"In the paintings of Joseph Renda Jr., trompe-l'œil windows, arches, and blue skies meet in surreal settings. His René Magritte-esque canvases celebrate nature and the uncanny, sometimes infused with a tinge of humor, to encourage an appreciation for the interconnectedness of all things. Instead of focusing on the subconscious, like the 20th-century Surrealists, Renda emphasizes elements of our surroundings-birds, gardens, flowers, and expansive landscapes-which nevertheless possess rich symbolism."
"Birds, for example, have traditionally represented freedom, optimism, and connections to spiritual worlds. Plants, storms, tools, and myriad other motifs carry their own inherent meanings, from notions of growth and transformation to balance and justice. Situated within windows and archways, we're invited to peer into-but not quite enter-an esoteric world. And the blue sky sometimes cracks to reveal what may, in fact, be a façade with who-knows-what beyond what we can see."
Joseph Renda Jr. creates paintings that combine trompe-l'œil windows, stone arches, and expansive blue skies with surreal natural imagery. The canvases celebrate nature and the uncanny, frequently incorporating a tinge of humor to emphasize interconnectedness among elements. Renda focuses on external surroundings—birds, gardens, flowers, landscapes—rather than the subconscious, allowing motifs to carry traditional symbolic meanings like freedom, growth, transformation, balance, and justice. Framed vistas invite viewers to peer into but not enter esoteric spaces, and ruptured skies suggest façades concealing unknown depths. Recent stone arch works are included in a three-person show, The Scenic Route, at Vertical Gallery in Chicago through September 27.
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