This photo of Uniacke Square, a public housing site, looks toward Halifax harbour and the distant A Murray MacKay Bridge, whose construction brought about the controversial appropriation of land known as Africville. Africville was a thriving community of black Nova Scotians located on land overlooking the Bedford Basin. In the late 1960s, houses in Africville were appropriated and torn down, with little if any compensation for residents, and many of the displaced owners were relocated to Uniacke Square in one of the most blatant examples of racism in the history of Canada.

In Robert’s photo, the row houses recede into the distance in a strong diagonal line. Behind the houses can be glimpsed large oil storage tanks that have since been removed for public safety. While attending art school, Robert lived in the North End and walked past Uniacke Square on his way to class. His photography projects record the route he took.