Throughout my career journey, I’ve found that the root of everything I’m passionate about comes down to two things: design and process of creating a design that helps shape how we exist in our environments. My interests in art, music, food, and architecture are all connected by an invisible string leading back to this very broad, yet very human concept of design.

It all began with life’s most basic necessity: food. From a young age, I was always searching for answers about how food functions in my body. What began as a personal healing journey in my relationship with food led to a degree in Nutritional Sciences. Learning the physiological pathways of food in the body felt like a form of design - one that’s both fascinating and essential for understanding the deeper, psychological connections we form with what we eat.

Over time, that curiosity grew into a passion for advocating food as a vehicle for communication and storytelling. Through the interdisciplinary Master of Arts in Food Studies program at NYU, I explored how politics, media, culture, and access shape our food choices and experiences. That understanding reinforced something I feel deeply: our food journeys are personal, shaped by our environments, communities, and experiences/circumstances. Food is a powerful communicator and a reflection of the world in which we live in, our identities, and the stories that connect us.

Art, music, and architecture can do the same from different angles, each adding layers to the multi-sensory language of design. My hope is to not only continue expanding my knowledge on these concepts, but also challenge environmental and social constructs, so that growth, creativity, and connection can continue to flourish.

-Sofia Grijalva