Technical Arts teachers at Lick-Wilmerding High School are widely known for being nice, helpful and interesting educators. These are all positive qualities, yet there is much more to these teachers beneath the surface. The truth is, they have incredible artistic talent and creative expression, unbeknownst to much of the student body.
Andrew Kleindolph, electronics and Design & Technology teacher, creates and sells electronic art. Laurel Nathanson, Sewing and Jewelry teacher, used to sell jewelry art but now focuses on making pieces (mostly clothing) for herself. Youssou Fall, wood shop and Design & Technology teacher, makes furniture by commission.
Outside of his role as the Electronics, Design & Technology Teacher at LWHS, Kleindolph has been running his website, “extrasleepy.” Kleindolph came up with the name because he thought it was “humorous, but also meditative. I felt like for some reason that name seemed to fit the vibe of the work.” That vibe can be classified as vibrant and modern. His objects have high craftsmanship. Kleindolph also shows his work in public galleries. He describes this as mainly a creative outlet, but also a business. He sells his work on his website and at physical locations in the Bay Area such as the Great Highway Gallery and Open Editions on Valencia Street.
Kleindolph’s current interest is functional design and art. “I think there’s a practical element to a lot of the work, and those sell more. They’re also less expensive,” he said.
An example of the more practical work that he sells are the lamps on his website. These lamps come in various shapes and colors and all of them are unique. One of them is shaped like a loaf of bread while another looks like a hot coil. Kleindolph explained that he sells about six or seven pieces a year.
Photo by Andrew Kleindolph
Kleindolph also appreciated how his website and social media platforms have become a way of documenting his work, creating a gallery and allowing him to see how his artistic style and interests have changed over the years. Kleindolph explained that his past work is very different from what he creates now. “I used to do a lot more esoteric things,” he said.
Kleindolph went to school for art and design, getting his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa and his Master’s from Mills College. He then started his website in the 2000s. Although he has been selling his art for a while, Kleindolph said that his purpose is not to make money, and would never serve as a replacement for his teaching career. “I wouldn’t be able to quit my job. That’s not my goal either. I’ve always [sold my art] for me, the creativity is most important. One of the things I like about selling work is that other people can enjoy it,” he said.
This is even more meaningful to Kleindolph as someone who enjoys buying and having others’ art in his home.
Balancing working on his projects and also teaching can be a challenge for Kleindolph, but a manageable one. “When I have free time, that’s just how I spend it. Working on creative things, it’s just a fun meditative process,” he said. “I’ve done art for so long, it’s hard to not do it.” Kleindolph also mentioned the fact that he does not have kids allows him to have more free time.
The work-life balance can be a challenge for teachers, one that led Jewelry and Textiles Teacher Laurel Nathanson to stop actively selling and showing her work. She still has work for sale in a few jewelry galleries and on her website, but she is not making new jewelry or trying to promote her work. “It’s so challenging to focus on that while having a job, and the reality is I don’t really need the money. The effort it has taken to sustain any sort of business is just not worth it to me anymore, and I love teaching at Lick so why am I pushing myself to sustain an art career as well?” she said. She used to sell her handmade jewelry, however now focuses on clothing and mainly just crafts for her own personal use.
Nathanson also talked about how the time it took to photograph pieces and apply to showings was not enjoyable and took time away from actually working on her craft.
Nathanson madewearable jewelry and pieces that could also be viewed as art, along with mixed media art forms that included textiles and jewelry in one piece.
photo by Laurel Nathanson
Nathanson stopped actively showing her work two or three years ago after pursuing it for most of her 22 years at LWHS. “ I decided, screw it. I just want to sew clothes [for fun].” She has recently gotten into making multimedia art quilts. Nathanson explained that she has been much happier since she stopped actively trying to show and market her work.
Nathanson further elaborated on her newfound joy. “I’ve learned these skills, I’ve taught myself [about sewing], I’ve put in a lot of effort to learn, and I almost feel like I’m rewarding myself for a lot of many years of hard work, trying to get where I am with my skill set.”
Although she is loving what she is calling “the greedy years”, just making things for herself, Nathanson does see herself getting back out there soon with a new body of work that she will promote and try to show. “I’m not quite ready to go back on social media and go through that process of getting seen, but I do have some new textile art pieces I want to make so I suspect I will have to endure all that in the future. I guess it goes in waves. But a constant has been how cool Lick is for me. I love spending my days teaching what I love to such creative and hilarious kids. Thanks everyone for making me laugh everyday.”
She also explained the benefits of making something solely for oneself, noting that it is much more fulfilling to be able to execute her own ideas instead of others’. “I’m just so tired of trying to make things for other people because they have such different visions. And it’s just really, really draining.”
Her way of balancing work and personal craft is making use of vacations. Nathanson explained how she is “greedy” with her time. During vacations, she solely works on her projects. This is a benefit of being a teacher and working by an academic calendar.
Woodshop Teacher Youssou Fall deals with time management in a similar way to Nathanson. “You try to segregate each thing in its own bucket. Most of my work outside of teaching is done on weekends, holidays and sometime after school,” he said.
That work is making custom furniture and cabinets. He explained that his business, which is run through his own social network and is limited to his community, is going well. He has recently been commissioned to make some custom pieces that are in progress.
Fall started his business 20 years ago, prior to coming to LWHS, both because he always loved making things and because it provided him with an extra source of income.
All three expressed this love of making art as a source of joy and the reason why they started pursuing their own business.
