David Ellis

“Lobospheres” - The Lost Souls of Point Lobos is a celebration, an elegy, and a cautionary tale. An ongoing project now well into its second decade, Lobospheres started out as an accidental discovery. Photographing iconic locations like Yosemite, Santa Fe, and Point Lobos can be intimidating because it puts a photographer face-to-face with legends, in this case, the groundbreaking imagery of generations of the Weston family. Instead of pointing the camera toward the area’s signature vistas and forests, David Ellis aimed at his feet. As he scrambled over the slick granite and sandstone, a single mythical creature revealed itself from a slash of tar. Another popped up from gashes in the rock. Soon, hundreds emerged as a chorus of expressive faces, figures, and metaphoric micro-landscapes. It was impossible for David to “unsee” them. He has returned to Weston Beach dozens of times over the past 20 years, each time different, each time capturing fresh new images.

ARTIST STATEMENT ABOUT THE SERIES: 

“As I immersed myself in the stark realities of climate change, I realized that Lobospheres is more than an art project. It is an archive that captures my reverence for its sheer beauty, as well as preserving and documenting an extraordinary landmark that has an expiration date. Climatologists are projecting a seven-foot sea level rise in Northern California by the end of the century, which will likely decimate Weston Beach and dramatically alter Point Lobos as we know it. Lobospheres is a kind of visual synecdoche--parts standing for the whole. It personifies the granite forms and gives them a “voice," reminding us of what we take for granted and rarely take the time to see or appreciate.”