Sara Nightingale Gallery Celebrating Relocation With Grand Opening Exhibition

This winter, Sara Nightingale Gallery will relocate from Water Mill to 26 Main Street in Sag Harbor. Their grand opening celebration will be on Saturday, January 14th from 5 to 7 p.m. The first exhibit at the new location will feature works from Aaron Kresberg, a student at the Ross School in East Hampton, who will present his senior project, Namibia: Exploring Endangered Species through Photography. Provisions, another local Sag Harbor business will be graciously donating food and drink for the opening.

“I’m thrilled to be joining the unique small business owners of Sag Harbor,” remarked Sara Nightingale, gallery owner. “My first exhibition is a good example of what you can expect from the gallery going forward: art that is relevant to the greater community beyond just the art world. The artist is a local resident, a student at the Ross School, yet his project brings awareness to a global issue.”

Kresberg met the owner of the Rare and Endangered Species Trust (REST), Maria Diekmann, through a Ross Field Academy trip to Namibia in February of 2016. He began volunteering the following summer for Diekmann and decided he would dedicate his senior year project to the organization’s work. As a part of his senior project, Kresberg held fundraisers.

REST focuses on rehabilitating endangered animals of Africa and releasing them back into the wild. For more information on REST, visit www.facebook.com.

Kresberg documented his experience working with vultures, pangolins, and other endangered species through film and photography. 100 percent of the proceeds from sales of his work at Sara Nightingale Gallery will be sent directly to REST. The donations will help cover the cost of a new aviary for a variety of endangered birds.

“When I first saw Aaron’s video clip of the the slowly blinking injured owl, I immediately sensed an underlying political metaphor, even though that wasn’t the artist’s intention,” reflected Nightingale. “Owls are symbols of wisdom and stature, but because they are nocturnal creatures, there is an inherent association with darkness. They are known for having excellent vision, but in this case the owl has a missing eye and cannot fend for itself in the wild. Aaron’s dark image of the venerable owl elicits empathy from the viewer. The fact that is has been rescued and is being rehabilitated is a signal of hope.”

Namibia: Exploring Endangered Species through Photography will run through Wednesday, February 8th.

The gallery is locate at 26 Main Street in Sag Harbor. For more information, call 631-793-2256 or visit www.saranightingale.com.