Mari Senaga is an award-winning sugar artist and International Certified Judge (ICJ), recognized as one of the early recipients of this distinguished designation. With more than thirty years of professional experience in teaching, judging, and demonstrating, she has played a significant role in the advancement of contemporary sugar artistry.
She is widely known for transforming traditionally crafted gum paste flowers and fondant designs into modeling chocolate creations — redefining texture, realism, and structural expression. Mari has developed original techniques that allow intricate decorative elements to remain fully edible while achieving dimensional depth and lifelike precision.
Based in Kent, Washington, Mari operates her own cake business and teaches advanced cake decorating and sugar arts across multiple mediums. She serves on the Board of the International Cake Exploration Society as Certification and Education Chair, contributing to the development of professional standards and educational pathways within the industry.
In the Holiday Cake Category, Mari brings pioneering judging authority and innovative vision — evaluating craftsmanship, originality, material mastery, and the ability to translate celebration into refined, fully edible artistry.