Cooking has always been a big part of my life. My mom is a great cook and I was exposed to a variety of flavors, textures and types of cuisine throughout my upbringing that sparked a lifelong passion for food.
For my MFA thesis at Pratt Institute I wrote a comparison between the art experience and the gastronomic experience. The word gastronomic encompasses both the making and consuming of food. Next to my passion for visual arts and food I have a dance background, I was a professional ballet dancer for over a decade, so performing is in my blood. I have always had a secret dream of being a TV host. About two months into the pandemic we had our routine down in how to “forge” our food. We got much of our food through a restaurant supplier which provided us with great produce. This really inspired me to experiment a bit more in the kitchen.
One day as a joke I filmed myself while cooking, I explained what I was doing, filmed what was happening in the pots and pans and made some funny comments. I posted the video on Instagram and got so many positive reactions that I decided to create a separate Instagram account @TheAartsOfCooking . I started making more cooking videos and photos of the meals I made and I really love doing it. My daughter would say “daddy are you pretending again that you are on TV” and indeed my secret dream of being a TV host came true for that brief moment in the spring/summer of 2020.