American artist Russ Pope discusses the soundtrack to his work and guides us through his favourite spots in Milano.

Born in Los Angeles in 1970 and grown up in the Californian skateboarding and punk scenes, where he first started sketching, Russ Pope is an artist and illustrator who never hid his love for music and everything that defines a hip lifestyle, from clothes to classic cars and designer interiors. 

Pope’s art draws from the social and political environment surrounding him and, with its focus on human subjects and details, establishes him as an attentive observer of the everyday. His eye (and pencil) dart among passers-by, coffee joints, newsagent parlours and parked cars to find, in the jungle of modern urban landscapes, traces of an apparently by-gone world that still beats.

Having relocated to New Hampshire, where he currently lives and works, the Ivy League heritage of the state seems to have soften the Californian edges of Pope’s work, birthing a unique style constantly balancing retro class with contemporary dynamism. Which is the very same essence that can be traced in the subjects of his drawings and canvases. Figures with cadenced movements like Cal Tjader’s Latin jazz percussion, but at the same time as magnetic as MF Doom’s bars on a sampled loop. As a result, one is always left to wonder what time Pope’s oeuvres are set in. 

His bold, humorous strokes have to come to define an immediately recognizable style. One that reminds you of mid-century New Yorker illustrations, yet defined by a striking hipness that makes it as relevant (and shareable) as ever on social media feeds. Something that seems to connect Russ’ art with the very same essence of Bar Basso, the milanese drinking establishment the American has associated his name with. Back to Bar Basso was in fact the title of last year’s exhibition, celebrating his Milanese sketches conceived at the tables of the legendary joint first opened in the 1960s.

Just like its negroni sbagliato, born out of a mistake and turned into a classic, Russ Pope’s art can be likewise seen as an ode to imperfection with its quick strokes that invite to rethink Milan – even its more toursitc parts – under a new light. 
Pope recently headed back to the city for an ode to its very own essence, with the exhibition Love Letters to Milan in collaboration with Type 7 at Antonio Colombo Arte Contemporanea. We caught him to discuss the soundtrack to his art and his favourite spots in the city.

CAM Sugar: Your works are much appreciated for their detailed lifestyle edge, including clothing, cars and design pieces…

Russ Pope: I do like a bit of reportage, or sharing of things I see which include all of those subjects. People and what they choose to wear are always interesting to capture. Cars, motorbikes, skateboards and bicycles are too.

CS: How do you take inspiration from the world surrounding you and how do your artworks come to life?

RS: Sometimes I make drawings on the spot, as I see things, live. Other times I draw from memory or even photos I’ve taken when I’m back home in my studio or a hotel or airbnb on a trip. I’m really inspired by the strange, quirky and the beautiful in both animate and inanimate objects.

CS: You seamlessly switch from editorial works to canvases. Is there a favourite medium of expression for you?

RS: I draw all of the time, it’s sort of my life in pictures, or a visual diary. I usually make paintings that are born from my most favourite drawings that I’ve made. I love both drawing and painting, they are two separate but related things. 

CS: Milano has been the subject of many of your works. What draws you to and fascinates you about the city? How challenging it is for someone coming from a different culture to immerse themselves in the city and represent its iconography?

RS: I love Milan for its mix of new and old, fashion and design forward milanese residents. The museums, architecture, food and hearing the Italian language. It has also been a great spot for me to easily do day trips and explore other parts of Italy from. Most importantly I think I love the way people in Milan have welcomed me and continue to host and care about the work I make. It’s been easy to immerse myself, I’ve had wonderful hosts on the ground in Milan: Antonio, Allesandra, Aloisia and the whole Antonio Colombo gallery’s team.

CS: What are your essential go-to places in Milano?

Bar Basso of course, Brera Botanical Garden, The Triennale di Milano, Museo Del Novecento, Antonio [Colombo]’s gallery. I also just love walking the neighbourhoods: the Park by the Castello, and even the Cimitero Monumentale is fascinating. I know it’s touristy but I still love and always visit the Duomo as well, especially the walking tour of the rooftop.

Opening image: Milano according to Russ Pope, 2024.