October 30, 2025

October 2025 Update:

The Bennington Banner covered Duva's award:

"I felt like my art was taken seriously for four years, and it has led to serious opportunities for me post-grad," said Julia Duva of the time spent at Bennington College. "The expectation of professionalism, diligence, and commitment was an essential part of my growth at Bennington, and it is something I am taking with me into my job and my own art practice."

The Banner also spoke to Duva's sponsoring faculty member, John Umphlett. 

"Umphlett intends to continue nominating Bennington College seniors for the International Sculpture Center's Outstanding Student Achievement in Contemporary Sculpture Award, and can see the nomination as being a sort of capstone project for students at the College – as well as validation for their achievements and an opportunity for their future.

"'I really felt like it would be important to focus on the seniors – and that's probably what I'll do,' said Umphlett. 'This is something that I want to continue. Bennington [College] is producing students that can really get in and win some of these nominations – and not just one particular area. In their Plan Process, the students in Bennington are advised to "study broadly.''

Umphlett believes that this exposure to diversification in terms of disciplines, various faculty perspectives, and forms of media is what truly has the potential to 'propel' a student into someone who could be a potential nominee or awardee in the future."

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The International Sculpture Center (ISC) established the annual "Outstanding Student Achievement in Contemporary Sculpture Award" program in 1994 to recognize young sculptors and to encourage their continued commitment to the field. It was also designed to draw attention to the sculpture programs of participating universities, colleges and art schools. The award program's growing publicity resulted in an exceptional number of participating institutions, including 96 universities, colleges and art school sculpture programs for a nominated total of 176 students.

"I am so grateful for the opportunities and knowledge that the faculty at Bennington have provided me," said Duva. "This specific piece of work, which was part of my senior show, came to life through the guidance of Aysha Peltz, Yoko Inoue, Anina Major, and John Umphlett, and was lovingly critiqued by my peers in Advanced Sculpture. I felt like my art was taken seriously for four years, and it has led to serious opportunities for me post-grad. The expectation of professionalism, diligence, and commitment was an essential part of my growth at Bennington, and it is something I am taking with me into my job and my own art practice."

Duva's sculpture was entitled 784 (Blanket). Their faculty sponsor was John Umphlett.

"It is important and part of Bennington’s pedagogy to encourage our students to take those next steps beyond, to climb them in their own way, connect, form new relationships, and make future contracts with self," said Umphlett. "I am grateful to be a part of Julia’s trajectory here at Bennington, as we continue to seek out opportunities and partnerships to help propel the students beyond college. Bennington acts like a growth medium, creating an atmosphere of sophistication and nuance for students to be seen and flourish. Julia grabbed this opportunity and did the work, devoted to the importance of standing on personal inquiry and research. It is so wonderful for Julia Duva to be recognized in this way, and I am so proud. Keep it up and stay connected!"

A distinguished panel made up of Lauren Fensterstock, artist, writer, curator, critic, and educator, Maine; Henry Jackson-Spieker, artist and educator, Washington; and Shohei Katayama, artist and educator, Kentucky, deliberated over 500 images of sculptural works to select 10 award recipients and 8 honorable mentions. The selection of the recipients from a large pool of applicants, including international students, is a great accomplishment and testament to the artistic promise of the students' work.

The award recipients will have an opportunity to participate in a group exhibition coinciding with the 31st International Sculpture Conference held in Dallas, Texas. The artists' work will be featured in the January/February 2026 issue of the International Sculpture Center's award-winning publication, Sculpture magazine, as well as on the ISC’s website.

The International Sculpture Center (ISC) is a member-supported, nonprofit organization founded in 1960 to champion the creation and understanding of sculpture and its unique, vital contribution to society. Members include sculptors, collectors, patrons, architects, developers, journalists, curators, historians, critics, educators, foundries, galleries, and museums-anyone with an interest in and commitment to the field of sculpture.

For further details on the recipients and honorable mentions, visit the 2025 Student Awards feature page.