Oct. 13, 2017

The Tutu Project Travels to Scottsdale

New York-based photographer Bob Carey was in the Valley last week to showcase his inspiring and controversial photographs at the opening of FIAT LUX, a new pop up gallery in Scottsdale.

In 2002, as part of a new project exploring stereotypes and transformation, Carey began photographing himself in a tutu. When his wife, Linda, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2003, the project took on a different meaning and officially became The Tutu Project. Carey photographed hundreds of images of himself in nothing but a pink tutu at iconic locations including the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, Times Square and Central Park. Carey’s wife shared them with other patients, bringing laughter and levity into their chemotherapy treatments. It became a powerful tool for self-therapy, expressing vulnerability, isolation and humor. This body of images went viral in 2012 and has since been entertaining people around the world.

The FIAT LUX debut of The Tutu Project is the first time the collection has been shown in Arizona, in concomitance with Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Each year, the photographer produces a calendar for The Tutu Project displaying a collection of images designed to enlighten and inspire cancer patients and their families. Gallery sales, as well as sales for the book Ballerina and the calendar, benefit The Carey Foundation, dedicated to financially supporting women and men diagnosed with breast cancer and their families.

Created by photographer and Phoenix resident Jacques Barbey and his wife Raquel, FIAT LUX, located in Scottsdale, is a 6,000-square-foot space offering a 3D canvas for artists to transform with their work. A cross between an art gallery and a pop-up show, the gallery will host three themed shows on exhibit for several weeks in fall 2017 and spring 2018.