Benjimagnetic, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2022
I have a feeling that this piece by Benjimagnetic, alongside an Acer One piece hidden behind a bush, has been here for a while, but that I have only recently clocked it. I can’t be everywhere all the time, right.
Benjimagnetic, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2022
Cryptically spelling out BEN, This is a lovely, colourful piece from the artist with beautifully defined components, crisply sprayed, making up the letters, and some very clever and subtle shadow work that lifts some of the letters and arrows away from the wall. Lovely work.
Recently, you might have noticed that I have been trying to publish more than two posts per day from time to time. This is due to the fact the November has been a bumper month on the streets, and I want to share as much as I possibly can. Of course, in doing so I risk impacting on the quality of the posts, so I need to try and keep a balance.
Merny, Leonard Lane, Bristol, October 2022
Since the Bristol Mural Collective started painting in Leonard Lane, it has become much more of a ‘go to’ destination for street art, and the turnover of work there is on the increase. This is a lovely observational piece from Merny, where we have to make up our own story. I guess these two ladies are too busy on their social media feeds to notice one another. I think the left, left, left, left words are a reference to a dating app. Swiping left means what? is it good or bad? Dating apps are a bit of a mystery to me, given that I have been out of the dating game since long before social media was a thing. More great thought-provoking stuff from Merny.
Unless he is reading The Bible to his kids, this Jesus piece by Haka is a bit of a departure from his recent passion for painting characters from children’s story books. Representations of Jesus in street art are relatively rare, but this South Park Jesus breaks the mould.
Haka, Greenbank, Bristol, November 2022
Haka’s writing in this piece is really neat and tidy, with a bright colour combination that dazzles. Overall, a real pleasure to see this one, and to enjoy Hakas’ continuing purple patch.
Writing about street art and graffiti here on Natural Adventures isn’t a very slick operation. Because of the volume of artwork appearing on the streets of Bristol every day, it is pretty much impossible for me to keep up and report on pieces photographed yesterday or the day before. The time-lag is about three weeks, and that is why you are seeing this magnificent Halloween piece from Stivs on 21 November!
Stivs, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2022
As ever, the calligraffiti offered by Stivs is of the highest order, and spells out ‘Halloween’, in the colours of the festival – green, purple and orange. It is funny how these colours have become adopted as the colours of Halloween… I guess the orange and green come from the pumpkin, and the purple is just a colour that complements them well. Anyhow, this is an absolute belter from Stivs.
I really should know, by now, not to visit Sparke Evans Park or the River Avon on a sunny day. It makes photography nigh on impossible. This was my second attempt at photographing this piece, after the sun had moved a little, and the foliage that was casting a shadow was out of the way. Still, the light was reflecting off the piece a little too much for my liking.
Chill, River Avon, Bristol, November 2022
There isn’t too much I can say about Chill that I haven’t said before. The tattooist inspired designs in black and white are pretty unique in Bristol, and I haven’t seen anything quite like them anywhere else either. I like the way Chill incorporates flowers into his pieces, marrying up urban culture with a love for nature. Another fine piece from Chill.
A little bit off the beaten track, and in a street that doesn’t have much of a graffiti culture, is this rather nice Taboo piece featuring Snagglepuss, a Hannah Barbera creation. On my arrival, the warehouse was just opening up, and I think the proprietors considered me a little odd photographing the graffiti outside their premises, but they let me get on with it.
Taboo, Trinity Street, Bristol, November 2022
The writing is characteristically unruly, with each letter taking on no particular consistency or form, but the whole being unmistakably Taboo. I am confused by the orange line, which, to my eye, disrupts the flow, and I think it might have been added by someone else, although with Taboo, you never really know. Nice to see this piece on my travels around the city.
Ooh, Ahh! This is a stunner from Evey, painted during Bnie’s birthday paint jam, described by Paul H as the paint jam that keeps on delivering, and he is right. I would suggest that this might be Evey’s most ambitious piece to date, and she has carried it off with style and competence.
Evey, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2022
This is an ambitious piece with lovely large letters spelling EVEN, and within the letters a picture of people hanging out under a stretch of arches, in front of a setting sun. A story within a story, if you like. The letters are rounded off with a colourful 3D drop shadow. Big respect to Evey for this one.
One of the nicest artists in Bristol is, without question, DJ Perks, and his rise through sheer hard graft and an equal measure of talent has been a genuine pleasure to witness. DJ Perks seems undaunted in his pursuit of great writing and character work, and is so modest to go with it. If I had only half his talent and drive, I would be a happy man.
DJ Perks, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2022
The muted colours of this piece are expertly blended through the letters, and the whole thing is incredibly tight. There is one small error on the black 3D drop shadow under the letter ‘K’, which should be deeper. Other than that, this is a great piece of Bristol graffiti writing.