Messy and Bright

Killian McGregor may not have had the best start in life, but he's figured out how to finish things well. He began with swimming, propelling himself fast enough through the water to land a scholarship to NYU. He's also found a way to turn his artistic talent into a career—it's just not the career he wants. He'd rather focus on installation art, turning trash into something meaningful.

He has a plan, though.

Killian's selling a piece at a holiday gala in a prominent New York gallery, and he'...