Joseph Töreki’s juicy renders are inspired by “perfect” pieces of Japanese fruit

During a recent trip to Japan, artist Joseph Töreki rather frequently encountered “these absolutely perfect fruits, like flawless melons and grapes”. Not only something that visually impressed the artist, these fresh picks seemed to really be, “a form of art and craft” for him. It was this exposure to perfect produce has inspired his latest focus on the everyday food items in his work: “This led me to wonder if there is such a thing as going beyond perfection. While we often strive for the ideal and the flawless, true perfection is nearly impossible in the real world, unlike in the digital!” Joseph explains.

Fascinated by the characteristics and forms of these fruits, Joseph has been zooming in on our more overlooked snacks, focusing on finding their “essence” as well as their more “subtle details”. What is the essence of a raspberry? Who knows. But we think the most perfect version of one might look like this. What Joseph is really interested in though, is how much he can “abstract a real object without losing a sense of realism” which lines up with his recent focus on “how much information is necessary to convey a realistic image whilst still preserving its natural beauty”.

You might be thinking that fruits are very simple humble objects, but it turns out that the artist “spent so many hours finding the perfect shape” whilst making his digital renders. He shares: “the devil was really in the details here!” Each piece has taught him a lesson that many creatives know all too well, but often learn the hard way (which Joseph puts very wisely): “simplicity often involves a tremendous amount of effort and precision.”

These meticulous works are a new progression from the artist’s lovely mix of 3D and digital outcomes. Maintaining the craftsmanship and care of his previous work in ceramics and glass, these two practices create a “symbiotic relationship” he says, that “work together seamlessly.” For Joseph, his tactical exploration isn’t limited to the physical world, it is very much a part of his digital process. “I create many of my own textures using photometric scans of real physical materials. This is a fairly involved process, requiring photos to be taken from the many different angles which are then processed into textures using an algorithm,” he explains. “However, the effort is absolutely worth it [...] this allows me to explore aspects that would be challenging or impossible to recreate in the digital world.”

Maybe that’s just why they look so tasty. If you find that your mouth is watering a bit just looking at the juicy renders, it’s not just you. Joseph tells us: “A funny outcome of the whole experiment was the reactions from many, who experienced a kind of refreshment or strong urge to eat the fruits… The shapes seem to trigger a sensory response, making people feel like they can taste the fruit just by looking at it.”