In Conference, Robert shows the modern hospital as a place that gives rise to different conversations depending on who’s talking and where. Three earnest-looking doctors are portrayed as men lost in debate, while the patient lies somewhat forgotten in the background. This could be read as an allegory for the debates surrounding cancer and its treatments, which, in the 1990s in Nova Scotia, revolved around three unpalatable choices: cut, burn or poison.

The composition of Conference borrows from The Flagellation of Christ, 1455-60, by Piero della Francesca. This mysterious Renaissance painting shows two scenes from different periods in history, seamlessly linked through the clever handling of perspective. The effect, of parallel universes, contrasts Christ being whipped, while three worldly men are stalemated in their conflicting political ambitions. Robert suggests the cancer patient is caught between the rival theories of modern science.