Casa Museo Tommaso Gismondi

Casa Museo Tommaso Gismondi preserves the sculptor's studio in Palazzo dei Canonici beside Anagni's cathedral. Its works span sacred and secular subjects, from Vatican commissions to drawings, models and medals.

Why it matters

Tommaso Gismondi (1906–2003), born in Anagni, became known for commissions from Paul VI and John Paul II, including portals for the Vatican Library and Secret Archive. The museum retains the studio-laboratory where his works were conceived and made, preserving the setting as well as the objects.

What to notice

A seated self-portrait of Gismondi modelling a small horse welcomes visitors. The studio displays plaster and wax models, bozzetti, coins, medallions, paintings, drawings and photographs, arranged without a chronological sequence. Sacred works sit alongside pieces from his years in Argentina, including a series on bullfighting. Family and maternity are recurring subjects.

Context and history

Gismondi returned to Anagni in the late 1950s and established the studio he had envisioned in Palazzo dei Canonici during the 1970s. His commissions included Vatican portals, a retable for St Peter's and works associated with John Paul II. His daughter Donatella continued working in sculpture and bronze-effect painting; his granddaughter Valentina Simionato has carried on the family's connection to the studio.