Owls, Turtles and Bears Visit Pollak Gallery

For many of us living in the local area, the only opportunity to see animals in the wild is either on television, at a zoo, or those random times in recent history when black bears manage to find their way into our neighborhoods. Regardless, opportunities to see these animals are quite rare, but those who want to see these creatures in the wild now have the opportunity to do so at Monmouth University’s Pollak Gallery.

This isn’t to say the animals will be roaming the halls of the gallery, but professional photographer Eric Sambol is currently exhibiting a myriad of his nature photographs in an exhibit called, “Wild.” All of the images were taken by Sambol during his opportunity to interact with these animals in their natural habitats in New Jersey, Manitoba, Alaska and British Columbia.

“The mere experience of photographing wildlife transports me to another world,” he said. “It is an added bonus when I capture the essence and magnificence of another being I get to share the planet with.”

This exhibit, which opened on Monday, Aug. 15, will be on display at the Pollak Gallery until Sept. 30. Patrons also have the opportunity to purchase some of the photographs they see, and all proceeds from the sale of these photographs will be donated to the Scholarship Fund of Monmouth University, as well as the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey.

Samples of Sambol’s work are available on his website, ericsambol.com. On the site, individuals can see his work, including pictures of animals in Alaska and bears in the Great Bear Rainforest. His work goes from pictures of animals in his backyard to pictures of leopards and tigers in Botswana. Not all of the photographs are pictures of animals either, as he has a great number of pictures of various sky and landscape scenes.

Those interested in seeing this exhibit, which is co-sponsored by the Urban Coast Institute, can visit the Pollak Gallery from Monday to Friday from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m. Patrons interested in seeing this exhibit during the weekend can call 732-263-5759 to schedule a time to see the exhibit. There is no cost to come to this gallery in West Long Branch and view these photographs.

For more information on the Conserve Wildlife Foundation, please visit conservewildlifenj.org. For more information on any of the upcoming exhibits at the Pollak Gallery, please visit Monmouth.edu/arts.