Category: 5. Street Art

3967. Upfest 2021 75×75 (67)

What a genuine pleasure it was to meet Roo for the first time while she was painting this magnificent shopfront piece for Upfest’s 75 walls in 75 days event. It would seem that her allocated spot, a pet shop on East Street, was the perfect match for her animal inspired work.

Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21
Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21

Roo was able to show off her skills over the entire outside space of the pet shop, which is not inconsiderable, and so we, the viewers, are getting four animal pieces for the price of one, starting with this superb mouse/rat tucking into a fairy cake.

Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21
Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21

On the largest panel of the shop, Roo has painted this sleeping dog which is dreaming about ‘Rrupfest’. In this piece you can see that the clean lines and solid fills are expertly finished and the light brown shading (in cartoon style) gives an additional 3D feel.

Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21
Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21

On the next panel of the shop is a goldfish in a bowl taking a selfie as if it were a holidaymaker on a beach. The piece is full of wit and charm and rather unfortunately obscured by a wheely bin, the scourge of street photography.

Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21
Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21

The final bit of wall to be painted by Roo is a fat cat enjoying some popcorn and taking in a 3D movie with its cardboard lenses.  The whole wall is a triumph for Roo whose work is a perfect fit for this kind of spot. It is great to see that since she painted this, Roo has visited Bristol again and left us a gorgeous lion, to follow soon.

3966. M32 Cycle path (143)

I met Pl8o for the first time a couple of weeks ago while he was painting at Brunel Way, and what a nice fellow he is. He talked a little about his recent experimentation with styles, but said that he was lining up some more ‘blocky’ pieces, of which I guess this is one.

Pl8o, M32 cycle path, Bristol, September 2021
Pl8o, M32 cycle path, Bristol, September 2021

This piece is a delightful sleepy nighttime piece with a moon and stars for added interest. Pl8o has painted some large block letters, nicely filled and decorated, but the star of the show is the moon face blowing clouds into the night sky. A fun and light-hearted piece.

3965. Alfred Street (10)

It has been a long while since I last posted a piece by Todoaciem, so it is with some pleasure that I am able to share this wonderful piece of calligraffiti painted at the ‘Dare To’ paint jam a few weeks ago.

Todoaciem, Alfred Street, Bristol, September 2021
Todoaciem, Alfred Street, Bristol, September 2021

Normally we would expect to see the letters CIEM, but here he has written HMR, the letters of his crew. His letters are always so neat and uniform with a lovely deep 3D shadow that helps the whole thing to stand out. Unfortunately, the white paint is a little thin, but all in all this is a skilful piece of writing.

3964. Sparke Evans Park (11)

Zake is smashing it out of the park at the moment, or should I say smashing it out of the Sparke Evans Park (oof, sorry). Not only is he painting a lot, but he is also really working on those features and details of his faces and with this piece creating a whole new kind of character.

Zake, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, September 2021
Zake, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, September 2021

What is it about monkeys? Actually, I am guessing that this monkey is a homage to Nightwayss (who loves monkeys) whose birthday paint jam this was painted for. The colours, shading and expression is all superbly executed and this is the first time I have seen Zake paint fur, and what a job he has done. A smashing piece on a smashing wall painted to honour a smashing artist’s birthday – what’s not to like?

3963. Dean Lane skate park (430)

I came quite late to posting pieces by Bnie, not for any reason, I don’t know why. Perhaps I sometimes hold back until I know a little bit more about the artist, or perhaps their work grows on me. Anyhow, I am trying to make up for it now and will post her work as often as I can and if I find any in my archive searches will post them too. Last week, I posted a Bnie gallery and hope that she is now better represented in Natural Adventures.

Bnie, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2021
Bnie, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2021

This piece, on an awkward little bit of wall in Dean Lane skate park, is nicely pulled together with great colour fills, smiley mouth and heart on top of the ‘i’. Always reliable and always upbeat, Bnie’s work is greatly valued and enjoyed.

3962. Upfest 2021 75×75 (66)

Well now we are getting in to the final 10 pieces from Upfest’s 75 walls in 75 days event and I am getting a little edgy, because my ‘collector’ gene will be working overtime to ensure I get every single one, and that might be difficult.

Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21
Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21

I don’t normally associate Silent Hobo with Upfest events, so it was really nice to see that he has participated in this most unusual of years with this enormous mural in Ruby Street.

Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21
Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21

Of course, with so many murals in residential streets for this year’s event, parked cars have been a real problem. I think I might suggest to artists that next year they start their pieces four feet above the ground, or that they paint cars in the lower portion so we don’t actually miss anything (now there’s a creative concept).

Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21
Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21

As with all of Silent Hobo’s excellent observational work, he captures the mood of ordinary people, especially youngsters so well. One could do a celebration of Bristol, just by showcasing all of his pieces. It would seem that he is very proud of the city and its citizens and his murals are a wonderful record of the city in the 2000s.

Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21
Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21

Another thing that Silent Hobo portrays beautifully is pets and wild animals. Here he rewards the viewer with a fabulous cameo of a little boy and his dog in a red armchair, a delightful scene. Yet another outstanding wall from Silent Hobo and for Upfest.

3961. M32 Cycle path (142)

Another debut on Natural Adventures in 2021, this time from Chill. It would be interesting to look back on 2021 and look at how many artists appeared on these pages for the first time, and which artists featured the most. Perhaps a little New Year exercise for me to do.

Chill, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, September 2021
Chill, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, September 2021

I know nothing about the artist, but I absolutely love this black and white cartoon trio of characters, painted in a very Beano/Dandy/Viz kind of style. Loads of mischief and fun and really tight artwork. There is a simplicity and symmetry to the piece that makes it so easy to enjoy. I really ought to do a little more research to find out more about the artist. Maybe if I find another Chill piece.

3960. Sparke Evans Park (10)

The long wall at Sparke Evans Park has always been a showcase for some great art, and in recent months, the turnover has increased significantly as has the quality of some of the pieces. It is a top graffiti art spot, but a complete menace to photograph, the dappled sunshine percolating through the adjacent leafy trees has rendered many of my photographs unusable. This is definitely a spot for winter and overcast days.

Laic217, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, September 2021
Laic217, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, September 2021

This is a superb tribute piece by Laic217 for KFAS. I don’t know anything about the backstory and instead have simply focussed on the piece itself. A spray can artist at work with tons of movement (clever use of three hands to create a busy scene), and a massively exaggerated mouth. A characterful and lively piece, and a worthy tribute.

3959. St Werburghs tunnel (258)

Stivs has presented me with another golden opportunity to feature his work on Natural Adventures by painting this cracker in St Werburghs. His calligraffiti writing is improving with every piece, and this is an outstanding example of what he is capable of.

Stivs, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2021bday 034 12-16 Sept 2021_edited
Stivs, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2021bday 034 12-16 Sept 2021_edited

Painted in black and red with a blue border, the letters have the appearance of having been painted with brush strokes – an effect perfected by Voyder in some of his Bristol works. There is so much to like about this, particularly the crispness and the thin yellow lines running through the piece. Lovely stuff.

3958. Upfest 2021 75×75 (65)

There is something rather special about this Upfest 2021 75×75 piece and once one understands the context, the whole piece falls into place in one of those ‘of course’ moments. If I told you that the artist, Martin Glover, is deaf and that the piece is called SIGN, you can probably work out that the hands spell out SIGN in the signing alphabet. Clasping the little finger (S), touching the middle finger (a,e,I,o,u), fists G and two fingers on the palm N – three fingers is M.

Martin Glover, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21
Martin Glover, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21

The piece is therefore not only rather clever and informative, but it is technically very nicely painted, and all around the edge there are hands signing in yellow. I expect the whole thing spells out a message, but I don’t know what it is.

Martin Glover, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21
Martin Glover, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21

There really is no limit to the creativity that street art offers both the artist and the viewer, and this piece simply proves that. It is a shame that it is tucked away in a corner of the Tobacco Factory car park where not many people will have the chance to see it, but it is worth the effort to seek it out if you are up for it.