reflections and the artworks produced during the session.

Research outcome

At the end of the day, please leave your artwork and/or writing with Francesca. These contributions will become part of the publication ‘The Original Copy – Index’.

This publication serves a dual purpose: it is both a research tool and the final portfolio component of Francesca’s PhD thesis. As a research tool, it is conceived as a living document that continually writes and re-writes itself, weaving together theoretical perspectives with reflections from the researcher and the students who take part in the project.

The Index also functions as a generative companion to the workshops: it circulates in advance as a reading list, providing context and orientation, while during the sessions it operates as an active prompt, where selected entries encourage engagement with the plaster casts and archival materials and spark new conversations.

N.B. If you book a ticket for this workshop, you agree to take part in Francesca’s research. More information can be found in the Please also complete the and send it by email to Francesca:

Do not hesitate to write to Francesca for any questions you may have!

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