HOW A GAP YEAR AND A MOVIE CHANGED EVERYTHING

Everything started the summer I was taking a year off from art school at Parsons. I had no clue what I’d do with an art degree if I finished the program and was totally lost and looking for direction (and who isn’t at 19).

THE MOMENT I KNEW

After watching Julie and Julia my ever-supportive boyfriend bought me a copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking and I started baking from it. I found a passion but didn’t see myself working in a sweaty, high-pressure kitchen and still had art on the mind. That’s when I saw an episode of Sweet Genius with Ron Ben-Israel and everything fell into place. The second I saw his cakes in the background while pastry chefs created edible pieces of art I thought, that’s what I’ll do.