Month: July 2020

Thursday doors – 23 July 2020

Doors 116 – Some random Bristol doors from lock down walks

I have taken a day off work today and so am able to spend a little bit of time sorting out some new doors for you. This is a selection of doors from all around North Bristol from the long dog walks I took during the lock down days.

I am constantly reminded of what strange times we live in that we have developed a whole new language around the coronavirus epidemic, and that we will reference world history in terms of pre-Covid and post-Covid. I find it all very unsettling.

Anyhow – on to the doors. I hope you enjoy them.

Back yard gate, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Back yard gate, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Back yard gate, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Back yard gate, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Back yard gate with graffiti, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Back yard gate with graffiti, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Back yard gate with graffiti, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Back yard gate with graffiti, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Front door in blue, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
Front door in blue, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
A smart front door with boot scraper, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
A smart front door with boot scraper, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020

So, that’ll be it for another week.  I expect I’ll revert to my graffiti door archive next week, but we’ll have to wait and see. Take care wherever you are and have a great weekend.

If you have made it this far, you probably like doors and you really ought to take a look at the Norm 2.0 blog – the originator of Thursday Doors where there are links to yet more doors in the comments section at the end.

 

by Scooj

PMQ*

.

Boris obfuscates

in only the way he can

Russian involvement?

.

by Scooj

 

* Another blustering/bumbling performance from Boris in the final Prime Minister’s Questions today. He really is a jumped up little school prefect with zero gravitas. How much the Malvolio quote from Shakespeare’s the Tempest resonates:

“Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon ’em.”

3071. James Street

I have Paul to thank for pointing me in the direction of this amazing Silent Hobo NHS tribute piece in James Street. I would have found it eventually, but not as quickly, and it is always more satisfying finding pieces soon after they have been painted.

Silent Hobo, James Street, Bristol, July 2020
Silent Hobo, James Street, Bristol, July 2020

Silent Hobo has been pretty busy just lately with some big murals and there is one nearby that is finished, but under scaffolding that seems to have been there forever. This piece is an absolute stunner and injects Silent Hobo’s portrayal of ordinary (extraordinary) Bristol people going about their business, in this case doctors, nurses and care workers to whom we all owe so much, not only during the coronavirus crisis, but always. The piece has context, relevance and purpose and is painted so beautifully with care and love. A wonderful commentary on society in a time of flux and uncertainty. Bravo!

3070. M32 roundabout J3 (236)

In amongst the frenzy of activity in June and July as artists have woken and gone crazy for painting, the steady beating pulse of Bristol graffiti art continues in the form of work from PWA artist Face 1st. Reliable and dependable, Face 1st turns out his face-based pieces that rarely disappoint. His works have become so much a part of the furniture that sometimes we don’t even notice them (when I say we, I don’t mean me of course).

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020

This is a lovely piece in russet tones and present us with FACE hair over a smiling girl’s face. There is something warm and familiar about his work, and something so very Bristol too. This is a modest low-profile piece and I love it.

Cayenne

.

Photogenic fruit

rising star in the greenhouse

generating heat

.

by Scooj

3069. M32 Cycle path (66)

As with so many artists, Bnie has been very active since the easing of lock down and I can’t ever remember a time when the frequency of her work has been as high as it is now. This all amounts to great news for fans of her beautiful writing.

Bnie, M32 cycle path, Bristol, July 2020
Bnie, M32 cycle path, Bristol, July 2020

In typical fashion, Bnie gives us a really tidy and clean BNIE with some complex and stylish fills. Her creativity and imaginative fills are her USP and she really leads the way with these patterned letters. A fine piece.

3068. M32 roundabout J3 (235)

Fortune favours the brave. I took a lunchtime walk last week and decided to take the dog to the M32 roundabout. I could have gone to any of the other spots, but decided on that one and lucky I did. I arrived to find an ‘A list’ of graffiti writers prepping for and starting a paint jam. Included in this extraordinary line up were Soker, Minto and Tizer from London, Rusk, Inkie, Hemper and Stivs.

Tizer, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020
Tizer, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020

Because of my working hours and limited ability to get out I rarely see artists at work, so this was a real treat, and the first piece I am sharing from this paint jam is by Tizer, who is a graffiti writing legend.

Tizer, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020
Tizer, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020

I learned two things when I chatted with Tizer the next day (another whole story), the first is that he freestyles all his pieces, which is incredible really – no drafts or prompts, just what’s in his head. The second is that he turned to spray painting and skateboarding as a youngster to escape the gangs where he grew up in Brixton.

Tizer, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020
Tizer, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020

It was really interesting to see how Tizer works. From what I saw he drafts an outline and then works on the colour fills from left to right. When that is done he paints on the black outlines and details ending up with a stained-glass window effect. Wonderful to watch and what an amazing finished piece. Of course the whole thing spells out Tizer.

Ephemeroptera

.

Fleeting existence

here today, gone tomorrow

like politicians

.

by Scooj

3067. M32 roundabout J3 (234)

It seems such a pity when a lovely collaboration like this one from I Am Ian and Kid Crayon only lasts a day or so, but this wall has been in high-demand recently and turnover very fast indeed. I have already missed recent Laic217, Kid Crayon and Mr Draws Pieces right here in the last few days. I spoke with Kid Crayon the day after I took this photograph (he was painting a new piece – to come) and he told me that he and I Am Ian had trained together as graphic designers and remained friends and although they have taken slightly different paths they get together occasionally to paint a wall.

I am Ian and Kid Crayon, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020
I am Ian and Kid Crayon, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2020

This collaboration is a lot of fun and a time-lapse video from Kid Crayon’s Instagram feed shows how the whole piece came together and is well worth a view. Kid Crayon has woken up and is painting like a mad thing which can only be great news. I am less familiar with I Am Ian’s work, but that is because he rarely hits the streets with his art. Their last collaboration was a fabulous piece in St Werburghs tunnel. There is so much to love about this.

Kid Crayon and I Am Ian, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2020
Kid Crayon and I Am Ian, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2020

 

3066. St Werburghs tunnel (175)

Last week I met Phour for the first time, and what a pleasure it was. I had had my suspicions that he was another writer that had changed his letters, but I was quite wrong. Phour told me that he did a bit of spraying as a youngster, but had stopped until a couple of years ago when he picked up his cans and started up again. I must confess that I have only noticed his writing this year, but what I have seen I like and he is, on first impressions, a genuinely decent guy who was more than happy to stop and talk for a while.

Phour, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2020
Phour, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2020

This is one of a few slightly older pieces that I have had on archive waiting to be posted until I knew a little bit more about the artist. His letter shapes are clean and clear and he seems to enjoy lots of colour in his work. All the right ingredients are there for Phour to move up the ranks of Bristol graffiti writers. I look forward to following him along the way.