I am Stephen. I live in Bristol, UK. I decided to shorten my profile...to this: Wildlife, haiku, travel, streetart, psychogeography and my family. Not necessarily in that order.
It has been a very lean start to the year in terms of new street art pieces, which I attribute to the appalling weather that we have had so far this year. It isn’t only difficult to spray paint in the rain, it is also rather unpleasant. The tunnel has provided some refuge from the weather, and this is a nice recent piece by Hire which was painted alongside Sait Bare.
Hire, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2026
These days, it is more common to see the letters ODIAH than it is to see HIRE from the artist – perhaps it offers him more scope to play with form and colour. In years gone by, Hire used to create much more jagged and spiky pieces, and this feels like a softened version, showing his transition over time. I love the colours and love his work.
Slakarts doesn’t paint on the street much these days, but the last two pieces I have found by him have both been up on Purdown on the square concrete slabs of the old WWII gun emplacement. I guess it is a place he feels comfortable painting, a little less exposed than the streets.
Slakarts, Purdown, Bristol, February 2026
This is a lovely abstract piece containing his usual character, which has been absorbed a little into its surroundings, and there is some ambiguity to his features. Slakarts has used some great colours in this fun and uplifting piece.
Doors 344 – Doors from the City of York, (Part V), June 2024
I have only limited time to write this post as I was in London yesterday and have a busy day ahead today. York is a wonderful city, and popular with tourists too, and you can see why. It is full of winding, narrow streets and architecture from many periods. The Minster (featured last week) is the most famous building in the city, and it is complemented by so many interesting and beautiful houses and structures. This week’s doors are from the area near the Minster, I hope you like them.
Fabulous door and steps (and delivery), York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Door to Minster Library, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Plaque next to the door of Minster Library, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Door and slim windows, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Gates and door to beautiful house, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Black door and flat awning, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024St Michael le Belfrey church, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Side door to St Michael le Belfrey church?, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024
I have a few more doors to share from York, before moving on to somewhere else – I am slowly working through my archives of doors, without adding to them at the moment, but I think I’ll have plenty of trips this spring and summer to top up my reserves. Until next time, have a great weekend etc.
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 weekly Thursday Doors post and his Sunday recap.
Daz Cat has painted another one of his tall ‘sentinel’ pieces guarding the entrance to St Werburghs tunnel. In this case, it is a rather lovely dog holding a toolbox that seems to be full of plants and spray cans.
Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2026
The contents of the dog’s box might be a commentary on the people often seen in and around the tunnel, including, obviously graffiti and street artists and allotmenteers who have a selection of plots nearby. I may have missed the mark, but that is what this fine piece says to me. Great work from Daz Cat (dog).
I’ll be in meetings in London today, so I wrote this post quickly last night. Kush has been appearing more frequently in the pages of Natural Adventures recently. Whether it is because he is painting more or I am seeing his pieces more is open to debate.
Kush, River Avon, Bristol, January 2026
This is a rather nice straightforward piece on a new stretch of rather horrible white shiny hoarding around a new development alongside the river. The letters. KUSH, are nicely filled with grey and gold colours with reversed out bubbles and a touch of pink. A confident red border finished the piece well and separates it from the ghastly hoarding.
Not so long ago, this huge chrome piece by 3Dom appeared alongside one by Stivs in the tunnel. It didn’t take long for someone to run a black line through them, but it didn’t do too much damage to the overall look of the piece.
3Dom, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2026
I am going to break from tradition and say that I don’t really like this piece, there is a first for everything I suppose. For me it is just too big, and reduces any impact of the fine details and nuances that 3Dom has made his own. The skull, with a galactic space for a cranium, has cone walls for eyes. Obviously, there is some symbolism here, but I am not too clear what the story is. 3Dom’s catchphrase ‘call in sick’ makes an appearance alongside the piece. Not his best in my opinion.
It has been difficult to walk the dog so far this year, all the parks I usually go to are waterlogged mud-baths, and cleaning him afterwards is a bit of a palaver. Purdown is perhaps the best bet, because it is at the top of a hill and the water drains off it reasonably well, so I went up there a couple of weekends ago, and was met with several new pieces, which I was not really expecting.
Bogat, Purdown, Bristol, February 2026
This is a shouty piece by Bogat, who is known for his characters with woolly hats and large mouths. I don’t see his work all that often, but pretty much always post it when I do, because it has a simplicity and authenticity that I really like. Some bold colours and a good fit for the square concrete slab, and a few RIP shout-outs.
Paul Don Smith, Surbiton Station, London, February 2026
Another piece from Paul Don Smith on the wall opposite Surbiton Station car park. This is a piece that looks like it might have been there for quite a while, judging from the ivy drooping down from the top of the piece, like a theatrical green curtain.
Paul Don Smith, Surbiton Station, London, February 2026
The piece is a collage of images and ideas from the Hollywood movie Venom, which I have never actually watched from start to finish, but have picked up a few scenes while channel-hopping. Paul Don Smith’s style is curious, with a blend of patterns and sketches, spray paint and pens for the finer detail. Definitely a different take on street art, taking a more ‘studio’ approach.
Sait Bare is an artist I haven’t yet met, so I can offer little insight into him or his motivations, but his unusual work is constantly developing and improving. Recently he has switched things up a little and changed from writing the letters SAIT to writing the letters BARE, as in this case.
Sait Bare, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2026
The colours he ha selected for this piece have a wonderfully rich quality, with the two tones of deep red and the reversed out spots contrasting really well with the sandy yellow. . The letters are set in a grey buffed wall with some nice pink and blue (that winning combo) spots. This is a lovely looking piece from Sait Bare.
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