A Recipe forSuccess

Professor Dominique Battles puts lifelong passion into print

By Tilly Marlatt

had the written copy but needed a designer. Lostutter matched her with Grace Mitchell ‘22.

The collaboration brought out the best of their talents.

“As a professor here at the College, I sort of live for and love to help students realize and manifest their potential, and that watching students just blossom as human beings is always a thrill. It never grows old for me,” said Battles.

Through the project, Mitchell honed her skills in graphic design, food photography and client management. Most importantly, the 108-page cookbook offered her the chance to complete a large-scale project while a full-time student.

“I felt like in my meetings with them [Lostutter and Mitchell] that she was very much a young apprentice,” reflected Battles. “Not so much like a student, but a young professional in training, learning how to ask the right questions, how to guide, but also follow the client’s ideas. She did a really good job at that.”

Mitchell’s role with the project positioned her to lead and educate, primarily around the principles of graphic design, while navigating the creation and revision process with Battles.

“As Grace was learning, I was learning,” said Battles. Lostutter provided mentorship to Mitchell throughout the process and would often sit in on meetings between the two, but it was Mitchell who ultimately transformed the recipes from paper to publication.

“I kind of learned as I went. I had worked with a client before but never one-on-one. I learned what questions to ask. A lot of people don’t know what they want. They don’t know what goes into the design, so I had to ask leading questions,” shared Mitchell.

In light of both parties newness to the publishing process, the path presented challenges, but Mitchell and Battles remained committed to the project.

“I always like to think of Vincent van Gogh’s quote of, ‘Great things are not done by impulse but by a series of small things brought together.’ A book is just a lot of small things over many years and I would say don’t be intimidated by setbacks. Believe that you do have a contribution even though there are lots of cookbooks out there,” said Battles.