Wildlife photographer Chris Garbacz has spent the last 12 years touring the world, camera in hand, but a display of her work is currently a bit more local – hanging at Lincolnwood Village Hall as part of a featured artist installment.
Sixteen of Garbacz’s stunning images are on display in “Wildlife Between the Poles,” her first one-person show available through Dec. 30.
A reception was held Nov. 19.
“The key to wildlife photography is getting to watch and learn the behaviors,” Garbacz said. “Once you understand the behavior of an animal it makes the pictures so much better.”
Viewers of the exhibit at Village Hall will see a diverse range of animals, including a snowy owl in Canada, humpback whale in the Dominican Republic, a silverback gorilla in Rwanda, elephants in Kenya, a weddell seal in Antarctica, a polar bear and cub in Norway, and more.
Garbacz, a native of Barrington, began travels as a wildlife photographer as a gift.
“About 15 years ago, my mom got very sick. She was in the hospital for about 3 1/2 years,” she said.
Garbacz visited her mother every day.
“When my mom got better, she said, ‘I want to treat you by taking you on a National Geographic trip of your choice,’” Garbacz said. “A year or two later, I ended up on a trip to the Galapagos.”
Her mother, who was unable to go on that trip, also bought her daughter a camera.
On that trip, Garbacz connected with a group of friends with whom she has been traveling the world for the last 12 years, she said.
Her first trip with the group was to Tanzania. A photo of lions that the photographer took on that trip is in the exhibit.
Garbacz said she is able to finance her trips because she spent 35 years as a lighting designer and an electrician for the stage.
She had earned degrees in environmental studies and theater at the University of California Santa Cruz. “
When I graduated in 1990, I couldn’t get a job in the environmental field,” Garbacz said.
She did get a job at a theater in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
“From there, I started traveling around the country to different regional theater companies,” she said.
Locally, she has done lighting for Steppenwolf, Goodman and Court theaters, and Chicago Opera Theater and many others.
Since focusing on wildlife photography, Garbacz has visited all seven continents, most recently she traveled to Antarctica.
“When I’m on the trips, you can never predict what’s going to appear,” Garbacz noted. “You see what wanders by.”
Garbacz has five trips scheduled for 2025, starting with Japan in February. Other trips will include British Columbia in May, Iceland in June, and Brazil in August.
The Village Hall exhibit is Garbacz’s first solo show. All of the photos, which are on metal, are available for sale at prices from $400 to $875.
Garbacz also sells wall calendars of her photos. “I’m up to 300 a year now,” she said.
This year the calendar includes 49 of her photos. The calendars sell for $28. She also sells nature and wildlife note cards at $5 each or sets of 5 for $20.
Village Art Curator Nancy Wickum, a Lincolnwood resident, said she met Garbacz at a previous exhibit opening at Village Hall.
“I was really fascinated by her journeys — the fact that she had gone all over the world photographing these amazing animals,” Wickum said. “I was quite taken with her process — the fact that they’re printed on metal.”
She also praised the images, saying that they “grab you and draw you into the picture.”
Wickup said everything about Garbacz’s work is unique.
“Wildlife Between the Poles” is available for viewing weekdays during Village Hall hours.
Myrna Petlicki is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
