Gwen Pier to Receive the 2026 Saint-Gaudens Medal

The Saint-Gaudens Memorial has announced that Gwen Pier, Executive Director of the National Sculpture Society (NSS), is the recipient of the 2026 Saint-Gaudens Medal. The award will be presented this winter in New York City.

Established in 1988, the Saint-Gaudens Medal is awarded periodically to individuals whose talents, vision, and leadership have made significant contributions to the arts in the high tradition of Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848–1907). Pier joins a distinguished group of past honorees whose scholarship, stewardship, and advocacy have shaped the cultural landscape of the United States. Her selection in 2026 highlights a renewed national interest in representational sculpture, public art, and artistic preservation—areas she has strengthened throughout her nearly four decades of leadership.

Gwen Pier has served as Executive Director of the National Sculpture Society for 38 years, guiding the organization through extraordinary growth. During her tenure, the NSS endowment expanded from $200,000 to more than $15 million, enabling the expansion of national exhibitions, publications, conferences, and artist support programs. She has overseen awards, scholarships, residencies, and juried exhibitions that have directly benefited generations of sculptors. In addition to her leadership at NSS, Pier serves the broader arts field through roles with the Fine Arts Federation of New York, the Saltus Awards committee for lifetime achievement in medallic art, the Broadway Mall Association’s Public Art Advisory Group, and the Council of Advisors for the Women’s Suffrage National Monument in Washington, DC. Her career in both nonprofit and commercial arts spans more than forty years, supported by academic training at Skidmore College, Columbia University, and the University of London.

“I am deeply grateful to everyone at the Saint-Gaudens Memorial for this remarkable honor,” said Gwen Pier. “It is especially meaningful to be recognized with a medal in the name of one of America’s greatest sculptors — and by an organization that has done so much to preserve and share his legacy. Augustus Saint-Gaudens was a founding member of the National Sculpture Society back in 1893 and remains an inspiration to all who became members in the years that followed. I thank the Memorial, its trustees, and the Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park for preserving not only his studio and grounds, but also his enduring spirit of creativity, mentorship, and public engagement. Those qualities continue to guide the National Sculpture Society now and as we look to the future.”

Thayer Tolles, President of the Saint-Gaudens Memorial, said, “presenting the Saint-Gaudens Medal to Gwen Pier is a wonderful acknowledgment of our shared commitment to the vibrancy of representational sculpture past and present. For 38 years, she has led the National Sculpture Society, expanding its profile for a new generation of sculptors and arts enthusiasts. Together our organizations proudly celebrate the enduring legacy of Saint-Gaudens, whose artwork serves as a beacon for exhibitions, educational programs, and creative workshops.”

The Saint-Gaudens Medal was designed in 1992 by sculptor Robert W. White, a longtime trustee of the Saint-Gaudens Memorial and grandson of architect Stanford White. Awarded only occasionally — thirteen times since its establishment — the medal honors those who exemplify the artistry, scholarship, preservation ethos, and creative spirit embodied by Augustus Saint-Gaudens.

Past recipients include: Harold Holzer (2023), Wanda M. Corn (2021), Dartmouth College Library (2019), David McCullough (2016), James B. Atkinson (2014), Earl A. Powell III (2005), Rosamond Putnam (2000), Eric Lagercrantz (1998), Robert W. White (1997), Burke Wilkinson (1994), Charles A. Platt (1994), Walker Hancock (1992), and Lincoln Kirstein (1990).

About the Saint-Gaudens Memorial

Founded in 1919 by the family and friends of the sculptor, the Saint-Gaudens Memorial works in partnership with the National Park Service to preserve Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ home, studios, gardens, and collections, and to sponsor exhibitions, concerts, fellowships, and educational programming. Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park in Cornish, NH, is open to the public seasonally from May to October.