Robert Ellis was born in Dublin in 1984 and is a graduate of MFA Photography in the University of Ulster, Belfast. His photography, which has been exhibited in Ireland and abroad, often deals with the notion of “home”. Working with small rural communities, his photographs rely on inherent or local knowledge to inform a sense of place.
New Line
This body of work documents the space inhabited by a small alternative community in the West of Ireland. By exploring the private world created by the people that live here, this work adopts a silent and contemplative tone, and seeks to engage with this space and its inhabitants, rather than expose it. Through carefully negotiated access and many discussions, this work becomes a catalyst of my experience and the time spent making the work. Carried out over the period of a year the images reveal the harsh depths of winter and the warm fertility of summer. The images tell the stories of the people that belong here, but only ever show a glimpse of their presence.
