Street food

 

‘Cheelay flaykes?’ She asks

in her sweet foreign timbre

and it makes me smile.

 

by Scooj

Daydream ski

 

The steep sweet meadows

now clad in deep mountain snow

softly summon me.

 

by Scooj

1948. Upfest 2018 (122)

About Ponny left us a few of his poignant wheatpastes about the place during Upfest, of which this is the third I have posted. All of them have featured subjects who have hit upon hard times. The beautiful stencils in dark tones highlighted with copper have a sad but gentle feel to them and they are full of pathos.

About Ponny, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
About Ponny, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

I am full of admiration for the work of this Italian artist, and how, in a quiet and subtle way, he reflects the troubles of our age of austerity and economic struggles. No fuss, no ranting, simply an honest portrayal.

1947. Upfest 2018 (121)

Here we see yet another great new wall for Upfest 2018… the organisers really pulled out all the stops for the tenth anniversary festival. Slightly off the beaten track, but well worth the walk is this enormous piece by Andy Council on a Wessex Water building.

Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

This is a really wonderful piece that features a couple of Otters, characteristically for this artist composed of architectural landmarks from Bristol. Andy Council needed extensive scaffolding to get the piece completed safely, which remained in place beyond the end of the festival, so many visitors might not have seen the completed piece.

Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

He seemed to be enjoying himself up there, but was well away from the bustle of activity in the main painting areas.

Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

Three landmarks clearly visible on the otter on the right are the Clifton Suspension Bridge, the Create Centre and the Tobacco Factory. This is yet another outstanding piece from Andy Council and one that I hope remains for a long while.

Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

 

 

1946. Shoreditch, London (18)

Ok, ok I hear you, I should have posted this last year, but I didn’t right? so I am doing it now. Continuing on the theme of trawling through archives, I found this piece by Bonzai from a trip to Shoreditch back in February 2018, but hadn’t made the connection to the piece I posted by Bonzai from my more recent visit in November.

Bonzai, Shoreditch, London, February 2018
Bonzai, Shoreditch, London, February 2018

These pictures are a bit rubbish for two reasons. I had dropped and broken my camera about five minutes earlier and so had to use my iPhone and the road was rather busy, and I couldn’t get out far enough (without risk of death) to catch the whole piece. Maybe this is why I never posted it first time round. It is a great piece though…that melting chrome look is stunning.

1945. Dean Lane skate park (184)

Aaah, familiar stuff from Mr Draws and one that had been inadvertently omitted earlier in the year, which is surprising really, because it is so very good.

Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2018
Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2018

There is always something very cheery about his work that works for me. In this piece, the filler is absolutely beautiful, the two colour palettes above and below the yellow line are brilliantly complementary and the bubble effect imperious. I really love the simple idea and lovely execution of this one. Can’t believe it has taken almost a year to post it!

Decorations

 

Pack up the boxes

an eleven month slumber

in the loft awaits.

 

by Scooj

1944. Thomas Street (3)

I really like trawling back through old pictures because when I revisit them I almost invariably look at them through new eyes. This is a piece by DNT going back to January last year which contains several elements of interest. His name appears in the middle of the piece and on the left is a yellow face with something of a pained expression and on the right is some cool dude with a sharp flat top haircut.

DNT, Thomas Street, Bristol, February 2018
DNT, Thomas Street, Bristol, February 2018

The letters MBG stand for Matchbox Gallery, which is a gallery a few doors up the street owned and managed (I think) by DNT himself. Note to self…I really need to pop in there and say hello. A nice quick one from this artist who frequently paints in this area of Stokes Croft.

1943. M32 roundabout J3 (114)

One problem with prolific artists is that it is easy to let good pieces remain in archive, because time and tide wait for no man, blah blah blah. This beauty from Face 1st is from January last year, but is well worth the wait.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2018
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2018

Tucked into one of the pedestrian tunnels, a favoured spot for Face 1st, is this striking face…striking because of its strongly contrasting colours. For every piece by this artist that I post, there is probably one still in archive.

Mury Bobbins

 

I’m bracing myself

for the overdue sequel

with Emily Blunt.

 

by Scooj