Stage 4 moments

Patrick Rulore

Stage 4 moments
Oil on canvas
101 cm x 122 cm

This oil on canvas rendering captures what has become a typical scene within many South African households during stage 4 load shedding, the most severe systematic rationing of electricity. The paradox of the unwelcome phenomenon of load shedding is that it has reignited person to person conversation and interaction in ways that unsettle the normalcy of human isolation, both within the family setup and society at large. Such isolation is induced by, amongst other influences, television, computers, cellphones and the internet. Stage 4 moments is a sensitive celebration of the rare and transient moments of sincere human connection that occur during those brief hours of darkness.

Patrick Rulore (born 1995) is currently completing a National Diploma in Fine Art at the Tshwane University of Technology. After matriculating in 2013 he established an art business that produces customised portraits. In 2017, he was commissioned to paint a mural inside the Artem Mall in Sea Point, Cape Town. In 2017 and 2018 he was a finalist in the Sasol New Signatures Art Competition. Rulore has participated in several group exhibitions: India Delhi, Pretoria Penthouse, 2015; Stephen Weltz Art Auction house, 2016; Chris Tugwell Art Gallery, 2017; and Art Alive, Brooklyn Pretoria, 2017. He received a painting award at the Thami Mnyele Art Competition in 2018.