Today we’d like to introduce you to Cory Pohlman.
Hi Cory, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
When I was fifteen years old, I moved with my family from the San Fernando Valley to Paris, France. As you can imagine, my mind was blown. I already thought of myself as a young artist and when I was exposed to the food and decadent artistic desserts of the city I didn’t realize it at the time, but those two parts of me were fused together. I went on to attend Parsons in New York City, received M.F.A from the Cranbrook Academy of Art and graduated from Le Cordon Blue Culinary School in Scottsdale, AZ.
I worked as a cake decorator in Beverly Hills for seven years, but I was always tinkering with and experimenting with pushing the boundaries of sugar art and chocolate. One day Lady Gaga’s assistant approached me after seeing one of my cakes at an event to propose creating sculpted chocolate gifts to ship to as gifts. This launched my company Bohnhoff and Kent.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
When you are using edible products as your material for art all you find is obstacles. Engineer products and packaging them to ship is like competing in egg drop challenge every day. Customer’s perceptions of chocolate and sugar art can vary as well and you have to attempt to break their through their first thought, “It’s only dessert.”
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
When party planners or companies have an idea for an installation which seems impossible, they seem to end up at my door. And they know I can never resist the challenge. This has given me the opportunity to make some of my most memorable installations like the four foot tall high heel for the Beverly Hills Housewives or the eye-candy installation I recently did for an Apple event. However, what brings me the most joy and pride is when someone orders a gift to send to a loved one or I see the reaction to a cake at a party.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I would first recommend art training of any sort. Having a foundation in composition and design helps so much when you want to take your decorating to the next level. Second, I would say work in another part of the industry: party planning, retail or marketing. Knowing what your customers and business partners want and expect from their perspective is invaluable.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @corypohlman
