On April 12, 2025, ICG President Kevin Roche presented the ICG’s highest honor, the ICG Lifetime Achievement Award, to Maral Agnerian. The award was announced during the virtual Single Pattern Contest and Future Fashion Show streamed at 8PM Central Daylight time.
The award is made in recognition of the formidable role she has played for over 15 years in both the International Costumers’ Guild and in the wider costuming community.
For her her costuming skills, many years of service to the ICG and the wider costuming community, Maral Agnerian was selected by the LAA electors to receive the 2025 Award.
View her LAA award page to learn more about her.
Below is the text of Kevin Roche’s announcement, which was released on the ICG YouTube channel.
Hello! I’m Kevin Roche, President of the International Costumers’ Guild.
One of the unique responsibilities and privileges of being president of the ICG is administering the selection process for and presentation of the International Costumers Guild Lifetime Achievement Award.
The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes a body of achievement in the costuming art and service to the costuming community. Candidates for the award:
- Shall have been active in the costuming community for at least 10 years.
- Shall have achieved significant recognition for their costuming skills, which may be in the form of, but not restricted to, competitive awards, professional accomplishments, teaching of skills, and/or media recognition.
- Shall have made significant contributions in service to the costuming community.
Any ICG member, chapter or special interest group in good standing may nominate candidates; the selection is done by the Chapter Presidents and elected ICG officers via secret ballot administered by the President.
This year we, again, had several deserving nominees, and it is my privilege tonight to announce the 2025 recipient.
This costumer and cosplay legend has had a career spanning longer than some con attendees have been alive.
They have been costuming since 1999, compete at the Master level, and their work has been widely recognized in costuming communities world-wide. They have won numerous awards at local, national, and international competitions, including their most recent triumph as the winner of the U.S. National Crown Championships of Cosplay.
Well-known for their deep and abiding love of beautiful fabrics, beads, and all manner of shiny things, this year’s honoree relishes the challenge of bringing a 2-D design to life, but also loves the creativity inherent in original designs. They are always looking for, and sometimes creating, new sewing and construction techniques to learn and experiment with. In addition to execution with stunning craftsmanship, their creative presentations onstage bring her costumed characters to life.
On the community front, our honoree strongly believes in spreading knowledge and information throughout the greater costuming community. They are in high demand as a teacher, and regularly offer courses and workshops at conventions and other venues. They also author articles and present webinars highlighting their work and the techniques they have developed.
In addition to teaching and presenting, they have served our costuming community for many years by running conventions, serving as a masquerade director, and judging costume competitions in North America, such as at Costume-Con and Anime North, and internationally. In October 2024, They were invited to serve as a judge for masquerades, the Variety Show, and the World Cosplay Summit qualifiers at Comic Con London.
And on a purely personal note, this year’s honoree brought me tears of joy with her rendition at Costume-Con 39 of a design I also once recreated and presented, in drag, at Costume-Con 23: the Le Jazz Hot dress from Victor/Victoria.
It is my honor and privilege to announce that the recipient of the 2025 International Costumers’ Guild Lifetime Achievement Award is Maral Agnerian
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