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.

1292. Upfest 2017 (126)

This was an Upfest piece that seemed to divide opinion…a bit of a ‘marmite’ work, you either love it or hate it. It is an installation piece by Id-Iom which contains several 3D elements protruding from the work.

id-iom, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
id-iom, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

While photographing the piece during its creation I noticed that the trees in the background created brilliant hairstyles for the faces…an unintended addition which I think added to the overall piece. When I pointed it out to the artists, they didn’t seem to see the funny side, and just got on with the work.

id-iom, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
id-iom, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Looking at the equipment that they brought along, there would seem to have been an immense amount of thought and preparation that went into this piece. I can’t say that it was my favourite at Upfest, but it was one of the more stimulating works that attracted more thought than most. These two are unconventional and like to push the boundaries.

Winter interrupted

 

These days are special

a cool sun punctures the clouds

offering respite.

 

by Scooj

 

1291. Bristol, various

I don’t often post work by people I don’t know and I rarely write about taggers, so this might come as a bit of a rare surprise. I have seen tags by this graffiti doodler all over Bristol, and love the simple style and expressions – I have pictures of dozens of tags.

Unknown tagger, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2018
Unknown tagger, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2018

What was special about these three tags is that they all seemed to appear in one night in different parts of the city, each on a route that I took at some time the following day. Of course the tagger might have sprayed other ones that weren’t on my usual beat, but obviously they had a busy night.

Unknown tagger, Prince Street, Bristol, December 2018
Unknown tagger, Prince Street, Bristol, December 2018

Generally I am not particularly interested in tags, other than that I can identify a few of them, but there is something more to these ones. Not so much tags as little characters. All three have since been painted over.

1290. Small Street (1)

On my walks to Leonard Lane in the city centre, the walks I really enjoy, I usually come face to face with this hairdresser’s shop as I get spat out of the lane and into Small Street. Every time I go there I forget to take a picture, but not this time.

Mr Penfold, Small Street, Bristol, January 2018
Mr Penfold, Small Street, Bristol, January 2018

The shop front is by Bristol designer Mr Penfold, who does quite a few design commissions in and around the city. Every now and again he also does a street art piece, but that seems to be a bit of a rarity these days. This is typical of his modern, fresh design work and certainly brings some colour to this rather unexceptional frontage.

Cats and dogs

 

Canine: dependent

the feline: indifferent

it’s what defines them.

 

by Scooj

1289. Raleigh Road, vector (21)

Well here we have a fine piece from RAW’s Smak in Raleigh Road. His wildstyle writing realy is out of the top drawer and this work really showcases his skill. set on a blue background, which was probably prepped for this paintjam, his subtle blue lettering is lifted by the yellow and red accents and of course by the cheeky mushroom skull character.

Smak, Raleigh Road, Bristol, January 2018
Smak, Raleigh Road, Bristol, January 2018

I fear that this set of pieces may be some of the last at this site, which has hosted some remarkable work over the last 18 months or so, but the building work is nearing completion and it will not be long before the hoardings come down. We need some new sites to make up for it.

1288. Allen Street, New York (2)

Allen Street is unofficially known as the ‘avenue of the immigrants’ and this remarkable seven story high piece by Stik represents “A timid giant peering out from behind a column, hoping to make his home in the big new city.” The mural is even more poignant for being very close to the Tenement Museum…so completely recommended if you are spending a few days in New York.

Stik, Allen Street, New York, October 2017
Stik, Allen Street, New York, October 2017

I am a big fan of Stik’s…it is very difficult not to be. The simplicity of his characters hides a deep emotional connection it is possible to have with them. Maybe it is their simplicity that makes them easy to read and empathise with.

Stik, Allen Street, New York, October 2017
Stik, Allen Street, New York, October 2017

Stik began his long and successful journey in a squat in Hackney, London and appears to have a strong connection with those less fortunate in society. He has been consistently telling his wonderful story through his art in cities all over the world. Long may it last. An interesting thing about this piece is that if you look on Google images, you will notice that he started with a white wall, then added the outline, then added the red background. I guess this is what gives the character a brilliant white body.

Crying

 

Sleet sprinkles my face

the cold flakes melt on warm cheeks;

tears accumulate.

 

by Scooj

Clearing

 

Tension in the air

from a misunderstanding

dissipates with time.

 

by Scooj

1287. Allen Street, New York (1)

I took an awful lot of pictures of the street art in New York, and probably only scratched the surface, but I think that these breaks in my Bristol posts will probably be a regular occurrence for a long while to come.

Sheryo and The Yok, Allen Street, New York, October 2017
Sheryo and The Yok, Allen Street, New York, October 2017

This is a wonderful collaboration called Rat Boi, by Sheryo and The Yok, which was sprayed in April 2017. It was commissioned by The New Allen, an art foundation created by Baby Brasa and Milan Kelez…I read that bit you know.

Sheryo and The Yok, Allen Street, New York, October 2017
Sheryo and The Yok, Allen Street, New York, October 2017

I don’t know either of these artists, but this is an eye-catching piece that for me has a retro feel to it, albeit in a contemporary context.