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.
This wall is usually occupied by Dibz or Fade or combination of the two, so it can be refreshing to find something a little different from time to time. I don’t know an awful lot about Mr Sensae, and don’t think I have photographed any of his work before.
Mr Sensae, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2025
This writing, spelling out SENSAE certainly catches the eye with its bright colours, which the artist even acknowledges with the words ‘nice colours’ in the bottom left. Starting with a pink background and decorative spots that provide a great backdrop, the letters are filled with horizontal stripes of colour ranging from orange to blue, and decorated with loads of reversed spots and stars. A striped 3D drop shadow veers off to the right. This is a banging piece of graffiti writing.
This piece by Kool Hand was part of a recent collaboration in the tunnel, but alas his third only lasted about 24 hours. On the upside I was fortunate enough to see it, literally moments before it was painted over by Mr Klue.
Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2025
I have said it before, but Kool Hand is a bit of an unsung hero of Bristol street art. His unique blend of colour, characters and writing is a central part of the heartbeat of the Bristol scene, without which it would feel diminished. The letters KOOL and nicely presented in very Kool Hand orange, with some great solid fills and spots. The background in softer purples and blues provides a perfect counterbalance to the graffiti writing. Nice work from Kool Hand.
It will not have escaped regular readers’ attention that I am thoroughly enjoying the development of Lis (Le Imposter Design). Her work is increasing in both volume and scope, and she is broadening her horizon from the ‘safe space’ of mushrooms and toadstools.
Lis, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, April 2025
I didn’t really notice this piece the first time I walked past it, and it was only on returning along the path a few minutes later that I stopped and registered it was by Lis. It is a rather nice monster character piece, looking like a teddy bear that is having a ‘bad hair’ day. Lots of fun, and experimenting with something new. Such has been her prolific painting, I will soon be able to publish a gallery of her work, which should give an indication of her rapid transition to spray paints. Keep it up, Lis.
I believe that this wonderful character piece by Turoe was painted to celebrate Soker’s birthday during a recent paint jam in the Deaner. The old-school piece is brimming with class, and references the ‘Eighties kidz’ who, alas, are no longer kids, but have come a long way and are have become the establishment/benchmark in Bristol street/graffiti art.
Turoe, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2025
Turoe doesn’t get out too much these days, but when he does, his work is without doubt of the highest calibre and this character with bucket hat, chain and watch, TURO belt buckle and spray can exemplify this. A little awkward to photograph, but not insurmountable with a wide angle function on my phone.
Because I have been following and writing about Bristol street art for ten years, I have been able to watch so many artists start their adventures and develop their skills over time, and it gives me immense pleasure to witness this. One such artist is Astra, hi first come into my vision last year, when she painted a garage shutter during a mini paint festival in Muriel alleyway.
Astrea, Peel Street Green, Bristol, April 2025
This combination piece contains a dominant female character with a gun pointing out and the letters ASTRA in a bubble graffiti style. This is an interesting development phase and it is great to see her growing in confidence. I look forward to seeing more of her work this year.
Stivs has been painting some extraordinary portrait pieces recently, demonstrating that his talents extend far beyond his outstanding calligraffiti for which he is best known. This is a gritty and authentic portrait of his friend and fellow artist Badger Feral.
Stivs, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, March 2025
The piece is representative and beautifully painted, without the need to be photorealistic, which is the temptation for many portrait artists. I am full of admiration for the range and quality of work that Stivs achieves, and am always pleasantly surprised when I find new pieces by him. Long-live Dog Supremacy Crew (DSC).
This year, I have become increasingly aware of pieces by Weas (@weaselmilk_) dotted about in most spots I visit. He tends to paint some rather wobbly characters, on columns or in tight spaces, but this piece of writing and characters demonstrates his wider capabilities.
Weas, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2025
The psychedelic swirl running through the letters WEAS has an interesting effect and draws the eye in… so much so that when I first saw the piece, I didn’t even notice the three characters subtlely sitting on top of the word. I think that there is a close association between the ‘alien’ characters and weed, with the one on the left enjoying a smoke. Expect a whole lot more from Weas.
Since moving out of Bristol, Face 1st has lived up to his reassurance that he would be back reasonably regularly to carry on painting walls. I have noticed, however, that he has selected spots that are a little bit off the beaten track. This piece is on the junction 2 roundabout of the M32, where turnover is a little slower than other spots.
Face 1st, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, March 2025
Face 1st has been concentrating a little on his letter styles of late, playing with new fonts and presentations. He has also taken to painting with gold paint (perhaps he put in a big order of the stuff). These lower-case letters, in pink, have nice fills and shout-outs to his PWA crew Soap, Zake and Chill. Face 1st is a firm favourite on Natural Adventures.
Doors 303 – Copenhagen, Denmark (part III), September 2024
This week’s doors are a continuation of the Copenhagen series, and this week come from the 17th century district of New Haven (Nyhavn), where some of the most iconic views of the city are found. Try finding any brochure or website about Copenhagen that doesn’t include this famous waterfront. One of the houses, I don’t recall which, was home to arguably Denmark’s most celebrated Citizen, Hans Christian Andersen.
Iconic view and many doors of the waterside, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024
These pictures were taken on two separate visits to the area. I mention this because the eagle-eyed among you might spot that there are some clouds in one or two of the pictures and not in others. I hope you enjoy this week’d selection:
Iconic view and many doors of the waterside, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Balcony door, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Large double door and fanlight, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Large double door and archway, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Large arched door, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Beautiful old door and wonky doorway complete with irritating notices, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Small boat door, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Doors on the deck, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Double doors to below decks, Nyhavn, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024
More to come from Denmark’s beautiful capital city 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.
It took me longer than it should have done to figure out who painted this wonderful piece of graffiti writing. There are plenty of clues to pick up on, such as the letter shapes and the fill designs, but I was thrown by the absence of a word that I recognised. It is by Corupt, who usually writes CORUPT or STICK, so I think I can be forgiven for being confused for a while.
Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2025
There are a lot of letters and numbers in this piece, and I am inclined to think that it might be a tribute piece, perhaps a birthday or anniversary. The letters could spell out NICK. The number 40 could represent a birthday, and the numbers ’85 and 25′ might confirm this. Whatever the backstory, this is great graffiti writing from Corupt.
Natural adventures 