Luis Cobelo (born in Acarigua, Venezuela, 1970) studied Philosophy at the University of Zulia. He was raised and became a photographer and artist between Venezuela and Spain. Working independently across borders since 2001, Luis has developed documentary projects in the Americas, Asia and Europe, and has been published in numerous magazines and newspapers worldwide. His work is currently focused on art and the production of photo books and exhibitions.

He is interested in fantasy, magical realism, and popular culture (primarily from Latin America), where he generates stories from his perspective, reflecting on the process of transforming the everyday into the unusual, from tragic to comedic and vice versa.

Inspired by literature, popular culture, cinema, poetry, myths, and traditions (including lies and gossip) he relies on the use of different types of realities that could well be called magical to create parallel worlds tailored to his imagination.

From 1993 to the present, Luis has participated in countless art exhibits and photography festivals worldwide, individually and collectively.

He created his first photo-book Zurumbático (shortlisted in PhotoEspaña and Arles, among others), in the Colombian Caribbean, to reveal the magical spirit of this part of the world. The book has fascinated people around the globe, and the exhibition of this work has traveled across oceans (between 2017 to the present) to Italy, México, the United States, Spain, Costa Rica, Portugal, Venezuela and the Netherlands.

Chas Chas, his second photo-book (shortlisted in Arles and Lens) is another collection of fantasies, mysteries and magical stories from Buenos Aires, Argentina (the exhibition of this work has traveled to Italy, Venezuela and LA between 2020 and 2023.)

His third photo-book, Te Amo (shortlisted in Arles and exhibited in LA in 2023) explores and questions aspects of Latin American machismo, from a personal, provocative, sarcastic, serious, and ironic perspective, through the Mexican fotonovela.

He is based in San Francisco, California.