The Jury of Awards met at Brookgreen Gardens to decide the 15 prize recipients of National Sculpture Society’s 93rd Annual Awards Exhibition. The Jury of Awards is composed of at least two sculptors and a curator and this year included

• Dr. Miranda L. Elston:  Assistant Professor of Art History | Visual Arts | Coastal Carolina University.
• Helene Roberts, Sculptor
• Mitch Shea, NSS

The fifteen prize winning sculptures will travel to the NSS Gallery and be on view from November 16, 2026 to January 22, 2027.

The top prize — the NSS Gold Medal and Lloyd Glasson Memorial Award — went to Manuelita Brown for her bronze, Missy.  Brown lives and works in southern California.  Having spent decades as a wife, mother, and teacher of mathematics, Brown focused on sculpture post-retirement and became a quick study. Specializing in bronze figurative and portrait sculpture, Brown has completed private, corporate, and public commissions, including eight life-sized dolphins, Almas del Mar, (La Jolla,CA); Encinitas Child, (San Diego, CA);  Matthew A. Henson, James E. Lewis Museum of Art (Baltimore, MD); Triton, University of California San Diego (San Diego, CA); Sojourner Truth and  Justice Thurgood Marshall, Thurgood Marshall College (San Diego, CA). Her award-winning sculpture Missy, with its graceful ombré patina, tells the age-old tale of a young girl stepping into womanhood and investigating her boundaries. “A demure young woman feigning innocence, yet timidly exploring, barely pushing her toes over the edge recognizing a vulnerability that is ever present when ‘testing the waters,” says Brown. “By extending beyond her space, she will likely be called back by her grandmother, mother, or auntie: ‘Missy! Take care.'”

The NSS Silver Medal and Maurice B. Hexter Prize went to NSS Elected Member Scott Myers for his portrait bust Resilient. When the Granbury, Texas artist isn’t sculpting western figures, creatures, or portrait heads for the Football Hall of Fame, he is a veterinarian with over 40 years in practice. Myers brings the eye of a sculptor and the anatomical fluency of a veterinarian to his portraiture. An Elected Member of NSS since 1994, Myers learnings began with his many travels to Italy where he sculpted and cast bronze at Fonderia d’Arte Massimo Del Chiaro in Pietrasanta.  Though he frequently works from life, his award-winning piece, Resilient, came from pure imagination. “My life-size portrait bust was inspired by Nordic imagery and my desire to create a strong, powerful, and diligent leader. Through his hairstyle, clothing, and determined expression, I endeavored to create a feeling of an individual who is truly Resilient.”

New Orleans artist and NSS Fellow, Thomas J. Durham won the NSS Bronze Medal and André Harvey Award for his piece Puccini. Durham is known for his hybrid sculptures of man and beast that combine personalized mythology influenced by literature, observation of life, and art. His work is included in private and public collections around the United States including HBO, Keven Largent Studios, (New York, NY); College of Charleston (Charleston, SC); Bethesda Home for Boys, (Savannah, GA); and Sullivan’s Island Park Foundation, (Sullivan’s Island, SC).  From 2016-2020 Durham served as Director of Sculpture at the Academy of Art University of San Francisco. His award-winning piece Puccini, is inspired by his love for classical music and part of a project with roots in New York City. “Puccini is a terra cotta sculpture patinated to look like bronze. It is part of a larger ongoing series of classical musicians which started with musical conductors of the New York Philharmonic as part of their collection and has continued ever since. As I continued sculpting portraits of various musicians, I started adding the torso and arms which gives more identity and gesture to each composer.”

 

LIST OF 93rd ANNUAL AWARD WINNERS:

 

NSS Gold Medal and Lloyd Glasson Memorial Award of $5,000 – For the best overall sculpture in the exhibition (First Place, Best in Show)

Missy by Manuelita Brown

 

NSS Silver Medal and Maurice B. Hexter Prize of $3,000 – For the second best overall sculpture in the exhibition (Second Place)

Resilient by Scott Myers, NSS

 

NSS Bronze Medal and André Harvey Award of $2,500 – For the third best overall sculpture in the exhibition (Third Place)

 Puccini by Thomas Durham, FNSS

 

The Anna Hyatt Huntington Award of $1,000 and a Brookgreen Medal – For a work in any medium displaying high quality in concept, design, and execution

Reflected Grace by Diana McClaran

 

Fred and Cheryl Newby Patrons Award of $1,000

Stargazer by Jeremy Bradshaw, FNSS

 

Marcel Jovine President’s Prize of $1,000 – For a realistic work, preferably in the form of a bas-relief

The Missing Piece by Eva-Maria Wohn, NSS

 

Marilyn Newmark Memorial Award of $1,000 – For a realistic sculpture done in the classical tradition

Willy by Lesa Cook

 

Marion and Gilbert Roller Memorial Prize of $1,000

Brave by Angela Mia, FNSS

 

Pietro and Alfrieda Montana Memorial Prize of $750 – For an outstanding work, either carved or cast

Las Madres by Nomi Silverman

 

Agop Agopoff Memorial Prize of $500 – For a classical sculpture

 Askance by Bob Clyatt

 

Ortmayer/Corcoran Teacher Inspiration Award of $500

Obstacles III by James Nelson

 

Jane B. Armstrong Memorial Award of $400

The Apple Eater by Kathe Umlauf

 

Margaret Hexter Prize of $300 – For a creative sculpture in the round

Nimbus by Béla Bácsi, FNSS

 

Edith H. and Richman Proskauer Prize of $300 – For a non-traditional sculpture

Flea by Thomas Hill

 

Beverly Hoyt Robertson Memorial Award of $200 and Gloria Medal – For the work of the highest quality by a young sculptor (age 40 or younger)

Oread by Evan Morse