Giuseppe Renda

Madonna of the Lamp, in the basilica of Santa Maria Assunta at Alcamo.

Giuseppe Renda, called "l'Aroddu" (13 June 1772 - 20 October 1805), was an Italian painter.

Biography Born in Alcamo into a family of farmers and third son of Antonio di Vito (called "Arollo") and Francesca Lo Serro di Giuseppe, he was baptized with the name Giuseppe Antonino.

The family lived in via Commendatore Leonardo Navarra, called "strada di li putieddi" (the street with small shops) because of the stands which were erected in this street during the free fair of the Company of Saint James. When he was young he worked for the cathedral.

He started painting during his adolescence when one day, on a whim, he sketched the portrait of a chaplain on a wall with a charcoal. Some people assert that he instead studied with Giuseppe Patania.

When his studies ended he went back to Alcamo, where he produced many paintings with religious backgrounds,

In 1805, he died of tuberculosis in Palermo 14 of his paintings have been lost.