On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Sculpture

2018 (made)
Artist/Maker
Factum Foundation
Place of origin
Madrid (made)

Plaster cast reproduction of the 'Paolina Borghese'.

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read Antonio Canova – an introduction Italian sculptor Antonio Canova (1757 – 1822) is considered the leading figure of the Neoclassical style, inspired by the sculptures of Ancient Greece and Rome. His sculptures such as 'The Three Graces' and 'Theseus and the Minotaur' were praised for their idealised beauty and their calm y...

Object details

Categories
Cast Courts
Copies and Facsimiles
Object type
Sculpture
Materials and techniques
Plaster cast
Brief description
Plaster cast of 'Paolina Borghese', part of a set of three
Adam Lowe & Giberto Arrivabene, Factum Arte (2013-16)
H 45 x W 40 x L 90 cms (each)
Physical description
Plaster cast reproduction of the 'Paolina Borghese'.
Dimensions
  • Height: 45cm
  • Width: 40cm
  • Length: 90cm
Gallery label
(30.11.2018)
3 COPIES OF
‘PAOLINA BONAPARTE AS VENUS VICTRIX', CA. 1805

3D stereolithographic printed resin painted white
Crystal glass cast in a mould taken from a 3D print
Painted plaster cast in a silicon piece mould taken from a 3D print

Factum Arte, Madrid, 2013-16
Purchase funded by the Friends of the V&A
Museum nos. A.17, 18, 19-2018

These three statues were created from digital scans of a marble original by the Italian sculptor, Antonio Canova, in the Galleria Borghese in Rome. Paolina Bonaparte as Venus Victrix shows Princess Paolina Bonaparte, in the guise of the triumphant goddess Venus, soon after she married into the Borghese family. The statues are one-third of the size of the original sculpture, demonstrating the ease with which 3D models can be scaled and manipulated to produce new works of art.

The bright white copy is a high-resolution 3D print in resin. The other two versions, in painted plaster and glass, were both cast in moulds produced directly from a 3D print. The glass version was particularly complex to produce and took over ten weeks to cool and set after casting. The production of these statues, combining new technology with more traditional casting techniques, highlights the versatility of modern 3D replication and the debt it owes to historical methods.
Credit line
Purchase funded by the Friends of the V&A
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
A.18-2018

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Record createdJuly 17, 2018
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1454796/sculpture/
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