Photographer Michael Childers is putting decades-old images he shot in his Los Angeles studio on public display for the first time in years, with a Palm Springs gallery show this weekend that doubles as a fundraiser for yoga teacher-training scholarships. The exhibition, called Naked Yoga, opens Friday and runs through Sunday, pairing nude yoga photography with a charitable mission tied to the nonprofit PACt Yoga.
A Rarely Seen Body of Work Goes on Display
According to NBC Palm Springs, the exhibition features 30 framed photographs that Childers took in his Los Angeles studio about 25 years ago, images he says have rarely been shown publicly. The Coachella Valley Independent describes the show somewhat differently, reporting more than 30 nude yoga photographs taken over a two-year period in the same Los Angeles studio. Both outlets agree on the broad strokes — a substantial body of work largely unseen until now — even as the exact photo count and timeline diverge.
NBC Palm Springs reports the show runs October 23 through 25 at the Stephen B. Bomba Gallery, while the Coachella Valley Independent lists the venue as the Stephen Richard Baumbach Gallery for the same Friday-through-Sunday dates. Both accounts place the location at 4116 Matthew Drive in Palm Springs, per the Coachella Valley Independent's report. Childers says each print is unique, and the station notes that the photographs were produced using a specialized printing process.
Darkroom Craft Over Digital Shortcuts
The Coachella Valley Independent reports that Childers developed the photographs in a darkroom without any AI or digital enhancements, a detail that underscores the analog craftsmanship behind the collection. The outlet also notes that the framed prints for sale are one-of-a-kind, with proceeds from the sales going toward advanced yoga teacher-training scholarships. Gaydesertguide.com, in its own coverage, frames the intent behind the images simply: they are meant to celebrate form, not sexuality.
Visitors will not participate in naked yoga alongside the photographs.
Gallery Hours and a Sunday Talk
The gallery opens Friday from 5 to 8 p.m., with additional viewing hours Saturday and Sunday, per the same account. Admission is free throughout the run, though the Coachella Valley Independent notes that RSVPs are required specifically for Sunday's event. On that final day, Childers will host a talk about the photographs and the process behind creating them, giving attendees a chance to hear directly from the photographer about how the images came together.
Proceeds Flow to PACt Yoga's Scholarship and Outreach Programs
The beneficiary of the print sales is the PAC Foundation, which NBC Palm Springs reports supports yoga programs for seniors and children, including free classes for people who are sick. The foundation also helps yoga instructors complete advanced training to expand their teaching qualifications, giving the fundraiser a direct line between art sales and community wellness programming.
Childers' Long History of Charity Fundraising in the Desert
This is not Childers' first turn at tying creative work to Coachella Valley philanthropy. For 17 years, he produced the annual One Night Only shows at McCallum Theatre, which raised more than $4 million over the years for local charities, according to the Desert Sun. Other accounts of that fundraising total differ: the Plaza Theatre's own website describes the musical spectaculars as raising over $2 million for local charities over nearly two decades, while a 2023 Yahoo Entertainment report put the figure at approximately $4 million over 16 years, including a 2022 event that alone raised $650,000 for the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center in Rancho Mirage.
Childers' most recent production, One Night in Hollywood: Music From the Movies, played the Plaza Theatre in Palm Springs on March 10. Now, per NBC Palm Springs, he has teased a possible return of the One Night Only show to the Plaza Theatre in March 2027, though that plan remains unconfirmed. If it happens, the show would reportedly look at movie musicals from 1992 to the present.
