Grump

.

Grumpy old Hector

I can’t seem to shake it off

where did the fun go?

.

2562. Brunel Way bridge (24)

Wow, wow, wow. Face 1st is really going for this new look girl’s face with tears flooding from her sad eyes. This is the third crying piece I have posted recently and it is a trend that seems to be a commentary on the state of our nation at present.

Face 1st, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2019
Face 1st, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2019

This is a crisp and clean piece down under Brunel Way, next to the Bristol New Cut. Face 1st often paints the columns round here, but less frequently paints the main walls, so this is a bit of a treat. An artist who consistently ticks all my boxes.

2561. M32 Cycle path (36)

It has been a very very long time since I last posted anything by 45 RPM. There was a time, when I first started doing all this malarkey, that 45 RPM seemed to be out on the streets painting an awful lot. I actually have quite a few of his pieces in my archive screaming out to be published. In time I guess.

RPM 45, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2019
RPM 45, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2019.

I actually happened to be on the cycle path when 45 RPM was starting this piece. Most unlike me, I didn’t introduce myself because at the time I didn’t know who he was. This is a nice Halloween piece or perhaps more Day of the Dead which he did in collaboration with RichT. More to come from this session.

Still

.

Smoke from a bonfire

hangs over a valley copse

breezeless dispersal

.

by Scooj

2560. M32 roundabout J3 (176)

A Halloween double bill from the fabulous Biers from a week or two back. I got lucky enough to catch Biers while he was still painting the piece on the right featuring a cartoon Jason Voorhees from ‘Friday the 13th’.

Biers, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2019
Biers, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2019

Biers gave no indication that he was going to paint a second character piece (is it from the ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’?) but paint one he did to create this double set. He seems to be enjoying the letters OYEAH at the moment although he didn’t rule out writing Biers again in the future.

Biers, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2019
Biers, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2019

Biers did explain to me the colour choices in his letters and that they were very deliberately chosen from the colours used in a game or something. If I am honest he lost me a bit on the story. I knew I should have written it down at the time. my memory is like a sieve at the moment.

Biers, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2019
Biers, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2019

Anyhow this is a pleasurable Halloween romp and a fine pair from Biers. Hats off!

2559. Upper York Street (17)

Sled One is hitting a bit of a purple patch just at the moment, and his Instagram feed is overflowing with recent pieces from all over the country. This is a reasonably recent collaboration with Ments and is located on a wall that both artists are familiar with.

Sled One, Upper York Street, Bristol, October 2019
Sled One, Upper York Street, Bristol, October 2019

Whether it is graffiti writing or character pieces, Sled One simply knocks it out of the park every time, and his writing in particular seems to embrace so many different styles and techniques. Although you can pretty much always identify the work as his, he has a very broad range of letter shapes and styles and no two pieces are remotely the same, unlike some artists who use the same essential building blocks for every piece. A master at the top of his game.

Half time

 

Taking a breather

TV football ironing

composing haiku.

 

by Scooj

 

2558. Millpond Street (7)

Roughly every six months or so this wall on the side of Domestic Drain Services gets a makeover. It is not a commission as such, more like permission and the cost of the paint thrown in, the payback is that the company get a beautifully sprayed landmark that can just about be seen from this busy motorway junction.

This piece is a collaboration between SPzero76, Squirl and Kid Crayon.

SPZero76, Millpond Street, Bristol, October 2019
SPZero76, Millpond Street, Bristol, October 2019

On the left is the highly detailed work of SPZero76 full of busy action and cartoon capers. The words ‘Lost Eats’ on the side of the rocket is a conflation of two crews, the Lost Souls, which SPZero76 and Squirl belong to and Eats which is the pairing of SPZero76 and Kid Crayon. A nice touch.

Squirl, Millpond Street, Bristol, October 2019
Squirl, Millpond Street, Bristol, October 2019

The central part of the collaboration is a much more tranquil almost abstract space idea going on from Squirl. I have seen a little bit of his work on his occasional visits to Bristol for Upfest so it was nice to see this contribution from him.

Kid Crayon, Millpond Street, Bristol, October 2019
Kid Crayon, Millpond Street, Bristol, October 2019

Finally, on the right is a rather splendid space woman alien kind of thing with the astronaut clad in terrestrial clothes holding the earth with a little space shuttle breaking through the atmosphere. Great, imaginative stuff.

This whole collaboration seems to have the brief of space, but beyond that each artist has absolutely done his own thing, so this is a three-way individual collaboration loosely based on a single idea.

2557. Wilder Street (37)

I can’t think of a time when Sled One hasn’t been on fire. His work is always of such an exceptionally high standard and not only is it technically brilliant, but he combines that excellence with a fertile imagination and interesting concepts.

Sled One, Wilder Street, Bristol, October 2019
Sled One, Wilder Street, Bristol, October 2019

This piece on the ‘Where the Wall’ curated area is a beautiful (belated) birthday work for his frequent painting buddy Smak. It gives me a warm feeling to know that these guys pay tribute to each other in this kind of way and reassures me that the street art community is built on friendship and decency. The piece itself is a creative spelling of SMAK and is painted with a fabulous colour palette underpinned by a deep red and a scarlet. What a nice birthday present to get.

P.S. it is my birthday in January… any chance…?

Drowsy

 

It is the weather

that makes me soporific

so I’d like to think

 

by Scooj