Information about the Richard Martin Exhibition Awards, which recognize outstanding costume exhibitions, including eligibility, nomination procedures, and past recipients.
Exhibition must be mounted physically or virtually at a museum, historical society, historic house, academic department, or site where museum standards are applied.; At least 60% of objects on display must relate to or be costume artifacts.; At least one person on the exhibition team must be a CSA member.; Exhibition must have been presented in the 15 months prior to October 15, 2025.; Curator must not have received the award in the past three years (does not apply to professional/faculty mentors of student-led exhibitions).
Requirements
Nomination must be made by the CSA member of the exhibition team.; Nomination must be uploaded as one PDF document under 100MB.; Must include cover page, table of contents, institution information, exhibition overview, curatorial research summary, communication plan, exhibition design description, and...
Application materials
Cover page with contact information; Paginated table of contents; Institution information (max 500 words); Exhibition overview (max 500 words, up to 20 images); Curatorial research summary (max 500 words, up to 5 pages of examples); Communication plan summary (max 500 words, up to 5 pages of examples)
How to apply
Nominations should be made by the CSA member of the exhibition team.; Submit via the online submission form as one PDF document under 100MB.
Important dates
Nomination deadline: November 1, 2026; Notification of results: February 15, 2027
Contact
Annette Becker (Committee Chair)
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