Tub Time – Photographer Tate Tullier gets intimate in new series

Tate Tullier’s exhibit “Tub Time with Tate” will be on display at The Wellness Studio (7472 Highland Rd.) tonight from 7 p.m.-9 p.m. The reception is free and open to the public. After tonight’s show, the exhibit can be seen for a few weeks by appointment only. Call 448-3359 for more details.

Local photographer Tate Tullier has always wanted to do something more artistic with his images.

“I was always looking for a project to have on the side that escapes from my daily routine work and gear my path into a more fine arts direction,” he says.

Enter Tub Time with Tate, a series of black and white portraits the local photographer started around February 2012. The series features locals and out-of-towners in an intimate pose in a bathtub. The idea immediately clicked with Tullier.

“I have always loved bathtubs in photography,” he says. “I am such a big bath person. I rarely take showers. The only time I ever shower is when there isn’t a bathtub available.”

Yes, there’s some nudity in the photos. There’s vulnerability, as well. However, the subject matter and attitudes from viewers and participants that came with it didn’t bother him.

“Nudity never intimidates me,” he says. “At first, I was nervous that it would be perceived by our local community as ‘pervy’ or strange because the state is conservative overall compared to others. My first subjects were excited but nervous about friends and family’s reactions. [That nervousness] influenced the work and the comfort level at first. Now, I’m more confident on where I stand with the project. It has grown so much.”

Now, almost three years later, the photos have popped up everywhere on Instagram. You can find more than 700 thanks to the hashtag #TubTimewithTate. He’s held shoots in his own tub in Gonzales as well as traveled to Los Angeles and New York City. At that final destination, he shot Ryan Serhant from the television show Million Dollar Listing New York and even showed off a few shots in an exhibit at Dyer Arts Center in Rochester, New York.

He says people’s reactions aren’t that the images are pornographic or “pervy”—they end up being more in awe of how he captured the beauty of the human body.

“This project resonates with so many different types of people because it’s a human study rather than just being nude photos to drool over,” he says. “My subjects have also always told me they loved the experience. Several have felt different about themselves after doing the session. They feel rejuvenated. Some say they didn’t realize it, but it’s a confidence booster.”

Editor’s note: Tate Tullier occasionally shoots for 225‘s print issues.