The International Sculpture Center has conferred upon recent UWindsor grad Teresa Carlesimo (BFA 2011) its Outstanding Student Achievement in Contemporary Sculpture Award for 2012.

The annual award recognizes young sculptors to encourage their continued commitment to the field. It also draws attention to the sculpture programs of the participating art schools.

“I was very flattered and very thankful,” says Carlesimo, who notes her interest in examining the idealism of twentieth century architecture and planning as well as related political, social and economic issues.

“My primary subjects are space, place and the urban built environment, and I most often work in the expanded field of sculpture and installation,” she says. “I typically use common building and construction materials that have a sense of familiarity yet I often use these materials in subversive ways, with interventions or manipulations of a public space, or constructing fictional spaces that seem to replicate actual places.”

Carlesimo was nominated for her project 58hrs, part of the December 2011 graduation exhibition. She says she is grateful for the help of School of Visual Arts instructors Zeke Moore and Lucy Howe.

“The sculpture department is very lucky to have two incredibly devoted and talented artists,” she says. “They have not only been motivating, but also supportive, available and influential.”

As one of 12 award winners, Carlesimo will participate in the Grounds for Sculpture fall/winter exhibition, October 2012 to April 2013 in Hamilton, New Jersey, adjacent to the centre’s headquarters, and her work will be featured in the October 2012 issue of its publication, Sculpture magazine.