.
Heat wave arriving
our excitement tempered by
climate consciousness
.
by Scooj
Month: June 2022
4504. Leonard Lane (34)
When artists come to Bristol for Upfest, they occasionally leave behind some ‘extras’, and this is exactly what My Dog Sighs did in a couple of spots around Bristol with these wheatpastes. In Bristol, wheatpastes have never been all that popular, which is a pity, so to see these superb paste ups from such a significant artist is a real joy.
The first paste up features MDS’ Everyman character painted on a newspaper background, with the profound statement ‘our secrets sleep in winter coats’. Although this looks like an original artwork, it is in fact a print, which in no way devalues it(except in monetary terms), as many wheatpastes are prints that are replicated in multiple venues.
The other two prints feature rather more subtle characters, more akin to the artwork he has been developing from his crushed can pieces. At one time MDS might have been in danger of becoming a one trick pony, however he has spread his wings and diversified so much in recent years which is great to see.
I think these three were in Leonard Lane, but I can’t be one hundred percent sure as I took photographs of his wheatpastes in several different places. The final piece has one of his pigeon-people that MDS has been painting for two or three years. Fabulous stuff. You will always find me partial to a bit of paste up work.
4503. Upfest 2022 (15)
We are living in a country whose government has brought it to its knees. This conservative government has destroyed so much that I and others hold dear. I honestly don’t think I share any of their values at all, and every day I feel disgusted by their announcements and ashamed to be British. On the upside, I know that I am not alone, as this piece by Georgie suggests. We must be careful not to lay all the Blame on Mr Johnson. The mess began with David Cameron who gave in to the right-wingers, and we now have a far right cabinet doing their incompetent worst. Unspeakable really.
This piece is a direct reference to ‘partygate’, which is symbolic of the contempt Mr Johnson and his government have for the people they serve. The piece features The nasty man holding up a glass in a toast to Lee Cain, at a leaving party that wasn’t a party in lockdown. Georgie has captured the moment well. The balloons are real balloons attached to the piece creating a fabulous effect. Hear, hear Georgie.
4502. Upfest 2022 (14)
Nol is another artist who is no stranger to Upfest and appears to really enjoy himself with his lighthearted and rather geeky monsters. This year Nol introduced an element of gamification to his work. His main piece was an identification parade of four monsters, each of which could be found dotted around Bedminster, and could be ‘collected’.
I managed to find three of the four monsters, and I have a feeling that the fourth had been painted over before I ever managed to photograph it, which I guess is the story of street art all over… you snooze, you lose.
4501. Upfest 2022 (13)
Alongside all the newcomers to Bristol’s Upfest festival, there is a cohort of ‘regulars’ who turn up and wow us with their talent, year after year. One of these regulars is RTC (Rich Turner) who has been present at several festivals and presented us with this magnificent British bulldog stencil piece this year.
RTC manages to produce these massively detailed and multi-layered stencil pieces that are photorealistic in their appearance. The backgrounds too are beautifully constructed with hexagons bubbles and stars all adding to the structure of the piece. What is most amazing is that it is all contained with; one of the small 1m squared board.
L is for learner
.
Driving Miss Scoojlet
or rather she’s driving me
the circle of life
.
by Scooj
4500. Upfest 2022 (12)
This post marks a small milestone in the development of Natural Adventures, being my 4,500th street art/graffiti post. I never thought that this would happen when I first set up this blog, but it is funny how things happen in the most unexpected ways. This Upfest 2022 piece is by Bjor, and is a striking and beautiful piece, a little reminiscent of some of Jody’s work.
I guess the contrast between the greyscale portrait and the abstract colourful swirl of thought/imagination/soul is what makes this piece so intriguing, there is a story happening somewhere in this splash of colour.
I have not seen any of Bjor’s work before (one of the joys of Upfest is seeing the work of so many artists for the first time), and it is very fine accomplished stuff. Bjor comes from Norway and his artwork, which you can see on his Facebook page, is definitely worth a look.
4499. Upfest 2022 (11)
I have said many times on this blog that one of the great things about street art is that much of it chronicles the times we live in, either overtly in a political context or sometimes in more subtle ways through visual cues or references. This Upfest stencil piece from Daisy Mae Morris is an overt reverence to the war in Ukraine and features Volodymir Zelensky.
The piece is a take on the famous Lord Kitchener poster of the First World War and seeks to gain the support of Britons in the struggle Ukraine face against dictator Putin and his Russian army. It is a nicely done stencil and I was lucky enough to watch her doing the very final touches to the piece, but not lucky enough to stop for a chat. Great work from Daisy Mae.
Bully
.
Intimidation
discredit and undermine
the tools of the trade
.
by Scooj
4498. M32 roundabout J3 (412)
Like many other established artists in Bristol, Soker is emerging from a rather quiet couple of years, and we are beginning to see his work about the place more frequently. This, for any fan of top-drawer graffiti writing, is good news indeed.
This fine piece, on the M 32 roundabout, is classic Soker, spelling out SOKEM, with beautifully presented letters sharply contrasting with the fully buffed and decorated background. It is easy to spot great quality when you see it, and this is right up there with the best.
Natural adventures 