.
Penned in by green fields
neat rows of cloche-like dwellings;
mud pigs on a hill.
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by Scooj
Author: scooj
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.
1471. Upfest 2017 (170)
Rounding off this batch of Upfest 2017 posts is this wonderful collaboration in a comic-strip style from artists Size Two and Laura Schindler. I think it is a rather special piece that was a little bit tucked away on the periphery of South Street park.
I am not fmiliar with either artist, but believe that both of them are form Austria and now live and work in Berlin.
The collaboration works so well for me, there is a good story going on, a fight against crime by a human and a robot – detective partners? The main characters are set on a washed out urban background of some dystopian future. I simply love it.
Irritation
.
Sweet wrapper crackle
impolite in extremis
when I’m in this mood.
.
by Scooj
1470. Upfest 2017 (169)
What an extraordinary piece by Title at the Ashton Gate site. The character to those of you not familiar with Marvel comics is Thanos, who I believe makes an appearance in Guardians of the Galaxy 2 – a film I haven’t seen yet, but will do when the DVD arrives.
The detail in the face and expression bring this ‘photorealistic’ piece to life. Title, from Birmingham is a full time artist, taking commissions around the country. He enjoys festivals, which he can focus on while trying to balance a busy work schedule and family life.
Would be good to see him again at Upfest, but I don’t see his name down for 2018, so mnaybe another time.
Nuthatch
Atop a tall ash
against a backdrop of blue
I catch a nuthatch.
by Scooj
1469. Upfest 2017 (168)
I think the prize for the busiest artists of Upfest 2017 goes to Pahnl who were not only the featured Festival artists for the year, but who also painted two walls with their intricate stencil work.
Actually, it was some days after the festival that they finally managed to finish this wall, but it was worth the wait. Their style of work has the look and feel of corporate identy and logos, with ‘toilet door man’ setting about various tasks and activities.
The partnership certainly produced something out of the ordinary with their work, unlike anything else at the festival. there is more about this duo from Birmingham on their fine website.
1468. Upfest 2017 (167)
Some of the collaborations at Upfest 2017 were almost acidental or improvised. Others like this one were calculated and beautifully worked out. The artists, Carleen de Soza (left) and Dreph (right) painted portraits of each other, and in doing so switched colours for the skin tones and background.
I think both artists, who do a lot of portraits fgound it challenging being the subject of the artwork, but the final collaboration was outstanding and eye-catching.
The wall was a difficult one to photograph, because the light managed to shine down the back wall and bleached out the top of the frame. Also there were beams in the way, which didn’t quite fall centrally – probably not the best spot for a collaboration.
This piece was definitely one of the more memorable collaborations at the festival and I guess ther artists were relieved at having the partial cover to protect them from the rain showers.
1467. Upfest 2017 (166)
Annika Pixie has a lightness of touch that brings a spot of magic to her pieces. She is a fine artist and lovely warm person. For half the year she spends her time teaching in Thailand, and her Instagram feed is a constant stream of beaches and sunsets.
This piece for Upfest must have been completed early on the Saturday, because I never got to see her at work, which was a real pity – maybe this year.
1466. Upfest 2017 (165)
This is the last set of Losthills’ Jake the Dog pasteups from Upfest 2017 and what fun they are. Part of the joy of Upfest is finding these little gems attached to urban infrastructure in the Bedminster area, and if you are lucky, other pieces are left in other parts of town too. This was certainly the case with Losthills, and I still have a couple of those to share.
The Featured image at the top of this post sees Jake holding a ghost from the computer game Pacman. The Jake immediately above is dressed for the Daft Punk single Doin it Right.
I have no idea at all what cultural reference is being made in the wheatpaste above, but Jake appears to be wearing a basket hat and conducting electricity from his hands…if you know more feel free to let me know.
Finally, in the pasteup above, Jake is holdig a heart with the word Hex and is standing in a rather creepy horror-style environment. I am guessing this is a reference to the film Hex, which I will not have seens because horror movies frighten me and I won’t watch them.
Park bench
.
A moment enjoyed
warm May sun scolds my trousers
while Ruben frolicks.
.
by Scooj
Natural adventures 