CHICAGO, September 10, 2026 – Standing in front of a painting measuring 35 feet in width, your eyes can barely find where to focus first. Bruno Surdo, an artist from Evanston, has painted his tribute to the September 11th attacks after the events, which is a monumental figurative work conveying grief, sacrifice, and resilience without resorting to stereotypes. For now, guests of Gallery VICTOR in River North have the opportunity to witness Surdo’s masterpiece up close.
The artist isn’t trying to provoke feelings of cheap sentimentality. Starting from live modeling and using classic figurative techniques, Surdo has composed the gigantic painting in such a way that all figures depicted there are solid and realistic.
It may sound strange, but when facing the finished artwork, it is hard not to feel like standing in front of a living monument. This is because the painting represents first responders, regular citizens, and symbolic figures in an intricate Renaissance-like storyline.
The exhibition at Gallery VICTOR lands at a poignant moment. Titled “Honoring Resilience,” the show opens with a public reception from 5 to 8 PM on Friday, September 11, 2026, at 300 W. Superior St., and runs through October 25. It coincides with the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, a timing that reminds Chicagoans how deeply those events reverberated across the region.
So much about Surdo’s technique makes it so fascinating because of the artist’s dedication to figurative accuracy. Instead of using photographs or digital tools for manipulating the images, he spent numerous hours sketching from life, developing careful depictions of tense muscles, drapery and faces filled with despair and hope.
The sheer physical logistics were daunting. Stretching 35 feet across five custom panels, the canvas required specialized equipment and a studio large enough to step back several dozen feet just to evaluate the perspective. Transporting a piece that large through downtown Chicago streets was an ordeal all on its own.
According to the news about the unveiling of the project, it can be regarded as a documentary and personal meditation on recovery. This painting should not have been hidden somewhere in a private collection. Surdo wanted everyone to see it close up and appreciate its textures of oil paint.
There’s another layer this time. The Gallery VICTOR show includes not only Tragedy, Memory and Honor but also original sketches, written narratives, photography, testimonials and fragments Surdo collected at Ground Zero—dust, gravel, and a piece of the World Trade Center handed to him by his cousin, who was part of a construction crew helping clear debris. Some of that dust and gravel was mixed directly into his oil paints, a choice Surdo has said adds a “sacred quality” to the work.
The painting is rooted in Chicago history. It was exhibited at the Daley Center in 2002 and 2003, where it received positive responses from firefighters, first responders and Mayor Richard M. Daley of Chicago, who wrote Surdo a letter of praise. Responses have varied over the years. Some people loved the painting. Some thought that he was capitalizing on a tragedy. Surdo acknowledges the criticisms. He says that when one is getting criticized about a work of art, it means that it has made an impact.
If you think that you are an art aficionado or a pedestrian looking for meaning as you walk away from Superior Street, Surdo’s painting compels you to stop and think. In a fast-paced digital age characterized by transient images, a 35-foot-long painting deserves all your time.
