Month: March 2022

4333. M32 roundabout J3 (400)

It is fitting that the 400th piece I have posted from the M32 roundabout should be by one of Bristol’s most established and respected artists, Andy Council. This is a superb piece that was part of a collaborative effort alongside Hemper.

Andy Council, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022
Andy Council, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022

Andy Council’s work is easily identifiable by its composition. His creations usually feature an animal that is made up of component parts; he used to paint small buildings and architecture, but these days he uses ‘blocks’ threaded together, almost like a child’s toy. He manages to turn a 3D concept into a completely credible piece of wall art – amazing really. This beast looks a little bit like something from a horror film. Always good to see Andy Council’s imaginative work.

4332. M32 Cycle path (169)

One of the most noticeable things about Bristol street and graffiti art over the past two years has been the sheer volume of new artists either trying their hand at spaying walls or moving to the city famed for its graffiti culture, either way, it all adds to the vast melting pot we are privileged to observe.

Bogat, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, March 2022
Bogat, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, March 2022

This is the first of many pieces, I’m sure, by Bogat to appear on Natural Adventures, but already I have several more lined up and in the archive. I am rather drawn to this style of street art, faces and portraits are always interesting. Bogat is ideally suited to columns and doors, because his work is often vertically drawn out and sometimes bleeds onto the ground. This is a birthday shout-out to his fiend and painting pal Asre (another new artist to Bristol).

This piece is on one of my favourite doors which has hosted many artists – I feel a special post coming up featuring this door. So much more to come from Bogat.

Thursday doors – 31 March 2022

Doors 179 – Doors from the Temple Meads area of Bristol

I managed to take a short trip to some streets I rarely visit over the weekend, and while I was there I took a few door photographs.  The area lies between Temple Meads railway station and St Phillip’s Marsh and is mostly turned over to light industry that must have built up around the station over the years. Much of the area is fairly run down, and there are bridges and tunnels underneath the railway all over the place.

Black door, yellow steps, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Black door, yellow steps, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Door and beautiful arc awning, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Door and beautiful arc awning, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Door with fancy stonework, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Door with fancy stonework, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
No way in through this door, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
No way in through this door, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Secure door, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Secure door, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Not a door, but one of many tunnels in the area, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022
Not a door, but one of many tunnels in the area, Temple Meads, Bristol, March 2022

So there we have it for another week – my work is still extraordinarily busy, so not too many words or research accompanying the pictures. May I wish you all a very happy week until next time.

If you have made it this far, you probably like doors, and you really ought to take a look at the No Facilities blog by Dan Anton who has taken over the hosting of Thursday Doors  from Norm 2.0 blog. Links to more doorscursions can be found in the comments section of Dan Anton’s Thursday Doors post.

by Scooj

4331. Horfield skate park (9)

John D’oh definitely has a clever approach to his craft. He manages to present a blend of humour and politics in his work, using lots of different stencil techniques and influences to get his messages across. Sometimes he leans heavily on pathos, sometimes deep criticism and at other times wit, and in this stencil, he deals with a very serious issue with the latter approach.

John D'oh, Horfield skate park, Bristol, March 2022
John D’oh, Horfield skate park, Bristol, March 2022

I very much like the fact that he visits this skate park from time to time, partly because it is reasonably close to where I live, but also because it is an infrequently visited spot by artists and turnover there is very low.

This peace dove has had its work cut out over the last few years, and is once again called upon to intervene. We need all the peace we can muster at the moment. A beautifully crafted and sensitively pitched humorous stencil piece from John D’oh.

4330. Dean Lane skate park (476)

I am coming to the conclusion that I have already said as much as I can about the work of brilliant graffiti writer Dibz. I have run out of superlatives, something that actually happened years ago. Dibz is an artist that I like to try and post every time that I photograph his work, because it demonstrates the high end of graffiti writing in the city, but this frequency makes it difficult to write anything interesting or original.

Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022

This is one of the best walls in the whole of Bristol and one which Dibz favours. His wall preparation has paid off, with the grey-blue backwash providing a perfect neutral setting for the antics of Disney’s Merlin and his owl from the cartoon film The Sword in the Stone – a film I have never seen.

Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022

The writing is outstanding, the colour transitions perfect, the spray cans inspired and the characters crisp, sharp and engaging. This is a masterclass from one of Bristol’s very best.

4329. River Avon (28)

I am assuming that the colour selection used in this piece by Werm on the footpath/cycle path alongside the River Avon is in honour and support of Ukraine in its struggles against the Russian dictator Putin. This is one half of a collaborative wall with 3F fino, which I will post in due course.

Werm, River Avon, Bristol, March 2022
Werm, River Avon, Bristol, March 2022

Since favouring these block letters, several months ago, Werm has been churning them out with regularity and I have struggled to post them all – perhaps I need to a) retire and spend more time doing this or b) post several at a time (something I might do more often with all artists) or 3) get over it and ‘don’t sweat the small stuff’ as my son might say.

The improvement I have seen since I first met Werm, then painting as Eman, has been speedy and dramatic. He is a quick learner and practices over and over again, which obviously pays off.

4328. M32 roundabout J3 (399)

I can’t quite work something out. I have only been aware of Klashwhensober for a couple of months, and although I have seen some of his ‘Sober’, ‘Soba’, ‘Klash’ and ‘Flash’ pieces for a little while longer, he seems to be everywhere I look at the moment. Did I miss something before, or has he gone completely nuts. I think I have photographed at least ten of his pieces in my last three or four trips out.

Klashwhensober, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022
Klashwhensober, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022

This Sober piece is a bit of a beauty on the M32 roundabout. The letters are unmistakably Klashwhensober’s, but it is the fills that are superb, with the red and blue ‘sprinkles’ transitioning along the horizontal divide of colour. The white highlights help the piece to ‘pop’ out giving it the 3D effect. And the whole thing is beautifully finished. There is a lot to like about this piece of writing.

4327. Dean Lane skate park (475)

There are all sorts of conventions in the world of graffiti and street art, and broadly speaking most artists remain within the boundaries, albeit on a vast spectrum. There are some artists who seem to linger on the fringes of convention, either through their content or style, and I would class Taboo as one of those.

Taboo, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Taboo, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022

Although Taboo’s writing and character combinations are reasonably conventional, his lettering style and incorporation of characters is not, and this is what sets him apart from other artists. In this piece ‘reality is not enough’ his unusual letters, spelling out ‘Taboo’ in chrome, serve as a backdrop to a C. S. Lewis character from Alice in Wonderland, the caterpillar puffing on a hookah. This is wonderful hallucinogenic stuff, and I am rather sure that the author would probably approve.