Old
School An artisan of his craft
By Hope Moseley
Oliver
Sanchez holds true to his love for printing as technology overtakes the business he’s known for 40 years.
O
liver Sanchez stands at the base of the stove waiting for the luscious butter to sizzle on the black sauté pan. He moves on to the loaf of bread filled with plump dried raisins and cinnamon flakes and dips the thick bread into a sugary – based batter. The toast sizzles on the pan and the room fills up with the buttery, cinnamon aroma, which reminds him of his childhood memories. He opens up a brown paper package, and inside are slivers of pink, smoked apple, maple bacon. He lines up the bacon one by one on a pan and places it in the oven. While the food is cooking Sanchez pours himself a cup of steaming hot coffee. He begins to plate the food
elegantly and drizzles maple syrup until it lathers the toast. He walks out to the porch with his plate, cup of coffee, and of course the bundle of newspapers held by a rubber band. Sitting down with a cup of coffee and opening up a crisp, black and white, printed newspaper is a more enjoyable experience than opening up a plastic laptop and reading the Yahoo news online. Newspapers have a unique ink smell, and when your fingers rub along the paper, black ink sticks to your fingertips. Technology trends are removing the old, slow ways of doing things and replacing them with the new, faster ways. Although the old way is a much slower process, it produces a stunning piece of art
that few people these days take the time to appreciate. The old school way really gets down and dirty in personalizing what exactly people want, whether it is embossing, die cutting, or letter pressing. Oliver Sanchez, however, did not grow up where publishing was of abundance. He was born in Denver Colorado, with his family and cattle, on luscious green farmland. At the age of one, his family moved to the Mission District in San Francisco. Unfortunately, after his senior year at Woodrow Wilson High School, Sanchez soon discovered that he could no longer receive his high school diploma because he was ten credits short. Although this was a sour moment in Sanchez’s life, his life soon became 2
sweeter when he was offered a job at Premier Mounting and Cutting Company driving a forklift. Several months passed and Sanchez soon became bored to tears, but he was extremely interested in the die cutting process that went on at the company. ‘‘I wanted to have my own company, and I thought I was smart enough and had the skills, but being a young guy, it’s not always how it turns out to be, so I had to stay at the company to learn the actual reality of what the job presented’’ (Sanchez). Sanchez knew of one company in San Francisco, owned by Mr. Notaro, and an opportunity presented itself for Sanchez to buy the company. The business continued to be successful because people still had an interest in print. However, after his years of success Sanchez unfortunately hit bottom in 2008. After months with no clients, because of no interest, a disappointed Sanchez was forced to transition to the technology side by using computers and polymer plates.
S
anchez and I walk into a darkened room, where all of the printing is made. Immediately, I feel the cold air touch my face and shivers run down my back as the hair on my skin begin to stick up. He turns on the light and the high ceilings become filled with a yellow glow from the tungsten lights hanging over each machine. Sanchez begins to pull down on some metal chains, which slowly opens up a rusty garage door to the outside misty world. The machines are lined up in rows of two and my eye is drawn to the little machine all the way on the other side of the room. Above the machine is a large roll
Top: Business cards drying on conveyor belt Bottom: Vintage oil cans used for machine maintenance
of brown paper and printed on it are navy boxes. Sanchez powers on the machine and I am startled by the rumbling noise. He laughs and smiles, but continues. Sanchez begins to take a piece of paper, from a gigantic stack, and places it on a metal square. He pushes down on a lever and a second metal square squashes the piece of paper like a sandwich. He lifts up the lever and places the glossy, fresh inked paper on a conveyor belt with shinning
heated lights. His hand begins to move back and forth, faster and faster, from the stack of paper to the metal plate to the moving conveyor belt, until the stack of paper is completely gone. Sanchez shouts enthusiastically, “BAMB” and claps his hands together, which makes an echo in the large room. He walks over to the end of the conveyor belt, picks up one of the dried business cards and hands it over to me. All of the navy letters are raised off of the 3
He is fighting
to keep the doors open and is probably one of the
”
strongest fighters in the paper business paper, to give a 3D kind of effect. Each letter was perfectly aligned, with no smudges, and the paper was strong and sturdy. At that moment, I finally understood why Sanchez loved doing what he does, it is a piece of art; so simple yet so complex. At home, while Sanchez changed into a button down blue striped shirt, I waited patiently in our back garden. He exited the
screen door with a huge smile on his face, extremely excited to be interviewed again. Sanchez had an extraordinary hard time in high school because he couldn’t gather information as well as the other students. He shared that his father would always remind him, “You will never be successful.” Sanchez pauses for a second, “I proved him wrong ... it provoked me too” (Sanchez). He wanted to strive in the
— Pulos
printing business not only because he was curious in what it had to offer, but because he wanted to prove to his father that he could be successful. Sanchez’s daughter says, “He is fighting to keep the doors open and is probably one of the strongest fighters in the paper business” (Pulos). I think one of the main reasons why his doors are still open because he doesn’t want his father to be correct. 4
anchez keeps on pushing those doors open because he has the most amazing help and support from God, his wife, and family. This allows him to want to keep those doors open even though business is slow, “It is the
SS
end result, it’s slowly declined over a period of time...there is just not a call for it anymore” (Sanchez). Having Sanchez live in my house for about two years, I have noticed that God is an asset in his life. I ask Sanchez, “How has God helped you along your path?” He begins to tear up, “He has helped me succeed and if
I failed, he was always there to dust me off, pick me up, and help me go. I couldn’t be where I am today without God” (Sanchez). As technology trends speed ahead at a rate faster than Sanchez can handle, he just keeps on living his life to the fullest extent. He commutes to foggy South San Francisco
every weekday not only to survey his lingering masterpiece, but also to produce the art that few people still want. And while he doesn’t expect his company to get back on its feet during his lifetime, he hopes one of his children will take on the company to make it successful once again. Sanchez experiences an extremely difficult lifestyle, yet he al-
ways makes the most of everything, touching everyone he meets with his special blend of joy and happiness. He understands that technology trends are kicking him out of business, but he is content to know that he has made wonderful pieces of art that have not only made his clients happy but that have also satisfied him. He says, “Whatever you
Above: Dye-cutting machine; Top Left: Metal spools for holding rolls of brown paper; Bottom Right: Engraving machine
do, work hard, be diligent, fair, honest, and humble, and pursue your dreams at whatever cost. Be true to yourself and love everyone on an equal plane” (Sanchez). 5