Imogen Kwok on Career Pivots + Culinary Creations
Who doesn't love hearing from inspiring women? Launching this International Women's Day, our Female Voices campaign, in support of Smart Works, spotlights intelligent women from across industries with plenty of wisdom to share, on everything from careers to clothing heroes.
In the second of our series, Michelin-trained chef and food artist Imogen Kwok spoke to us about her career pivots and culinary creations, all while multi-tasking over a tray of desserts almost too beautiful to eat in her home kitchen. Raised in New York and now based in London, Imogen has followed in the steps of her female mentors to carve out her own creative space and cement her reputation as one of the most exciting innovators on London’s food scene.
Talk us through your career journey from art galleries to Michelin-trained chef to food artist.
I studied art history at university and I thought that I would continue in the gallery world but when I graduated, I still really wanted to do something with my hands. I was missing that tactility and being connected to the making of things. So I ended up at culinary school and I then trained in Michelin-style restaurants in New York.
After that I wanted a little bit more freedom, so I ended up doing food styling and photography for videos, cookbooks, ads - the whole thing. When I moved to London, I decided to bring everything together: the experience, the hospitality and the restaurant side.
What did working in those Michelin-starred kitchens teach you about teamwork and leadership?
I think that it was extremely formative. I think the way that I was taught and trained and shown what to do, and the way I lead my own team, is very connected to that mentoring style. Especially with food styling, I worked under and assisted like, five different women who were so badass and cool.
I'm a short woman and in the kitchen back then a lot of it had to do with your physical capabilities. Being a small person, I wasn't able to lift a 50 pound sack of flour from one end of the room to the other. I felt limited in some ways. And then when I started food styling, it was great to work under different women that still had that like, ‘I'm cool, I can cook, but I can also do everything else too [attitude]’, so that's how I like to teach my team as well.
What is it about expressing yourself through food as a medium that inspires you?
I feel like I love it because it is so multi-sensory. Food is an organic material. It's ephemeral, it's always moving, it's always changing. So it brings with it a lot of limitations, but also as a visceral medium it's something that is super intimate and, I think, expressive.
Where do you get the inspiration for your creations from?
I think it comes from everywhere. Because food is a human necessity - you need to eat, you’re constantly surrounded by it, you're looking at different things, seeing different things, tasting different things - I think inspiration can come from a new restaurant you've gone to and obviously, like, a cookbook. But most of the time it's from going to galleries, going to museums or any of that kind of thing, if I need a little rejig or inspiration.
I think that incorporating especially my art history background, it's how can we find new ways to interpret something through food and not just concentrate on recipes? Let's expand and sort of see how to make interesting, unexpected connections.
What has been your favourite creation to date?
I made these peanut pearls for a collaboration which I really loved. They were these peanut shells that we had emptied out, and then inside put in yogurt-covered raisins, but the raisins had been spray painted in edible sugar to look like pearls. Then we sealed the peanut shell back up with edible glue, and so when they came to the table, everyone thought they were just peanuts but inside they found something really sweet.
I think that's a good example of my work being playful and a little bit whimsical, but also approachable. It's a surprise, it's interactive, it has this performative aspect. I love making those and seeing people's reactions. It encapsulates what my work is about, really.
Cooking is such physical work. How does that impact your style choices when you’re working?
Never any sleeves! It drives me crazy to have sleeves or having to push anything up on your arm. I don't like wearing aprons, it doesn't do anything for me. It covers up your whole outfit. I'm very used to also looking nice when you're cooking, which I think is important - that you can still like wear something that is an amazing look and be able to do your job at the same time, which I'm an advocate for. You have to be practical in some ways but you can still look awesome.
Last one, when it comes to cooking for yourself, is it a pleasure or a chore?
I love cooking at home. Even after a day of work, I could just stand and peel vegetables all day. It helps me unwind. I'm always very particular about what plate and what dish something is going on. Even when I order takeaway food, everything has to come out of the containers and be re-plated. Then I'll probably end up making, like, a salsa verde and then another condiment or something like that. So by the time you're actually eating, you might as well have just cooked something yourself. So yeah, I try not to order take out that much…
In Support of Smart Works
We’re proud to launch our Female Voices campaign on International Women’s Day in support of Smart Works.
Smart Works is a UK charity that dresses and coaches unemployed women for interview and job success. Since 2013, Smart Works has supported over 45,000 women across 11 centres. In 2025, they will open their 12th centre in Bristol, an evidenced area of need, and by April will be supporting 10,000 women across the UK each year.
To mark our campaign, ME+EM will be donating to Smart Works to support and encourage their incredible work. To learn more about the charity, visit smartworks.org.uk.
+