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Cynthia Plaster Caster

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Cynthia Plaster Caster
Cynthia Plaster Caster in 2002, holding a cast of Jimi Hendrix's penis.
Born
Cynthia Dorothy Albritton

(1947-05-24)May 24, 1947
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
DiedApril 21, 2022(2022-04-21) (aged 74)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Illinois Chicago
Known forSculpting

Cynthia Plaster Caster (born Cynthia Dorothy Albritton; May 24, 1947 – April 21, 2022) was an American visual artist and self-described "recovering groupie" who gained fame for creating plaster casts of celebrities' erect penises.

Albritton began her career in 1968 by casting penises of rock musicians. She later expanded her subjects to include filmmakers and other types of artists, eventually amassing a collection of 50 plaster phalluses.[1] In 2000, she began casting female artists' breasts.

Biography

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Albritton was born in Chicago.[2][3] In the late 1960s, she became active in the free love and rock music subcultures. Albritton studied at the University of Illinois Chicago.[3][4] In college, when her art teacher gave the class an assignment to "plaster cast something solid that could retain its shape", she had the idea to create a lifecast of an erect penis, which would then become flaccid and exit the mold. She created molds using alginate, and Jimi Hendrix was the first celebrity that she made a cast of.[5]

A plaster cast of Jimi Hendrix's penis
Albritton's plaster cast of Jimi Hendrix's penis on display at the Icelandic Phallological Museum.

Frank Zappa found the concept of her casts both humorous and creative, though he himself had no interest in having his penis cast. Zappa became a patron of Albritton and moved her to Los Angeles. In 1971, after her apartment was burgled, Zappa and Albritton entrusted her casts to Herb Cohen for safekeeping. Albritton sought to create an art exhibition of her casts, but did not have enough participants. She made no new casts between 1971 and 1980.[6]

In 1993, Albritton filed a lawsuit against Cohen because he would not return the casts that she had given him for safekeeping. She got all but three back.[6][7][8] In 2000, Albritton held her first exhibition of the casts in New York City. She also decided to begin casting women's breasts.[9]

In 2009, Albritton won the Rob Pruitt Award at the first annual Guggenheim Art Awards, held at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.[10] She was a candidate for mayor of Chicago in the 2011 election on the "Hard Party" ticket.[2][11]

Albritton died from cerebrovascular disease at a care facility in Chicago on April 21, 2022, aged 74.[3][12] Shortly before her death, Albritton donated a copy of her 1968 plaster cast of Jimi Hendrix's erect penis to the Icelandic Phallological Museum.[13]

Legacy

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Albritton's life has served as inspiration for multiple pieces of media, such as Good Girls Revolt, The Banger Sisters,[14] and Drive-Away Dolls.[15][16] In 2001, a documentary film, Plaster Caster, was made about her.[17] She also contributed to the 2005 BBC Three documentary My Penis and I, made by British filmmaker Lawrence Barraclough about his anxiety over his penis size.[18]

She inspired the songs "Five Short Minutes" by Jim Croce[19] and "Plaster Caster" by Kiss.[6] She is also mentioned in Momus' song "The Penis Song"[19] and the Le Tigre song "Nanny Nanny Boo Boo".[20] Cynthia's voice features in a recorded telephone conversation in the album Permanent Damage by The GTOs[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Meet the Groupie Who Made Plaster Casts Out of Rock Music's Most Famous Penises". November 2017.
  2. ^ a b Elejalde-Ruiz, Alexia (October 31, 2010). "Cynthia Plaster Caster Runs for Chicago Mayor", Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 18, 2011.
  3. ^ a b c Genzlinger, Neil (April 28, 2022). "Cynthia Albritton, 74, the Michelangelo Of Immortalizing Male Rockers' Genitals". The New York Times. p. B12. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  4. ^ Hutchinson, Kate (April 25, 2022). "Cynthia Plaster Caster: the artist whose rock star penis sculptures asked big questions about manhood". The Guardian.
  5. ^ Cynthia Plaster Caster: Art with Staying Power Archived November 22, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, a Salon interview
  6. ^ a b c d Aswad, Jem (April 21, 2022). "Cynthia Albritton, a.k.a. Cynthia Plaster Caster, Artist and 'Recovering Groupie,' Dies at 74". Variety. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  7. ^ Philips, Chuck (April 13, 1993). "Plaster Caster Lawsuit Set for Court Wednesday". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 7, 2014.
  8. ^ Wallechinsky, David; Amy D. Wallace; Ira Basen; Jane Farrow (2006). The book of lists: the original compendium of curious information (Canadian ed.). Toronto: Seal Books. pp. 355–356. ISBN 9780307366177.
  9. ^ Albritton, Cynthia official website The Long and the Short of It Retrieved September 20, 2008 Requires Flash
  10. ^ Rosenberg, Karen (October 30, 2009). "Art Awards and Irony at the Guggenheim". ArtsBeat. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  11. ^ Costello, Brian (November 4, 2010). "Q&A with Mayoral Candidate Cynthia Plaster Caster", Chicago Reader. Retrieved November 18, 2011.
  12. ^ Natawan, Grace Ann (April 21, 2022). "Cynthia Albritton, Known As Cynthia Plaster Caster, Dies At 74". Spin. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
  13. ^ Koe, Crystal (May 25, 2022). "Plaster Cast of Jimi Hendrix's Penis to be Unveiled at Iceland's Phallological Museum: All in the name of Phallology". Guitar.com. Retrieved June 3, 2022.
  14. ^ Jasmine, Lucretia Tye (May 23, 2022). "Cynthia Plaster Caster, Super Artist and SuperGroupie! May 24, 1947 – April 21, 2022". The LA Beat. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  15. ^ Saperstein, Pat (February 23, 2024). "Who Was Cynthia Plaster Caster, Who Inspired Miley Cyrus' Character in Ethan Coen's 'Drive Away Dolls'?". Variety. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  16. ^ Miller, Jenni (February 24, 2024). "Miley Cyrus 'Drive-Away Dolls' cameo explained". Mashable. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  17. ^ Camper, Fred (October 26, 1985). "Plaster Caster". Chicago Reader. Retrieved November 11, 2024.
  18. ^ "Has your penis been short-changed?". Metro. October 3, 2007. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
  19. ^ a b Jones, Abby (April 21, 2022). "R.I.P. Cynthia "Plaster Caster" Albritton". Consequence. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  20. ^ This Island (Media notes). Le Tigre. Universal Records. 2004.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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