Young people have a knack for discovering and discarding passions like a pair of sneakers. Though he has always pursued the sciences in his professional career, Rick Gold (or Mr. Au as he sometimes cleverly refers to himself) has long been inspired by photography.
It started in junior high school and Gold admits it was the chemistry that attracted him. But photography was just one of many interests, and Gold soon set it aside in favor of other pursuits.
In high school, Gold won a Westinghouse Science Challenge by developing his own personal computer (back when the term didn’t exist), a project he ended up dropping a few years later. He also developed a passion for music.
“My life has been a series of getting interested in something, developing it and then putting it on the back shelf and going onto something else,” says Gold.
“When I was younger, I hated that. I felt terrible and restless, like I couldn’t stick with something and get really good at it,” add Gold who studied engineering at Columbia University, but soon realized his heart was really in music, philosophy and photography.
Eventually though, science took center stage for Gold. After earning his engineering degree from Brooklyn Polytechnic, he worked for GE in Massachusetts, and in 1984, at the urging of a friend, moved to Sag Harbor to become director of engineering at QMED, a firm that made heart monitors. But after six years, Gold changed directions again and went into teaching, this time in New Jersey. Eventually, he wound up back in Sag Harbor at Pierson where he taught physics, chemistry and astronomy. And it was in his role of science teacher that Gold ultimately found his way back to an earlier love — photography.
“When I started teaching at Pierson, I felt like I was in over my head,” admits Gold. “I had read a booklet called ‘Ten Ways to Liven Up the Science Classroom,’ and one suggestion was to take pictures of kids and put them on the wall.”
“I tried it in my third year, and it was a hit. It appealed to their shyness and narcissism at the same time,” reports Gold who recalls capturing a look of surprise on a student’s face as she reached the culmination of a flashy experiment.
“This was a student who hated my class and didn’t want to take chemistry,” he says. “I knew the experiment was going to have a great outcome and would startle her.”
Gold became something of an “unofficial” photographer for Pierson. With his Leica in hand, he would show up to shoot school plays, skits, rallies or other events. Soon the walls of Pierson were peppered with candid shots taken around the school. Not only had Gold found his way back to a passion that had been put on a 25 year hiatus, he also found photography was a great way to connect with the students.
“As a teacher I decided what I wanted to share was my love and excitement of learning, which is something you can’t teach,” he says.
And though Gold gave up teaching a few years ago due to health issues, photography remains a focus in his life. The picture he snapped of the student discovering chemistry in his classroom is currently on view at Romany Kramoris Gallery (41 Main Street, Sag Harbor), along with a few select photographs of Gold’s local landscapes. With the hindsight of experience, these days Gold firmly believes that diversity is the spice of life.
“I believe the secret of success is not to specialize, but have a love and understanding of a broad range of complimentary subjects,” he says. “The beauty of science and the arts is not just the tools, but also the rigorous scientific principals both are based on.”
Top: “Potato Field” a photograph by Rick Gold
