Athi-Patra Ruga
Stained glass maker
Hogsback, South Africa
Speaking out through illumination
- Athi-Patra uses stained glasswork as a medium to critique the constructs of state and society
- His practice is underpinned by the question, 'Who is not in the room?'
- He runs community art workshops for school children in surrounding villages
Athi-Patra Ruga is a multidisciplinary artist with a background as a painter and performer. He launched his career in 2004 as a performance artist before his mastery of petit point tapestries led him to turn to stained glass, to conquer a new realm. In 2013, he began his craft under the mentorship of master glassmaker Colleen Peacock. Athi-Patra's making process includes turning hand-drawn sketches into painted glass and lead lines. He proudly carries black queer femme characters from his performance work into a medium historically reserved for church and state buildings. Athi-Patra's work directly wrestles with the notion of exclusion across institutional spaces. "It takes curiosity not inspiration to beautify the world with stories that are seldom told or often mistold," he says.
INTERVIEW
As a practising Anglican and Isintu, I connect with a mix of places which fuels my curiosity and my art. Once, at a Christmas mass, I saw a stained glass of the Annunciation, depicting Black people. That, to me, was an epiphany. It was a very liberating moment that told me that no medium is out of bounds for sharing my people's stories.
I wake up at 3:00 in the morning to sketch while I am still in communication with my dreams. I then work from lead lines to build the conceptual design of the image, before calling Colleen, my mentor. I will ask, 'Is this possible?' and Colleen will say, 'As always, nothing is impossible.' From there, we cut the glass, which I then paint because portraiture in draftsmanship fascinates me! Then the elements are put together and presented.
It comes down to emotion and how to deal with rejection, misinterpretation, and the feeling of working against time constantly. That urgency is tied to being multidisciplinary, as there are so many beautiful stories I want to tell, and I always feel that I am running out of time. Moving to the rural Eastern Cape five years ago was a saving grace because here, time becomes a construct.
I would say it has taught me to tell my story. It pushes me to tell my story without shame, without fear, without favour., in a way that is pure, real and sincere. All of this has led me to a place without shame, a place of great sincerity.
Athi-Patra Ruga
Stained glass maker
Hogsback, South Africa
ADDRESS
Address upon request, Hogsback, South Africa
AVAILABILITY
By appointment only
LANGUAGES
English, Xhosa
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