5580. M32 roundabout J3 (519)

Saor, Kosc and Mudra, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023
Saor, Kosc and Mudra, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023

Some of the most gratifying pieces are the ones that you stumble upon, without knowing about them and which are total stunners, like this outstanding collaboration from Saor, Kosc and Mudra on the roundabout.

Saor, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023
Saor, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023

To the left of the triptych is an extraordinary piece by Saor, which is characteristically sharp and clean. What I particularly like about his work is that he doesn’t use borders to tidy up his work, everything is achieved through extraordinary can control and cutting back. Incredible really.

Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023
Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023

Kosc’s portraits just get better and better, and he has painted something super-special in the centre of the three pieces. I rather like it that he hasn’t moved into the realms of photorealism, but has an amazing sense of touch, tone and depth. The orange hair is pretty eye-catching, too.

Mudra, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023
Mudra, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023

To the right, Mudra has painted another cracker, spelling MUDRA with letters in a uniform ‘font’, which is different to his last few pieces, where each letter has had a different design. A flower and a CCTV camera are thrown in for good measure. The whole thing benefits from having a buffed wall painted in a complementary colour that works well with the colour selection of the collaboration. This is another outstanding collaboration from the NTS crew.

5579. Greenbank (97)

Cobo, Greenbank, Bristol, October 2023
Cobo, Greenbank, Bristol, October 2023

This is the second Cobo piece I have posted in a short space of time and the second featuring a cat, which is nice to see. His big fat chrome/grey letters spell out Cober and are full of depth and character, and resemble large monolithic rock formations.

Cobo, Greenbank, Bristol, October 2023
Cobo, Greenbank, Bristol, October 2023

The cat is not exactly what I would call cute, but is a really nice addition to his writing. Overall, this is an impressive and imposing piece from an accomplished artist, who has a preference for decorating transport vehicles, but who has done a great job here.

5578. M32 Cycle path (230)

Bean, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023
Bean, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023

A normal week wouldn’t be a normal week without posting something by Bean, and so here is this week’s offering. This one is something a little different from Bean, and he certainly gets tons of credit for constantly dreaming up new characters, no two pieces being alike.

Bean, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023
Bean, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023

It is high time this wall was refreshed, and Bean has done it in style with this weird butterfly graffiti writer wearing a basketball shirt (naturally!?) and spraying pink dollops on either side of the piece. Creative and imaginative, I still think that his work would really benefit from a little bit of prep work with a buffed wall to help his pieces stand out even more.

Mendip Hills

.

Glastonbury Tor

beyond Somerset Levels

dark rain bearing clouds

.

by Scooj

5577. Cumberland Basin

Werm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2023
Werm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2023

This is the third piece of graffiti writing that I have posted today. I do make efforts to try and mix up writing with street art and character pieces in my posts, because I completely get it that graffiti writing isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and is definitely an acquired taste. However, there are a lot of writers out there and sometimes there is just a lot to publish.

Werm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2023
Werm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2023

Werm is quite slow to change his basic designs, preferring to lock on to a particular idea and bash out dozens of quite similar pieces, before moving on to a slightly different design concept, and I think that this piece is a bit of a new transition. The yellow and purple colours are a good combination, and are actually ‘opposite’ colours, and the green glowing background accompanies them well. The letters spell WERM and are much bigger than of late, without quite so much expansion and fuss. It will be interesting to see where this transition takes us.

5576. Dean Lane skate park (651)

Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2023
Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2023

At one end of the long wall in Dean Lane, we can see Rusk doing what Rusk does best. It is a pity that he doesn’t paint as much as he used to, but his considered and meticulous approach to his writing is something that never changes.

Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2023
Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2023

There is nothing fussy or flashy about this writing, which spells out RUSK, but it is a high-class and beautifully neat piece of work. The winning combination of colours, green and orange, are magnificent, and the 3D drop shadow is excellent, with a vanishing point bottom centre of the piece. The writing definitely benefits from the grey buffed background and is finished with some nice green and yellow spots, although I am not convinced yellow was the right choice, although actually it might have been the perfect choice. It was a real treat to stumble upon this one.

5575. Brunel Way (241)

Dibz and Fade, Brunel Way, October 2023
Dibz and Fade, Brunel Way, October 2023

Collaborations between Dibz and Fade are fast becoming the most frequent on Natural Adventures, and they seem to be turning out at least one piece a week, which certainly keeps me on my toes. I try to post them all, simply because of their outstanding quality. Perhaps they will slow the pace a little over the winter months and I can turn my attention to other less well represented artists.

Dibz and Fade, Brunel Way, October 2023
Dibz and Fade, Brunel Way, October 2023

This piece, quite small by their standards, features Scrooge Mc Duck, holding not a bag of money, but instead a spray can. The writing says FADE, but it is difficult to disentangle who painted what in this collaboration, but I am pretty certain Dibz painted the character and Fade the writing. Another very nicely executed piece from this productive pair.

5574. M32 roundabout J3 (518)

Evey, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023
Evey, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023

My ‘Most Improved Artist of the Year Award’ for this year goes to Evey, whose work both in therms of quantity and quality has gone to a new level over the last twelve months, and her progress shows no signs of slowing down. I think that part of this improvement has to be down to the frequency of painting and practice.

Evey, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023
Evey, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2023

This wonderfully colourful piece on the M32 roundabout includes a crown, usually an emblem reserved for the senior or established artists in a place, but I fully believe Evey has earned this. Evey manages to change both the design and fills in her letters with each piece she paints, demonstrating a willingness to push the boundaries. This is an eye-catching fill that asks to be looked at, and works especially well on the black background. There is so much more to come from this hard-working and talented artist.

5573. Sidwell Street Exeter

Sophie Mess, Sidwell Street, Exeter, October 2023
Sophie Mess, Sidwell Street, Exeter, October 2023

One of my most popular street art posts on Natural Adventures was a piece by Vhils on Exeter High Street (which I would link to if links were working on WordPress this morning), a very short distance away from this stunner by Sophie Mess. I love it when ugly corporate or retail buildings commission artwork to brighten things up, and what an impact this floral treat has had on an otherwise dull facade and home for pigeons.

Sophie Mess, Sidwell Street, Exeter, October 2023
Sophie Mess, Sidwell Street, Exeter, October 2023

Sophie Mess is an artist based in Devon, who tends to go big with her incredible floral creations, and indeed painted a vast iris piece on the Tobacco Factory wall for Upfest 2022 (yet to be posted here). This piece is simply amazing, so full of rich colours and textures and so utterly uplifting. Every shopping centre in the UK should have one of these. Exeter is blessed to have a piece like this in the heart of their shopping area, and yet the only people looking at it were people wondering what it was that I was photographing. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink. LOOK UP!

Thursday doors – 19 October 2023, Todi, Italy

Doors 239 – Todi doors, Umbria, Italy (Part I)

I am currently at an event in Cheddar Gorge in Somerset, and have written this post in advance. An English autumn and a summer in Todi are worlds apart, and it has been something of a pleasure sorting out the doors this week, recollecting those parched Italian days, whilst sitting in a dark centrally-heated house in Bristol. The large family gathering we had near Massa Martana was a very special holiday and will remain with us forever. The location of the villa was close to Todi and to several other towns and cities in the west of Umbria and for the next few weeks of Thursday doors, I intend to share some lovely doors from the trip back in July.

This first set of doors is from Todi, on a day that was unbelievably hot and we were wilting in the midday sun – we managed to find some respite in the shady back streets. I hope you enjoy this modest selection that I hope will whet your appetite for more:

Restaurant door, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023
Restaurant door, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023

Attractive wooden doors and iron work over the lunette window, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023
Attractive wooden doors and iron work over the lunette window, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023

Austere iron doors, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023
Austere iron doors, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023

Archway, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023
Archway, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023

Door panels in an arched doorway, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023
Door panels in an arched doorway, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023

A well-used door and patterned render, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023
A well-used door and patterned render, Todi, Umbria, Italy, July 2023

That’s yer lot for this week, but there is plenty more to come from this trip. Have a great weekend.

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.

by Scooj

Door logo, Thursday doors