Proverbs
Robert Ellis

Proverbs is an ongoing body of work using photographic images and audio recordings that engage with the contemporary landscape of Uganda, exploring its layers of memory. While the age-old Ugandan proverbs exist as a form of concentrated wisdoms based on experience, the work does not attempt to merely portray these. Rather, it seeks to create a platform that might allow them to be re-imagined. Wandering through this unfamiliar landscape, Robert Ellis’ photographs linger on the people and its landforms. Fluid in approach, there are no fixed stories to tell or conclusive outcomes to communicate. An overarching narrative considers how place is experienced, in terms of its aesthetic values, and for the layers of memory and history that it holds. ¹

Robert Ellis is an Irish photographer who completed his MFA in Photography from the University of Ulster in Belfast (2011), having previously graduated with a BA Hons Degree in Photography from Dublin Institute of Photography (2007). His photography deals with the notion of “home”, working with small rural communities, often relying on inherent or local knowledge to inform a sense of place. ²

TLP Editions are an ongoing collection of contemporary photographic projects in the form of accessible and inexpensive publications by PhotoIreland. These A5 sized booklets present a standard format throughout the series, with 36 pages each, a cover with a text block of under 140 words that introduces the project, and the title and the artist name only available on the contra cover. The project creates a node of opportunities as it allows photographers to enter the publishing arena, while facilitating access to contemporary artistic practices to the general public.

Founded in 2009, PhotoIreland was conceived as an organisation that would stimulate a dialogue around Photography in Ireland by developing a varied array of initiatives and events with a strong participative approach.