Wxttsart is an established member of the Bristol LRS crew, and when there is an LRS paint jam, he is usually there. His work is easily identified as he is the only artist who writes ‘MILK’, to my knowledge. But of course, it isn’t just his letters that mark out his work, but the style too.
Wxttsart, L Dub, Bristol, April 2022
Wxttsart has created a decorative piece of graffiti writing, verging on calligraffiti, with cream letters and a red 3D shadow. For me, though, the whole thing is brought to life by the blue feathering surrounding the piece, and the white highlights on the letters, both of which lift this piece significantly.
Elton Street paint jams are something that, until last year, have passed me by a little. Some five or six ‘billboard’ panels fixed to the wall of a building are painted simultaneously, by a selection of artists, usually with a colour theme running as a golden thread between the pieces.
Tom Miller, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2022
This panel is by the magnificent Tom Miller, whose surreal and busy creations continue to thrill and bemuse in equal measure. Here we have a dog or wolf bursting out of the picture in a splash of colour, with a pan or bowl suspended in front of him. This is a real work of art, brilliantly executed. I miss his occasional pieces in the Bearpit, where he first announced his entry onto the Bristol street art scene, but he makes up for it with walls large and small all over the city.
Although this masterpiece has been around for a little while, I have only recently photographed it. What an absolute stunner, it is amazing what Kosc is doing these days and I really feel that he has raised his game massively into the top half of the top division, and all this has happened over just a few years.
Kosc, Picton Lane, Bristol, April 2022
His pieces pretty much always stand out and completely command attention. How can you not look at something like this and not say ‘wow’ (or some other more contemporary exclamation). The crispness of the writing, repetition of background patterning, bright orange ribbon and sharp portrait are all elements that brought together have a huge impact.
Kosc, Picton Lane, Bristol, April 2022
I think that this ranks as my favourite piece by Kosc so far. There is something quite cheeky and up-front about it. Confident and assured, this is an absolute jewel that deserves accolades from all who take an interest in street art. Bravo Kosc!
Conrico, or Conrico Steez to give him his full name, is going through a bit of a purple patch and is both painting alone and collaborating in spots all over North Bristol at the moment. This Chinese dragon character intertwined with the word Conrico harks back to a dragon piece I photographed in August 2019 (pre-Covid, remember that?).
Conrico, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2022
I say this every time I write about Conrico’s work, but he has a certain quality and style that makes his work look like it has been painted using a brush rather than a spray can, there is a certain texture and depth that he manages to get that is fairly unique. There is much to admire in this piece, and I am enjoying his high productivity at the moment.
Billy continues to utterly delight with her uncomplicated storytelling pieces. Her work is so accessible and has a deep connection with the viewer, and I imagine especially so with younger audiences. There is nothing pretentious or conceited about her work, it is full of fun and commentary that is pleasing to the eye and great for lifting the spirit.
Billy, Greenbank, Bristol, March 2022
I particularly like this piece, I mean what’s not to like about dogs, birds, hats, flowers, a pencil and a lava lamp. I think that the grey background works really well with the overall presentation and the colour scheme is superb. A feast for the eyes and a triumph for Billy – one of my favourite pieces of hers so far.
This is one of those pieces that I photographed some time ago, and even had some pictures of it when it was only half-finished, but it has remained in my folders because I wanted to do some research and find out a little bit more about it. Unfortunately my work has been ultra busy lately and I haven’t found time to look into the piece, but I simply had to scratch that itch, so I am posting it now.
Hazard, Ashley Court, Bristol, February 2022
The magnificent portraits are by Hazard and celebrate the lives of two local residents. The lower portrait is of Israel Augustus Daley, who was fondly known as Gullu. His name above the piece has a saxophone alongside it, and I guess he was a musician.
Hazard, Ashley Court, Bristol, February 2022
The higher portrait celebrates Justina Sharpe. Both pieces were funded by Sovreign Housing Association who own Ashley Court. Of course, it is the bright and colourful artwork by Hazard that makes these portraits so special, and already the building has become a landmark for its portraits.
Hazard, Ashley Court, Bristol, February 2022
Not content with the two portraits, Hazard also sprinkled some beautiful flowers and leaves at one of the entrances to the building. Hazard is turning out some truly outstanding work, and is in my view a world-class street artist.
Nugmoose is enjoying these circular columns under Brunel Way these days, I spotted another new one yesterday when I was there, but they remain a real challenge to photograph, and I would prefer a flat wall piece any day. Nugmoose, I think it is safe to say, is one of the most interesting artists in Bristol, due to his themed approach of weird and wonderful alien figures and scenes.
Nugmoose, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2022
This alien has a whole lot of brain sticking out of the top of its head, and a rather long pink neck, but otherwise is dressed reasonably conventionally. This is all a bit weird, and were my grandmother still alive today, it might prompt her to offer a penny for his thoughts. Fun stuff nicely painted.
In the space of little over a week, several mega-tag faces by Awkward appeared in Dean Lane skate park. I have not seen any of Awkward’s work for simply ages, so perhaps he found some spray cans somewhere and decided to get out there and paint. The result of his endeavours is that I have decided to pull them all together in this collection, reflecting his approach.
Awkward, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Each of the mega-tags features a rather distressed cartoonish face and a speech bubble, with the word Awkward written in it, although you might not be able to decipher the writing if you didn’t know who the artist was.
Awkward, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
This yellow face appears to be crying blood tears and is accompanied by the words ‘Peace Now’ – a reference to the war in Ukraine, and other global conflicts I dare say.
Awkward, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Awkward has been considerate and respectful with this yellow face with pyramidal eyes, inserting it into a collaboration piece that had been there for a few days, without damaging it, and perhaps even augmenting it.
Awkward, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
This final one on the edge of the famous Dean Lane curved wall is, along with the others, rather striking, and has the words ‘Join the Cloaks’ (I think) – I don’t know what it means. Since this little starburst of pieces, I haven’t seen anything more from Awkward… perhaps when he finds some more paint.
Solar is an artist who is horribly under-represented on the pages of Natural Adventures. I have dozens of photographs of his graffiti writing, but very little of it has seen the light of day. I have no idea why this has happened, because in my mind’s eye it feels like I have posted a lot of his work.
Solar, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2022
Solar is one of those ‘it does what it says on the tin’ artists who spells out Solar in most, if not all, of his pieces. His letters are quite boxy and the holes in the ‘o’ and ‘a’ are distinctively low and squished. This is a rather fun throw up that uses the space well. I really must dig out more of his work and share it.
In recent months, tattooist and street artist, Chill, has firmly established himself as a great cartoon character artist almost out of nowhere. His pieces have always been great to look at, but it is the frequency with which he has been painting them that has become so noticeable.
Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
This fine piece in Dean Lane is typical of his distinctive work. Chill typically paints black and white characters that look like they have been lifted from a cartoonist’s sketchbook, set on a red or orange background, creating great contrast which helps the characters to stand out. Chill has stretched his usual modus operandi by including some green foliage and some decorative dotty spheres, that look like dandelion heads. Plenty of fun and action in this piece and cartoon-style eyes to die for.
