John D’oh has been a little quiet in Bristol lately, so it was great to find this new piece in one of his favourite spots underneath the M32 motorway. One thing that John D’oh is never short on is humour, and this Judy Garland Wizard of Oz stencil reinforces that point.
John D’oh, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
The writing says (from the scarecrow) “Dorothy I can smell weed, urine and spray paint. I think we must be in Bristol”. Of course that made me smile, but for any potential visitors out there, this is a rather tongue-in-cheek, myopic view of our fabulous city. I rather hope to see more from John D’oh, as his artwork adds variety to the everyday fare of street art and graffiti in Bristol.
Finding this piece in the tunnel was one of the happiest street art moments of my year so far. Fiva (Fiver) has been absent from the Bristol street art scene for a long time (last seen in 2020), and I feared that he might have moved away or given up on painting altogether, so seeing this filled me with pure joy, as I am particularly fond of his work.
Fiva, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2023
In classic Fiva style, he has painted a huge piece with large block letters that have plenty of depth and stand out from the brilliant pink buffed wall. As is customary, Fiva has painted a character looking on from the left in wonderful cartoon style. The whole thing is so refreshing after the long absence. Welcome back Fiva, I hope that this isn’t a flash in the pan.
This wall, although part of the Dean Lane ‘furniture’ was only bricked up and made into one solid wall earlier this year, so in its current form it is a fairly new wall which was first painted by Haka (if my memory serves me correctly). It has now become a popular wall for large pieces of graffiti writing, and this is the turn of Mr Draws.
Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2023
Mr Draws has been and will always be one of the foundations of Natural Adventures, along with other artists like Face 1st, whose work is consistent, regular and enduring – the heartbeats of Bristol street art. In this tidy piece, the letters are beautifully painted, each one merging into the next, and the fills, with horizontal layers work nicely through the letters. The little white accent lines create a 3D effect, which along with the black drop shadow lift the writing off the wall. Set on a blue patterned background, the piece is another fine contribution from Mr Draws.
Cort is another ever-present writer in Bristol who, year in year out, turns out his peculiar brand of writing on a regular basis, always there in the background, never any fuss. I have met Cort on several occasions, and he is way too modest about his work, and reluctant to say very much too, which is fine, not all people feel the need to chat.
This piece in Dean Lane, is so typical of Cort’s work, with his unusual letter font, combining curvy shaped letters with straight angular ones. His colours are also quite peculiar to the artist, and the stand-out element is probably the red patterning on the grey level of the fill. It is the simplicity, nothing too busy, and the unique style that I enjoy most about this pice. Cort is probably one of the most under-represented artists on Natural Adventures, and I ought to post more of his pieces than I do.
Codo, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23, Cheltenham, July 2023
When I first started to write about graffiti and street art back in 2015, I had my own unconscious biases and preconceptions about the artists, and I must confess that I was a little afraid, believing that the edgy nature of the world I was entering was somehow representative of the people creating the art. How utterly wrong I was, and what a fool I was. I have met many, many artists and I can think of only one or two that were having a ‘bad hair day’, all the rest, without exception, have been wonderful people with interesting stories to tell, generous with their time and conversation.
Codo, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23, Cheltenham, July 2023
So, with this backdrop of incredible and talented people in mind, I met one of the very kindest and engaging people to date at the Cheltenham Paint Festival in one of the Honeybourne Line tunnels. I am talking about Codo (@codoartni). I caught up with Codo while he was finishing off his intricate/simple doodle piece, and he stopped, not only to chat with me, but went on to advise me on several aspects of can control, and gifted me some spray cans and a whole ton of banana caps. He made these gestures without any desire for gratitude, but filled with enthusiasm to help a wannabe artist. He made my day.
Codo, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23. Cheltenham, July 2023
I have not seen Codo’s work before, so it was great to see him at work on this piece. Originally he had sprayed a pink and blue background with doodles, but decided to overwrite it with black lined doodles and the resulting effect is rather good. In amongst the patterns and faces are shout-outs to other artists he was painting with and other cryptic messages. The central character, dominates the work and is a simple thick-lined version of the smaller doodles all around. This is Codo’s identity, his look and feel that underpins his work. Great stuff. I very much hope to meet him again, perhaps if he could get himself invited over to Upfest next year or something like that, that would be cool.
N4T4, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23. Cheltenham, July 2023
I mentioned in my last post that there were a lot of birds painted at this year’s Cheltenham Paint Festival, and this outstanding goldfinch by N4T4 is another fine example. Goldfinches happen to be one of my favourite birds and have been the subject of several haikus on this blog. Perhaps I’ll share them at the end of this post , although don’t get your hopes up – expectations need to be managed.
N4T4, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23. Cheltenham, July 2023
N4T4 is no stranger to Natural Adventures, although posts of his work are confined to festival appearances, I’m not sure where he calls home, but I haven’t seen any of his works outside a festival. All the other pieces I have seen by N4T4 have been portraits, so this is rather different, although his trademark patterning running through the piece is present. This is a stunning piece and one of my favourites from the festival.
Sophie Tuttle, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23. Cheltenham, July 2023
There were an awful lot of beautiful birds painted at the Cheltenham Paint Festival this year, whether by coincidence or design I simply don’t know, but it feels like the nature theme is running strongly through street art these days, perhaps as a subliminal or conscious response to the global biodiversity crisis we face.
Sophie Tuttle, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23. Cheltenham, July 2023
This enormous piece by Sophie Tuttle on the side of a building on Devonshire Street features two owls, one in good health, the other a skeleton, joined together by a red thread that each is holding in its beak. There is symbolism here I’m sure, and perhaps it is the delicate line we walk between life and death.
Sophie Tuttle, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23. Cheltenham, July 2023
Both of the owls are perfectly painted, and each has a halo behind with a floral design in subtle blues. Perfectly proportioned and anatomically correct these owns are as much a study of form as they are paintings of birds.
Sophie Tuttle, Cheltenham Paint Festival 23. Cheltenham, July 2023
I don’t believe I have come across Sophie Tuttle before, but that is hardly surprising since she is Boston- based. Her commitment to free and accessible art is a great thing indeed, and what a privilege to see her amazing artwork at the Cheltenham Paint Festival. Perhaps we could entice her to visit Bristol some time.
Natural adventures 