Three generations
like father like son like son;
finding old pictures.
by Scooj
Month: April 2018
1447. The Bearpit (136)
Painted in The Bearpit for the Spring Paint Jam, this unusual piece is the work of the versatile Bristol artist Georgie. Georgie is a leading light in bringing street art to the people of Bristol through paint jams and her determination to preserve the notion of legal walls for the many street/graffiti artists in the city.
This piece itself is a stunning and intricate stencil work, which has been skilfully layered to create rich visual textures as you run your eye across it. Furthermore it is the kind of work that you don’t see enough of in The Bearpit.
When you take a close look, you can really see all the detailed work that has gone into creating this piece. Hats off to Georgie.
1446. Dean Lane skate park (119)
It’s that man Touc again, this time he has brought his little ray of sunsuine toucan to Dean Lane, a perfect roost for such a bird. There is something very endearing about this elaborate tag, and I am looking forward to finding and snapping up as many as possible.
Of course, the first two I have posted are in the two most obvious locations, The Bearpit and Dean Lane. I have found one or two others which I will share in due course. Happy Toucan.
1445. West Street (2)
I have only seen Pelmo’s work a couple of times, but I know that I really love his work. The soft tone and style of his cartoon characters carries with it a light-hearted humour, and his pieces tell complex stories. His work reminds me a little of Gary Larson’s Far Side cartoons, but there is a little more tenderness to Pelmo’s work.
I think that this wall was part of Upfest 2016, but I never made it here before as it is really quite a long way from the Upfest main area. This is a highly accomplished piece and in it is a deftness and confidence in the scene that Pelmo has created. It is so easy on the eye, it almost feels that it is just part of the street scenery. It is easy to drift into the world he has created.
I love his attention to detail, things like the hand rail that the character on the right is holding and the shadows cast by the bicycle and the street bins. Of course for the cat lovers there is a splendid moggie sprawled out on the wall. I also rather like the way that the rubble sacks in front of the piece almost feel like they are incorporated into the whole experience. I love this and really look forward to seeing his work at Upfest 2018.
1444. West Street (1)
A week or two ago I went in search of an Upfest piece from last year that I still hadn’t yet found. I found it, which is good, and I will post it very soon…worth the waiting for I can assure you. On the way, I stumbled into this rather lovely small piece from Andy Council neatly tucked into the corner of a building. It is as if the space was always meant to have a piece of art there.
This piece goes back to 2014, but it is still looking fresh. It appears to be a Bristol fox, and how fitting to have an urban fox composed of houses and buildings. Unusually Andy Council has not incorporated the Clifton suspension bridge, but has managed to include one of the large tobacco warehouses, I think it might be the Create Centre. On a sunny day, this was a real bonus find in an area I rarely visit.
1443. Dean Lane skate park (118)
Sometimes in life things come together to create a story. Some stories are good and others not so good. This wonderful piece by Kid Crayon provides the perfect backdrop to a good story.
Kid Crayon, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018
Kid Crayon, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018
Some of you who read this blog regularly will know that I recently lost my father and although we were not especially close, he was my father and that means something. Going back to work was a struggle so I made sure I kept up my lunchtime walks as a kind of mindfulness opportunity. On this day, 20 April, I decided to visit Dean Lane to see if there was any new work there, which is pretty much a certainty if I am honest. As it turned out, the place was really busy, with several artists at work.
Some of the artists, including Kid Crayon, were there to mark 420, the long standing campaign to legalise cannabis (now perhaps you see what his artwork is all about). I spent a long while photographing all the works in progress and having a great natter with the artists. Realising I couldn’t spend all day there, although it would have been fun, I set off back to work.
Then I had one of those moments where an inner mini me took over and marched me back to Kid Crayon. As I approached him I apologised for my cheekiness and asked him if he could do something really special for me…I asked if he would spray a little tribute for my dad on this piece. Kindly he said he would…if he remembered. I thanked him and went on my way.
The next time I saw the piece was on Instagram, posted the next day (but pictured on the evening of completion) by Street Art Bristol (see above). And there in the bottom left corner is the tribute. I welled up when I saw this, lots of emotions going on. However there are a couple more twists to the tale. I also saw several other Instagram posts taken which showed the piece had been dogged (some people have no respect) probably only hours after the picture above was taken. I asked Street Art Bristol if he could send me a clean copy of the piece and explained why it was important to me – he did so without hesitation for which I am hugely grateful.
I managed to make it down to Dean Lane later on the Saturday (the day after it was completed) and to my surprise, somebody had restored the piece – I don’t know who, It might have been KC or somebody else, but it is great to know there are some good guys out there. If you look at the featured image at the very top of this post, you can make out some of the white markings of graffiti under the green background.
I have always liked Kid Crayon’s work, indeed it was largely down to him and JPS that I started blogging about street art in the first place. Through the kindness of Kid Crayon, this was my little way of marking the passing of my father. RIP Gledders.
Beadlet anemone
Unspectacular
intertidal specialist;
small red blobs on rocks.
by Scooj
- Although unspectacular when the tide is out, these anemones deserve higher praise really for their underwater display.
1442. The Bearpit (135)
The Bearpit street/graffiti art walls are under threat. Bristol City Council appears to be taking a tougher position on the walls and boards and has recently started to paint over some fine pieces that have been there for ages. My guess is that this is a task that will bring no joy to anybody, as artists and officials play tit-for-tat paint wars. Street art and graffiti are part of what makes Bristol special, part of its USP, and by over-regulating it you will destroy it and the culture around it – all you will end up with is sterile corporate pieces that don’t really represent the local scene.
It feels odd to me going to cities, for example Chichester, that have no graffiti or ‘legal walls’ but held a festival a few years back and has some very nice pieces dotted about the place on carefully selected walls. The problem I have with that is that it is all sanitised and signed-off by the ruling classes of the city. Where is the budding street art culture in Chichester? there is none to speak of, just some imported art to create a sense of ‘edge’ but actually totally safe and permitted to the nth degree.
I say all this because at the recent paint jam in The Bearpit, several artists, including Skor85 made their feelings clear. How strange it might seem in a few months time that there won’t be any walls left where they can make their feelings known, without the permission of the officials of Bristol. This will inevitably lead to more and widespread illegal art.
Skor85’s meaasge is loud and clear “Could you live without freedom of expression?” The piece itself is delightful, a vibrant plant emitting sparks of colour set on a background of purples, reds and oranges. I like it a lot.
Mole
To live is to dig
small soft furry tunneler
to dig is to live.
by Scooj
1441. The Bearpit (134)
This is another piece from the recent Spring paint jam in The Bearpit. It is something of a change from the norm for Mr Draws, who usually sprays his name or mountains. Here he has sprayed one of his favoured boards with a training shoe. It is rough, and vibrant, and my guess is that Mr Draws probably freestyled it.
It is a fun piece, and very much in the spirit of the paint jam, which was to ensure that The Bearpit continues as a street art gallery and spray paint area. Of course, Mr Draws has managed to incorporate some mountains just for good measure. I believe the piece was dogged after a few days, which is a pity as it is a rather uplifting work.
Natural adventures 