Athi-Patra RUGA The Exile According to the Elder... Lot 34

Athi-Patra RUGA The Exile According to the Elder - 2014 Wool, artificial flowers and threads on tapestry canvas 220 × 184 cm Wool, artificial flowers and threads on tapestry canvas 86.61 × 72.44 in. Provenance : Whatiftheworld Gallery, Cape Town Africa First Collection Exhibitions : London,1:54 Art Fair, Stand Whatiftheworld Gallery, October 14-19, 2014 Paris, Fondation Louis Vuitton, Art/Afrique le nouvel atelier: les Initiés (Jean Pigozzi collection) and Être là (South African contemporary scene), April 26-September 4, 2017 Athi-Patra RUGA Athi-Patra Ruga is a South African artist born in 1884. A performer, video artist, photographer and textile designer, his protean works sometimes straddle the border between fashion and contemporary art, drawing viewers into a fantastical universe tinged with provocation and eroticism. Most of his works are linked to the mythology of "Azania", a utopian dreamland with a matriarchal system, which he uses to rewrite his personal history within the broader framework of the traumas of Apartheid and the collective history of South Africa. The futuristic "Azania" is colorful, baroque and queer, freeing itself from the shackles of gender and race with which the artist was confronted during his youth. The tapestry depicts "the Elder", the only male figure in Azania, and is also a self-portrait of the artist: in invented mythology, "the elder" is in exile after Azania's First War. This tutelary figure echoes the story of her father, who was himself in exile during South Africa's liberation struggle. Through the materials used, the artist underlines the ambivalence of this situation of exile, sad in its uprooting but also rich in the new cultural experiences it brings. The abundance of artificial flowers and the predominance of black evoke mourning and an image of hieratic devotion, while the accumulation of jewels and the staging blur the lines and lead us towards a vision of a pop-culture icon. The virtuosity and richness of the composition lend an almost historical status to the piece, which becomes an integral part of Azania's mythology and pantheon of whimsical characters. Athi-Patra Ruga is a South African artist born in 1984. A performer, video artist, photographer, and textile designer, his protean works sometimes straddle the border between fashion and contemporary art, drawing viewers into a fantastical universe tinged with provocation and eroticism. Most of his works are linked to the mythology of "Azania," a utopian dreamland with a matriarchal system, which he uses to rewrite his personal history within the broader framework of the traumas of Apartheid and the collective history of South Africa. The futuristic "Azania" is colorful, baroque, and queer, freeing itself from the shackles of gender and race with which the artist was confronted during his youth. This tapestry depicts the character "the Elder," the only male figure in Azania, and is also a self-portrait of the artist. In this invented mythology, "the Elder" is in exile after Azania's First War. This tutelary figure echoes the story of his father, who was himself in exile during South Africa's liberation struggle. Through the materials used, the artist underlines the ambivalence of this situation of exile, sad in its uprooting but also rich in the new cultural experiences it brings. The abundance of artificial flowers and the predominance of black evoke mourning, an image of hieratic devotion, while the accumulation of jewels and the staging blur the lines and lead us toward the vision of a pop-culture icon. The virtuosity and richness of the composition lend an almost historical status to the piece, which becomes an integral part of Azania's mythology and pantheon of whimsical characters.