Bosnian-born, Croatian-Canadian artist Renato Berlanda started creating art after the war, and emigrated to Canada in 1996. As a newcomer to Canada who didn’t speak English, art was a medium Renato could communicate in. While he does not have formal training in the arts, Renato has always been involved in designing, creating and building things. “I have been mentored or apprenticed by others in the construction industry, or have been self-taught how to work with the materials used in my art.” Earlier sculptures were made from sheet metal and objects found in nature, reflecting Renato’s relationship with the outdoors. Many of Renato’s pieces are made with materials he uses in construction. For example, the paint he uses is household paint; sculptures are made from drywall mud, expansion foams, plywood, concrete and wood — everything he uses in daily work. While pieces are imagined from living people, the expression Renato aims to capture is a moment in time when the body surrenders itself to the infinity of multiple expression.