Frank Gasparro is known as one of America’s greatest artists, but you don’t have to go to a museum to see his work. You don’t have to travel at all because his finest work is in your pocket or purse. Gasparro was chief engraver of the U. S. Mint, and he designed the reverse of the Lincoln cent (1959-2008) and Kennedy half dollar.
As a young boy growing up in Philadelphia, Frank Gasparro always knew he was an artist. Deep down inside he just knew it. However, his demanding father, who was a professional musician, would not hear of it. He wanted his son to follow in his footsteps and be a musician, too. So, the conflict began early and went on for years.
Coming in the door at night his father would see Frank sketching, fly into a rage, lecture his son about starving artists, and storm out of the room. Frank just kept on drawing. Several times his father would come home, go over to where Frank was working, rip his picture to pieces, and leave the room. Frank kept on drawing. Finally when he was 15, his father gave in and Frank was allowed to take night classes at the Graphic Sketch Club, an art school that was nearby and free.
Walking through the open doors of the club was like walking into a whole new world for Frank. He became an apprentice of Guiseppe Donato, who had worked under the great French sculptor Auguste Rodin. Donato encouraged Frank to develop his skills and taught him for several years. He also suggested that Frank enroll in the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.
At the Academy Gasparro became an outstanding student, and he won two scholarships to study in Europe. Of everything he saw on his trips, the Greek style of sculpture influenced him the most.
After his graduation and several years of freelance work, Gasparro found himself facing the draft in 1940. Flat feet kept him out of the military, but he decided to try for a government job anyway. He applied for a position at the Philadelphia Mint and was turned down. He kept applying again and again, and he was finally hired as a junior engraver in 1942. His first jobs at the Mint were routine, but he gained skill with every new project. And that new skill brought him recognition.
In those days, many foreign counties had the Mint design their coins. The first coin Gasparro ever created was a silver 25 centavos piece for the Republic of Guatemala. The coin is eye-catching. In his design, a quetzal, the national bird, sits on a rock with its long tail curving down to the bottom of the coin. The first thing you notice is how beautiful the tail is. The next thing you notice is that the rock is in the shape of Guatemala.
Gasparro’s first chance to design an American coin came in 1958. To celebrate the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, officials at the Philadelphia Mint decided to redesign the back of the penny and announced an informal competition among the Mint’s five assistant engravers. Gasparro submitted three designs; the most impressive was a front view of the Lincoln Memorial. Thirteen stars circled the building, the words “Lincoln Memorial” appeared under the base, and in the center, Lincoln’s statue could clearly be seen between the columns.
Gasparro’s design won, but like all managers, the Mint’s officials wanted to make a few changes of their own. They said the words “Lincoln Memorial” were unnecessary. So Gasparro agreed to take them out. They said the ring of stars made the design look cluttered. So Gasparro agreed to take them out. Then they wanted to remove Lincoln’s statue. Gasparro told them, Look, if you take out the statute, the monument will look like a library. They agreed and left the statue in.
In his long career Frank Gasparro created more coins and commemorative medals than any other American—past or present. He engraved all three Bicentennial coins, using designs chosen in national competition. He designed the reverse of the Kennedy half dollar. He designed the Eisenhower and Susan B. Anthony dollars. He created inaugural medals for seven U.S. presidents. He designed the official Mint medals for American heroes John Wayne and Roberto Clemente. He designed coins for the Olympics and special medals for coin clubs. Some say the Wayne medal is the most beautiful American medal ever created.
He once said, “When I approach a plaster model, I feel like Hemingway working with a blank piece of paper. There’s something behind me saying, ‘Does it really look like him?’” What his daughter remembered the most were his hands—large, strong hands that used sculpting tools to shape alabaster.
Out of all his creations, Gasparro had a special fondness for the Lincoln cent. Sometimes when he was out walking he’d see a penny lying on the sidewalk. He always stopped to pick it up. Was he being sentimental? Of course. But he also knew that a fine piece of art shouldn’t be left lying in the street.