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Nathaniel Klein ’18

June 9, 2022, in Los Angeles, California, died unexpectedly in his home. 

Born in Maywood, Illinois, Nat was musically inclined from a young age. He played violin, piano, French horn, and mandolin with an uncanny maturity, taught himself to throat sing, and appreciated music from all time periods and from all over the world. He graduated from Mount Vernon High where he participated in the speech club. Through his varied interests—and in particular his interest in science—Nat had the opportunity to visit many beautiful cities and countries. His favorite place of all was Portland, Oregon, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in biology at Reed and wrote his thesis, “Retinoic Acid and the Differentiation of Retinal Stem Cells,” advised by Prof. Kara Cerveny [biology]. 

He worked as a research associate at the University of Arizona in Tucson before moving to Baltimore, where he studied for a short period of time at Johns Hopkins University before moving to Los Angeles to pursue his academic career at UCLA. 

Nat loved working with tiny things, from making miniature sculptures to performing surgery on fruit flies and the eyes of fish. As an artist, he painted, sculpted, made digital art, jewelry, and animation, and sketched high fashion design concepts for fun. He was an athlete who ran cross country, played soccer, did archery, and danced ballet and tap. Nat loved animals and was an advocate for them. He found time for the smallest of details. Friends and family will remember his wickedly funny wordplay, puns, spoonerisms, one-liners, and scathing observations, all delivered in a quiet singsong. 

Nat is survived by his parents, C. Elise Klein and Gordon Klein, and his siblings Will, Daisy, and Poppy. 

Appeared in Reed magazine: September 2022