Meet the man behind the world's largest gingerbread village, now on display in NYC
NEW YORK — The Guinness World Record holder for the largest gingerbread village is Gingerbread Lane, now on display at the Shops at Columbus Circle, and it's all the work of one dedicated Queens artist.
CBS News New York's Elle McLogan got a look behind the scenes to see how the holiday magic comes to life.
From fine dining to full-time gingerbread man
"I work in three mediums: icing and gingerbread and candy," Gingerbread Lane creator Jon Lovitch said.
At his home basement studio in Forest Hills, cracked and damaged gingerbread is on the operating table, including a miniature nutcracker that lost a foot.
"But for the most part, the exhibits hold up pretty good," he said.
Gingerbread Lane features a miniature New York taxi, a newsstand and a subway car.
"And I don't go for perfection. I try to create a scene," he said.
The Missouri native is a former fine-dining executive chef, whose lifelong love of Christmas inspired a career change. He's now a full-time gingerbread man.
He bakes the gingerbread himself with brown sugar, ginger and cinnamon. He estimates he has baked a combined 25,000 pounds of gingerbread in his career.
In the weeks before Christmas, he's already beginning construction on next year's gingerbread.
"People really, really do like it," he said. "I think it's the detail, and it's the ability to try to recreate the outer world in an edible, whimsical, winter wonderland-type fashion."
For Lovitch, seeing guests charmed and intrigued is worth the year-round effort.
"That's just a great feeling," he said.
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