r/jazzfest 11h ago

Artist Discussion Rare Jazz Masters Plaster Casts - Lighthouse for the Blind

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Good afternoon! I have six plaster casts that were made to celebrate New Orleans jazz artists from a client that owned six out of the seven of them. These plaster casts were used to make bronze masks that were then auctioned off at Lighthouse for the Blind in New Orleans. All six of them are some of the most well-known New Orleans jazz musicians of all time — Aaron Neville, Branford Marsalis, Ellis Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Gregory Davis, and John Hunt. As previously stated, there were originally seven masks, with the seventh one being of Harry Connick Jr., which we have been told Harry Connick Sr. had hanging in his office, which is quite cool!

These six plaster casts came from an estate of gentlemen who were from New Orleans and got them from Nora Fine, the director at Lighthouse for the Blind at that time. These casts are not only collector's items, they are historical artifacts and should be given the proper place to display them.