Penelope Jencks is a sculptor, known over the years for her monumental commissioned granite and bronze sculptures of such important individuals as Eleanor Roosevelt, Robert Frost, and Aaron Copeland. Her studio-size bronze sculptures are primarily nude figures in the landscape -- at the beach or on the dunes -- usually in a state of undressing or dressing.
Jencks started her studies in art history at Swarthmore College. Between her Swarthmore years, Jencks studied with Hans Hofmann, then continued her artistic pursuits at Skowhegan, Boston University (BFA), Boston Museum School and Stuttgart Kunst Akademie.
Fellowships and awards include: Agop Agopoff Prize for Sculpture (2005) and Meisner Prize for Sculpture (2001), both from the National Academy of Design; Distinguished Alumni Award, School of Visual Arts, Boston University; Henry Hering Memorial Medal and Prize for Outstanding Cooperation between Architect and Sculptor, National Sculpture Society; MacDowell Colony Residencies in ’75, ’76, ’78; "Commendation for Design Excellence," NEA; Massachusetts Artists Foundation Award, Bogliasco Foundation Fellowship, Centro Studi Ligure.
