Robert Pope Archive

A page of drawings possibly inspired by the shocking opening scene of the surrealist film, Un Chien Andalou, in which a woman’s eye is cut in half with a razor. The madman who wields the razor is played by the

This is one of Robert’s most enigmatic images, created at art school as a study for his “Mirage” series. Art school had taught Robert to be suspicious of mass-consumed images, such as those found in ads and popular films, that may

This moody, mask-like portrait hides as much as it reveals. The central character in a series based on Elizabeth Smart’s autobiographical novel, By Grand Central Station I Sat down and Wept, the woman is caught in an intersection of coloured lights and

The title “Heart Attack” suggests the phone is seen from the angle of a person lying helpless on the floor—the phone serves as a lifeline, but it may be out of reach. Robert pays homage to Alfred Hitchcock’s noir classic, “Dial

Robert loved going to the movies and discussing films with friends afterwards. He was influenced by the look of films, by the cropping and lighting of images. He was fascinated by telling stories through pictures and the psychological effects suggested by

The tightly framed mirror reflects the staring couple in reverse so that we see the backs and faces of each figure like a pair of matching shots in film. The repeating figures also suggest an argument or point-of-view that is repeated over

While Robert recovered from his chemo treatments, he watched old films on TV, starting with the films of Alfred Hitchcock. He admired how these films were both artistic and entertaining, and challenged himself  to use similar story-telling elements in his own paintings. This is the

Robert used metaphors to express ideas about romance and personal relationships. In Shifting Weather, the changing moods–the blossoming and clouding of a relationship–are compared to unpredictable changes in the weather. He also compares the course of a relationship to a spinning merry-go-round,