Cake Power: A Candid Interview with Designer Kate Sullivan
It's not every cake designer who gets recruited by the likes of Martha Stewart, InStyle Weddings, and Oprah Winfrey. Building on her former career as a photo editor/director, love of art and infatuation with chocolate, Kate Sullivan brings more than 20 years of creative innovation to cake decorating. This summer, ICE's Center for Advanced Pastry Studies (CAPS) is thrilled to host an exclusive two-day workshop with Sullivan, highlighting such techniques as hand-painting and tie-dyed cakes.
What was one of the most challenging cakes you've designed?
The most challenging request I've ever gotten might well have been for a Rubiks Cube wedding cake. The bride and groom were so great and totally wonderfully geeky about the whole thing! The cube was huge and balanced on one point, and I loved it when it was all done!
If you could bake for anyone in the world, who would it be?
I'm so lucky on this one. I've gotten to bake for some really amazing people that I'm totally blown away by (with my family being at the head of that list, those are definitely the most memorable moments for me). Its kind of crazy—I've been completely tickled to make cakes for some rock and roll legends, masters of design, and famous artists. I've also gotten to present cakes to some truly inspirational kids in hospitals; they really take your breath away. The whole experience has already exceeded my own expectations.
Who are your mentors?
Colette Peters is the person who started me on the road to making cakes with her amazing books.
Where do you find your inspiration for design?
The cake inspirations come from everywhere; everything I see is fair-game. [But more specifically] definitely fashion, and I love going to museums & galleries. I'm particularly inspired by Alexander McQueen and other designers whose work is somewhat fantasy-based. I also love the other cake designers out there; the bar is continually being raised in terms of creativity.
What do you do when you aren't creating works of art?
I enjoy as much time with my husband, son and dog as possible—I LOVE THOSE GUYS! I've also been working to learn all about 3D printing and possible food applications. My one big fat guilty pleasure is that I've also been obsessively binge-watching every episode of Parks & Recreation on Netflix recently.
Why do you enjoy teaching cake painting? I think that, when I'm lost in painting a cake, it might just be the most pure experience of flow that I've ever had. I love the feel of the brush and textures of the colors as they move across the canvas of the fondant. Teaching new ways to transfer a pattern onto a cake and to bring that pattern to life is really rewarding.
To learn more about ICE's Contemporary Cake Painting workshop with Sullivan, click here.
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