Robert Pope Archive

The doctor’s visit to a patient in hospital is a much anticipated event. Like Kafka’s bewildered man awaiting trial, any news of his case could be a turning point that leads to action, improvement, or even release from the institution. The

Robert had earlier portrayed two lovers in profile with a skull and flowers between them. In this image from Illness and Healing, the mood is altogether different as the x-ray of a skull appears between the heads of two doctors. The

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.

The tables have been turned as a group of doctors are examined from the patient’s point of view. Are they scientists or judges in their white wrinkled gowns emerging chillingly out of the darkness? The group appear in an intimidating pack

Robert created large paintings showing chemotherapy and radiation treatments for cancer patients. Both paintings show a lone patient undergoing a trial. There is no doctor, only machinery and drugs that hint at technological wonders about to be performed. The only image

The doctor touches the patient, exploring for lumps, tumours and areas that cause pain. Despite all the tools of modern medicine, touching still sheds valuable information. It is also a direct form of contact between doctor and patient that requires trust and

Robert’s third version of the doctor examining a patient reaches back into art history to quote Goya’s Self-portrait with Dr. Arrieta, the physician who Goya credits with saving his life. Goya’s painting is both a grateful tribute and a pieta

A hero of Robert’s father, Wilfred Grenfell was an unconventional man-of-action motivated by deep spiritual beliefs. One of his mottos was: “To believe is to do.” He was a British medical doctor and missionary, best known for his service in

Cancer is a condition that is not well understood and for which there is no reliable cure. Here the doctor, a man of science, appears to be stumped for an answer. The x-rays behind cast an eerie glow, and offer