1020. Upfest 2017 (53)

Half way along North Street you will find Exmoor Street, with a lovely white wall, perfect for a bit of spraying. Wen2, from Brest in France, was one of two artists fortunate enough to be allocated this space.

Wen2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Wen2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This piece is beautifully thought out and generates an understanding of buildings and place. It is almost like one of those children’s books that deconstructs structures and shows you what goes on behind the scenes.

Wen2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Wen2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I particularly like a couple of things about Wen2 at work herte. He has been most conscientious about the street sign, coveuring it up with paper and masking tape. He has also ‘borrowed’ a chair from somewhere to use as a small step ladder. Resourceful.

Wen2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Wen2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Wen2 used a plan to create his piece which gives you a feel for what he was creating. It is interesting that he vchanged some of the colours around. What I really like, and is something he has done with other pieces (check out his Facebook page) is his signature in the style of a throw up on the garage doors. Brilliant!

Wen2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Wen2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Another special piece for Upfest 2017.

 

1019. Upfest 2017 (52)

This work simply made me laugh. It is by the artist Pelmo, whose piece from Upfest 2016 passed me by, which is highly regrettable. I’m not entirely convinced that this was painted on the first two days of the festival, either that or I am losing my touch and missed it.

Pelmo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Pelmo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I love the understated tones used for the piece and the story is there for all to see. It is a witty piece, which would appear to draw some influence from the Gary Larson cartoon style.

Pelmo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Pelmo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

About himself, the artist says this in the programme profile:

‘I love painting a good character, a dramatic expression or a body beaten into shape by a little too much life. I generate my ideas by sketching in pubs and paint mostly for fun with the occasional commission.’

Sounds like a good life to me.

First World

 

Overlooked, unloved

bleeding heart of the city

where hope has no place.

 

by Scooj

1018. Upfest 2017 (51)

Well this one was a little off the beaten track, only by a hundred meters or so, but enough for many visitors to Upfest to have missed it. In fact, I missed it until a friend told me about it, and I went to investigate for myself.

Mr June, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Mr June, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Mr June, who had a premium wall at Upfest 2016, came back this year to create this architectural masterpiece, turning a fairly ordinary flat into something out of the ordinary…exceptional even.

Mr June, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Mr June, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Smyth Lane has rarely been such a desirable location, demonstrating what a bit of unbelieveably cool spraying can do for a place. The clever straight line 3D effect created on the front of the building is perfectly offset by the more organic shapes that are on the walls of the tunnel. A watery theme disrupts the hard edges and ripples appear to disperse across the piece. While on the other side, water droplets bound by surface tension, sit on designed planes that have an Escher feel to them. And the greens…just beautiful.

Mr June, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Mr June, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Mr June is a highly accomplished artist and this piece really has to go straight into the top ten for this year’s festival…and to think I nearly missed it. I wonder if other local residents will be offering up their properties for a makeover next year.

Mr June, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Mr June, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

 

 

1017. Stokes Croft, Blue Mountain

On the day of ‘Boogie Down Bristol’, a mini festival organised by Inkie in the Full Moon pub, a great many graffiti artists converged on this area of Stokes Croft, and RAW (Read and Weep crew) were represented by Ryder and T-Rex who created this magnificent collaboration right next door to the pub.

Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017

It was something of a miracle that they managed to get anything done, such was the pedestrian traffic stopping to admire the work and have a chat (including me).

Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017

I can honestly say that I think this is my favourite Ryder piece, it is in my view brilliant. The letters spell out Read and Weep and each one is individually crafted and filled with vibrant colours and patterns. Something of a masterclass for wannabe writers.

Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017

Ryder has a signature element to his style, and that is to put eyes and other features into the holes of the letters, so in this instance the first ‘E’ has eyes and teeth.

Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017

I also had the fortune to meet T-Rex for the first time, and having overcome the embarrassement of assuming that she was a male artist, we chatted for a while. Her work on this piece is magnificent also, with dinosaurs ‘bookending’ the writing with balance and skill.

Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017

The plants decorating the whole collaboration are also by T-Rex.

Coming across this piece and finding Ryder and T-Rex while they were spraying was hugely fortunate. I had actually come down to the area to visit the It’s All 2 Much gallery which was hosting a Tom Miller exhibition. I suppose in life as well as in taking in the streets, you won’t see anything if you don’t look – a recurring theme on ‘Natural Adventures’.

Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
Ryder and T-Rex, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017

1016. The Bearpit (90)

It would appear that NEVERGIVEUP, or nevergiveup familia as he tags himself, is making a takeover bid for The Bearpit. I would think that he probably has about seven or eight pieces down there at the moment, and they are not getting tagged. How he is managing to do this, I don’t know.

NEVERGIVEUP, The Bearpit, Bristol, August 2017
NEVERGIVEUP, The Bearpit, Bristol, August 2017

This is one of his series of monsters – he appears to have moved on from bunnies. I like the way that he is moving about from idea to idea, and I also like the way he is saturating the area, a bit like Laic217 was doing before. I am sure that at some point he will move back to Dean Lane or maybe try to spray in some new places. It is the succession of pieces and artists that makes writing about street art in Bristol so much fun to do.

1015. M32 roundabout J3 (46)

Sometimes we are lucky enough to see work by artists that is quite different from their normal work, or the style for which they are known. This is a case in point. After Upfest, Wasp Elder (Sam Worthington) took a trip to the walls at the M32 roundabout with Kid Crayon and sprayed this excellent wildstyle piece. It is so unlike anything he normally creates as you can see from his website, Kid Crayon said he was just having a bit of fun.

Wasp Elder, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2017
Wasp Elder, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2017

What I love about the piece is how the black letters have an amazing 3D feel, they seem to bulge out of the wall. Take a closer look and you can see the effect is created by clever shading…all so simple once you gert to look at it, although I’m sure it is not simple to do. Yet another Upfest extra for you to enjoy. Now gone of course.

Gull

 

Below the clifftops

gliding with effortless grace,

wing tips spill the air.

 

by Scooj

1014. Church Road top (3)

A recent piece from Cheo on a wall that you need to go looking for. This is the second pairing of Cheo and Soker pieces that I have found here, but I expect they have been spraying here for years.

Cheo, Church Road, Bristol, September 2017
Cheo, Church Road, Bristol, September 2017

Some really lovely wildstyle writing and a fun character too. Cheo and his king bee just keep on pleasing. The image below is the last piece he had up here which was photographed in March 2017.

Cheo, Church Road, Bristol, March 2017
Cheo, Church Road, Bristol, March 2017

1013. New John Street (3)

Another fabulously intricate piece of wildstyle writing from Deamze accompanied by a cartoon-style character. There is a lot to like about this piece…it is clean and crisp, the design is highly detailed, the cartoon character is beautifully done and is holding a spray can, which is always a good thing.

Deamze, New John Street, Bristol, September 2017
Deamze, New John Street, Bristol, September 2017

This is a site tucked up behind Cameron Balloons, and is a favourite for several members of the ASK crew, including Cheo, Soker and Deamze himself. I don’t come here very often, but it would appear that I visited pretty soon after a whole new bunch of work had been done. I like it when I get lucky like this.

Deamze, New John Street, Bristol, September 2017
Deamze, New John Street, Bristol, September 2017