Category: 5. Street Art

3577. Cumberland Basin

I am going to be honest with you. My excitement at finding this collaboration piece by Nugmoose and Mudra was a little offset by the rather creepy and unsettling nature of the images. Nugmoose likes to experiment with alien forms and Mudra’s work is always pushing creative boundaries. The result in this case is decidedly odd, and the location slightly dingy.

Nugmoose and Mudra, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2021
Nugmoose and Mudra, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2021

Having said all that is it great that these two, and Slakarts too, have hit upon a friendship that is highly productive just at the moment. In this piece, Nugmoose’s figure is being drawn towards a hand clutching some flowers. The monster appears to have lost its eyes and is navigating its way forward using the sense of smell. Is that what is going on here? A weird piece, but a nice one to have found.

3576. Redcliff Subway (1)

For an artist relatively new to Bristol, Pura Decadencia has certainly been busy exploring the city and leaving her distinctive paw print in different locations, one or two I’ve still yet to find.

Pura Decadencia, Redcliffe subway, Bristol, March 2021
Pura Decadencia, Redcliffe subway, Bristol, March 2021

I actively sought out this piece, I think from an Instagram feed, because it was located at a subway I had only ever been to once before and I felt it was time I paid it a visit. I am glad I did. There is something quite compelling and sensual, in a vampire kind of way, about her work, and this one illustrates the point with sumptuous lips, a long tongue and fangs. Lots of fun.

3575. Purdown HAA Battery (24)

Consistent with the theme of so many posts on Natural Adventures this year, this piece is by yet another debut artist on this blog, and one I know practically nothing about.

Skronius, Purdown, Bristol, March 2021
Skronius, Purdown, Bristol, March 2021

Skronius would appear to be off the radar of most Bristol street art commentators and I wonder if the artist is new to the city or new to painting in the streets altogether. Skronius has an Instagram account, but only 3 posts and six followers (at the time of writing), so it is difficult to provide much background.

From the look of this piece, I would guess that Skronius is no stranger to the art world with some really nice shading and textures in this piece that help to lift the cat-like robot character. I’m not too sure what the relevance of the bees and honeycomb are, but they help to fill the white gaps around the central focus. There is a lot to like about this unusual piece which is technically nicely done and I look forward to seeing more from the artist over the coming months.

3574. M32 roundabout J3 (295)

One of the incredible things about the Bristol street art scene is that it big and growing. The recruitment into the current cohort seems to be much more rapid than the attrition and loss. Some of the artists who started out in the 80s are still painting now, and Teao One is one of them, although I must confess that this is the first time I have posted anything by him, and as is always the way, since I met him just before he painted this, I have met him again and seen more of his work. Perhaps he has come out of dormancy.

Teao One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Teao One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

Teao One asked my advice about where he could paint this, because he didn’t want to paint over anything new, which I thought was pretty decent. Unfortunately his piece wasn’t shown similar respect and didn’t last long at all, which is a pity because it is a fine piece of writing with some great colours, shading and outlines. Look out for more from this veteran.

3573. M32 roundabout J3 (294)

I think that Sepr is probably my favourite character artist in Bristol, and let me tell you that the bar is very high, so this is praise indeed. The last few weeks have had me purring because he has been very productive indeed. I guess that he is making the most of lockdown and I suspect that his frequency of street work will drop once things move to a new normal.

Sepr, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Sepr, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

This piece was painted as part of an ASK collaborative wall, but sadly has already been over-painted. The subject of the piece is a paintbrush combing his pink hair and looking rather cool, in spite of his half moon spectacles. Sepr has a very special talent for making the inanimate animate and his style has an interesting retrospective feel about it. You can see how his tattoo design style maps across onto walls to create these interesting pieces. I love this.

3572. Dean Lane skate park (402)

This is a very nice piece from Mr Draws from a couple of weeks back. I was passing by when Mr Draws was painting it and I think I gave him a fright when I told him the Dibz piece underneath it had been dedicated to his mother-in-law. Fortunately it was not a tribute piece, but a birthday celebration… it is not the done thing to go over a tribute.

Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021
Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021

It is great to see Mr Draws looking so well and up-beat these days and he seems to be enjoying his painting a lot. It is always interesting to see a work in progress to get an understanding of how the piece comes together. Here Mr Draws has drawn his outline and is filling it in horizontal rows.

Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021
Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021

The finished product is a bright and colourful ‘DRAW’ in four colour bands and a rather special red 3D shadow. The piece really benefits from good wall prep too which was probably left over from the Dibz predecessor. An uplifting work.

3571. M32 roundabout J3 (293)

It can occasionally be very difficult to write a post, because one feels conflicted or compromised in some way, but I believe truth and integrity are values that are important to me and I have decided to write this post as I have done in my head several times over.

I met Turoe for the first time last week (not while painting this piece) and it was not a pleasant experience. He is surly and made it quite clear that he didn’t want to speak to me or engage in any way, preferring to mock me (and others interested in street art). I got the message pretty quickly so backed off and just took some pictures.

I considered not posting any more of his work, but felt this would be churlish, so in my mind I have separated the artist from his art. I am sure that the world is littered with bad-tempered, unpleasant but nonetheless very talented people and I just have to get over it. Thankfully pretty much everyone else I meet is polite and decent – doing this would be a whole load more difficult if they weren’t.

Turoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Turoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

This piece is another in his series of Shyte Year pieces which he has continued with inserting the word ‘still’ in front of it on some pieces. This one in chrome is beautifully bordered with a sharp red line and set on a black and blue bubble backdrop. I wonder if he will keep this theme going after lockdown or whether he will revert entirely to writing Turoe. We’ll see.

3570. L Dub (25)

This is a very special piece from Laic217 because it takes us back to a hallucinogenic theme explored by the artist a few years ago, and I haven’t seen one of these distorted faces in a long while.

Laic217, L Dub, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, L Dub, Bristol, March 2021

This is classic Laic217 at his best… a character and the letters LAIC, but how his work has come on over the last few years. He takes a lot of care with his work and his finessing makes a significant contribution to some brilliant technical work. Here, the double-faced character is spraying the letters, an idea used several times in his work.

Laic217, L Dub, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, L Dub, Bristol, March 2021

The face has two perspectives looking in slightly different directions, but cleverly, each face seems to work independently. The mouth is large and shared by each face. Confusing and unsettling, this is a challenging work. Nice to see the bucket hat and smiley making a return too. Wonderful trippy work from Laic217.

3569. Purdown HAA Battery (23)

With the onset of spring, the turnover of art on the concrete walls up at Purdown Battery has noticeably increased. It is amazing just how much the improvement in the weather drives street art activity, and already we have had a bumper year… it could be the best ever year for Bristol street art if things continue like this.

Antikki, Purdown Battery, Bristol, March 2021
Antikki, Purdown Battery, Bristol, March 2021

This is a lovely, happy-go-lucky piece from Antikki with all the ingredients for that summer holiday we are all dreaming of. I love Antikki’s illustrative style which could so easily adorn the pages of a children’s picture book. There is a lot to admire in this beach scene, the stylised figure in particular. Superb energetic and fun work.

2568. M32 roundabout J3 (292)

This is another very short-lived piece on the M32 roundabout from Serm, who runs a commercial street art outfit under a different name. He has only recently started writing the letters SERM and this is only the second piece I have found.

Serm, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020
Serm, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020

Clearly an experienced and accomplished writer, Serm has finished this piece beautifully. The colours work really well on the off-white backwash and the shadows lift the piece really well away from the wall. I look forward to seeing a whole load more from Serm.