Well here is a piece by an artist I haven’t seen in an absolute age. It is a stencil of a street character by Hoax. I’m not sure if he hasn’t been doing much street art for a while or if I just haven’t been where he usually sprays. Whatever, it is really great to see a new piece by him.
Hoax, St Werburghs tunnel, Bristol, April 2018
Unfortunately, the piece is quite high on the entrance to the tunnel in St Werburghs (which must have been a challenge to work on) and the light is reflecting off the brickwork, making it a bit difficult to appreciate the detail of the stencil, such as the check pattern on the shirt. This is a nice piece from Hoax…looking forward to seeing more.
Ugar is becoming something of a regular down at Dean Lane skate park, and his writing really stands out due to his unusual and irregular letters but particularly because of the fill style he uses.
Ugar, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018
I am building up quite a good photographic collection of his work and I am enjoying watching his development as an artist. This is small but perfectly formed, a nice piece.
It is always great to find another Epok piece, especially when not expecting it. I don’t often get to St Werburghs tunnel, so when I do pretty much everything is new to me. I hadn’t seen this piece on social media, and although it is a fresh piece, I obviously didn’t get here in time to see it clean.
Epok, St Werburghs tunnel, Bristol, April 2018
One day I would live to get into the mind of taggers and bombers to understand their thinking. Are there any protocols? Is everything a fair target for their graffiti? What do they respect/disrespect? Do they care about anything? My guess is that they have little conscience and genuinely don’t care what they do. Wreckless anarchy, which is probably quite an attractive option for some people. The class and quality of Epok’s work shines through though – this is a really good piece by him. Hats off.
In some parts of British society there has been considerable discomfort and anger directed towards the Government for joining the USA and France in bombing Syria without consutling with Parliament first. Mistakes have been made in the past, particularly over WMD which has suggested a more considered aproach might be necessary. As a result of the bombing, protests have become prominent in all walks of life. This is a graffiti art protest.
Decay, The Bearpit, Bristol, April 2018
Of course the two pieces (I admire his ability to recreate the same image freehand almost exactly) are by Decay, who has been making a deliberate effort to diversify his customary abstract radiating pieces, and this is a good example of something different.
Decay, The Bearpit, Bristol, April 2018
This little character, tinged with rage, conveys the message clearly and inoffensively. These were both sprayed for the Spring paint jam in The Bearpit.
Ooh, what a lovely collaboration between Dibz and Sikoh from a couple of weeks back on 20 April 2018. This collaboration has a wonderful nighttime quality about it, set on a dark blue ‘sky’ background.
Dibz and Sikoh, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018
I have posted several pieces by Dibz on this site in the past and commensurate with those, this one is clean and sharp and offers lovely complex lettering. It was great to be there when he started the piece to see how he goes about his work.
Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018
As wildstyle burners go, you would have to hunt high and low to find more tidy works, he really is meticulous in his execution. What I like about this is that the deep borders have a vanishing point somewhere below the piece, which is technically more difficult than having a shadow going in the same direction.
Sikoh, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018
Now Sikoh I have heard of before, but I haven’t knowingly seen any of his work before. Judging from this awesome piece and equally awesome Instagram feed he is an artist of the highest callibre. This piece is called ‘Plague Doctor’ and probably presses every possible button I have. A perfect piece in pretty much every way.
Sikoh, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018
He doesn’t give away too much on his social media profiles, but I tracked down his profile from the 2017 Upfest programme, although in my pictures I haven’t yet found his piece…time to search harder (just done some homework…I don’t have it, he sprayed his piece at the Hare pub). His profile is as follows:
‘Sikoh is a graffiti writer from Glastonbury with a preference for sharp, flowing 3D letters and semi- Bboy characters. One part of IGK- an international crew, local Bristol crew- PWA and one quarter of Glastonbury’s MOA. Sikoh has been painting since 2013. Much of his commissioned works have been within the UK hiphop scene, for artists such as- Leaf Dog, Smellington Piff and Jack Jetson.’
I think this has become a favourite spot for Bristol street artist Rezwonk who last December painted two pieces in Moon street, one of them in this exact location.
Rezwonk, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2018
His work, based on what I have seen of it so far, seems to focus on letters, often spelling our Rezwonk in some way. This one is, I think, the best I have seen so far, the initial ‘R’ is beautifully picked out in the middle sitting on a perfect circle of pink. His name repeated all around the outside. The drips are lovely and there is something a bit different here. Nice piece. Sadly I don’t think this one lasted even a week before it got bombed. He has however already replaced it (post to follow soon).
Set in a wall on a hill very close to where I work is this beautiful old weathered door. It is the perfect ‘secret garden’ door, but it is not the secrets that hide on the other side of this wall that grabbed my attention, rather it is the small stone sculptures that pepper the outside of the wall along its length.
Commemerative plaque , Bob Ballard, Bristol, Thursday Doors
The artwork is by the late Bob Ballard, an artist from Bristol, and I found this tribute on the Society of Graphic Fine Art website which tells you a little more about him:
Bob Ballard was born in London in 1944. He had worked full time as an artist since 1989, when he won a Goldsmiths Travel Bursary (drawing and studying Romanesque art in Spain). Thereafter he was awarded many prizes, including the Bruckhaus Derringer Award from the Royal Watercolour Society. Bob’s work encompassed abstract and representative styles in a wide range of media, such as sculpture, print, oils, watercolour and pastels. Later in his career he was a senior lecturer at the University of the West of England, and senior tutor and research associate for COREOX, University of Oxford. Bob was a council member for both the Society of Graphic Fine Art (SGFA) and the Bath Society of Artists (BSA). He lived in Bristol with his wife Maggie.
Bob Ballard attached a number of small sculptures to the wall which the curious would notice. Little gifts of artwork that brighten up a day. I love this wall, I love the door and I love the sculptures.
Guerilla artwork, Bob Ballard, Bristol, Thursday DoorsGuerilla artwork, Bob Ballard, Bristol, Thursday DoorsGuerilla artwork, Bob Ballard, Bristol, Thursday DoorsGuerilla artwork, Bob Ballard, Bristol, Thursday Doors
I found this quote from Bob Ballard on his Facebook feed, which I rather like:
“ In my work I always try to place the unknown next to the known. Defamiliarisation is the essence of art. The closer you look at it the greater the distance from which it stares back at you.”
Everyone seems to be slightly addicted to Instagram these days, so why not give these awesome Bristol Instagram accounts a follow! Colin Moody – Incredible photojournalist capturing real people in the city. @moodycolin319 Bristol Arts Monster – Street art, exhibitions and creative things to see and do with the family. @bristolartsmonster Natalie Brereton […]
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