* Gallery Sitka Artist Reception at The Bull Run Restaurant (Jonathan Route)

Central Mass. Photographer Celebrates Ballerinas’ Beauty
While Raising Funds for Breast Cancer Research
 
Sometimes art can help fight for a good cause. Such is the case with the art of Jonathan Route’s photography, which aims in an upcoming exhibit to raise funds — and awareness — for the struggle to find a cure for breast cancer.
Mr. Route, the star of this “Meet the Artist” event, will exhibit a series of photographs featuring those who practice the art of the ballet at The Bull Run in Shirley on Wednesday, July 29, 5 ─ 7 p.m. But the inspiration for the event is a practitioner of arts other than the dance. The show is dedicated to Mr. Route’s mother, Elaine Route, who battled breast cancer for 17 years before she died in 2009. “My mother was a fantastic painter both in oils and watercolors,” Mr. Route recalls. She also fashioned beautiful hooked rugs and floral designs. Her life and her art inspired her son to take up photography.
The artist’s friend Lisa Leclair has been participating in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in Boston for several years now, along with her daughter Holly Cormier. The 39.3-mile walk is a two-day event that takes place every year in several cities around the country. It was Ms. Leclair who suggested the idea of photographing ballerinas, not on stage or in the rehearsal studio but rather in a natural setting. She dedicates a Facebook page to an individual breast cancer patient, combining her own efforts with those of Mr. Route. Ms. Leclair profoundly admires women who are battling breast cancer, inspired by how they are “fighting like girls.”
The theme of the ballerinas and support for cancer research is combined in Mr. Route’s “Tutus 4 Tatas” project, whose mission is to raise money for various organizations leading the fight against this devastating disease. “When a print is sold either at a show or through the Facebook page, all profits above and beyond the cost of the frame and matte are donated directly to Lisa’s walk or directly to the Avon Walk page,” Mr. Route explains. “I donate all of my time and the cost of printing, and the dancers donate their time and costumes to do the photoshoot.”
This event will take place at The Bull Run, 215 Great Road, Shirley, Mass., on Wednesday, July 29, 5 – 7 p.m.
 
Please visit http://www.jroutephoto.com/portfolio/tutus4tatas, https://www.facebook.com/pages/tuTus-4-taTas/447447945371957?ref=bookmarks, or www.sitkacreations.com for more information.