Category: 5. Street Art

2906. Shoreditch, London

Another piece from Shoreditch in November 2018, this time in the distinctive guise of Osch. Part of his yellow circle series, this one adopts his ribbon work with a map of central London and a smiley face, although the Thames mouth is a little crooked.

Osch, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Osch, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

Finding pieces like this by Osch is always a complete pleasure and because of their distinctiveness, they feel like a ‘collectable’ series. I have found a few before, but not living in London I guess each one discovered is very special indeed. I may have posted this one before, but I think it was in a different place. How is that even possible?.

Osch, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Osch, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Osch, the Stables, Camden Town, September 2016
Osch, the Stables, Camden Town, September 2016
Osch, Brick Lane, London, August 2016
Osch, Brick Lane, London, August 2016
Osch, Old Street, London, August 2016
Osch, Old Street, London, August 2016

2905. Shoreditch, London

Continuing with a trip I took to Shoreditch, London back in November 2018 when I was lucky enough to come across this magnificent and rather dark halloween (I presume) fox by Irony at the Allen Gardens spot.

Irony, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Irony, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

Irony’s work is nearly always breathtaking and I have yet to see a ‘dud’ from this artist. This chilling scene is of a fox (and possibly several other creatures of the night) clutching a severed arm in its mouth the hand of which is holding a hot dog. It is clever how the whole atmospheric piece has been achieved using only a few green, brown and black tones. Weird and wonderful.

2904. Shoreditch, London

Street art posts in Natural Adventures are dominated by Bristol artists, I know and understand the culture (a little) in the city and feel comfortable writing about the art I see. The same cannot be said for other places. I tend to hold back on writing too much about the work I see on my trips outside Bristol because there are other chroniclers who do it so much better with so much more knowledge. Most of the photographs I take in London never get posted, but the break in new art in Bristol imposed by lock down means that I can visit my London archives and share some nice art with you.

Mr Cenz, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Mr Cenz, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

This is a gorgeous piece by Mr Cenz in Shorditch that I photographed in November 2018, and I have a feeling that it was still pretty fresh and clean and probably not that old. Everything you expect to see from a Mr Cenz piece is here and it is absolutely stunning. It would be great if he could pay us a visit in Bristol some time – we’d have to find him a good wall though.

2903. Star and Garter (5)

When I find pieces by Tasha Bee in my archive it only reinforces my sadness that it has been quite some while since I last saw a new piece by her. She has been busy with other projects, but I hope her absence from the street art scene is only temporary.

Tasha Bee, Star and Garter, Bristol, November 2018
Tasha Bee, Star and Garter, Bristol, November 2018

This piece on the wall of the Star and Garter from November 2018 is truly beautiful. Her style is instantly recognisable and often solemn, although there is the slightest hint of cheekyness in this girls face – or is that just me? Great colours and so typically Tasha Bee.

 

2902. The Bearpit (186)

This prophetic piece by Object… in The Bearpit was a protest and exposure of Bristol City’s determination to shut down the space and clear it of all ‘undesirable’ activity and make it a safe, clinical space. Object… quotes from Tom Flemming a creative consultant for Bristol City Council:

“…it will also be vital to champion the messy, the marginal and the avante garde, where imagination drives the city of the future.”

The Council shut The Bearpit down, expelled the homeless people (some of whom I note have returned), removed skateboarding and buffed all the walls with anti-graffiti paint. The space is now sterile (and indeed safer), but street art and graffiti were not contributing to a lack of safety, but perceptions seemed to rule the Council decision making. A council, I would add, that celebrates its association with Banksy. Some muddled thinking here.

Object..., The Bearpit, Bristol, April 2018
Object…, The Bearpit, Bristol, April 2018

Object…’s piece once again features a contorted and strangely proportioned figure propping up the rights of the overlooked, the messy, marginal and avante garde mentioned above. He is a true champion and I salute him.

 

2901. M32 Spot (64)

Going through the archives is turning out some nice surprises, and I have been fiding quite a few old pieces by Conrico, like this one at the M32 Spot from August 2018, at a time when I wasn’t familiar with the artist.

Conrico, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2018
Conrico, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2018

This wonderful melty column piece I suspect in some way might be drug related. There is certainly something fairly unusual and dreamlike going on and the separation of the character’s head and copious amounts of smoke suggest something weird is going on. Ever colourful and imaginative, Conrico is a lovely bloke whose work really brightens the place up.

2900. Dean Lane skate park (305)

The great thing about looking back is that you get to see what artist’s work looked like some time ago and how they might have developed over time. This fabulous pair of rabbits from Nevergiveup (#followmyrabbits) is from April 2018 and is notably different from more recent incarnations of the characters in two respects: the amount of decoration on the torso is much more limited, and the ears much smaller than on the 2020 versions.

Nevergiveup, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018
Nevergiveup, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2018

We have to remember that the artist has only been in Bristol for about three years, it feels much longer because of the abundance and spread of rabbits, but in street art terms it is a relatively short time. The image below is a more recent incarnation pf a Nevergiveup rabbit, can you see the differences?

Nevergiveup, Lucky Lane, Bristol, February 2020
Nevergiveup, Lucky Lane, Bristol, February 2020

2899. M32 cycle path (57)

Aah, it is so easy to forget how bright and shiny (or shite and briney as an old colleague of mine used to say) this collaboration was when it was painted. Its quality has stood the test of time and it remained untouched for a very long spell – I think it has finally been painted over.

Dot Rotten, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2018
Dot Rotten, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2018

The collaboration on the M32 cycle path from 2018 was painted by Dot Rotten (SPOILT), Sled One and Smak. Dot Rotten is an artist Idon’t think I have posted before, but while I have been going through my archive recently I have spotted quite a few of his pieces, so expect more in the coming days/weeks.

Sled One, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2018
Sled One, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2018

Sled One has done here what Sled One does everywhere and that is turned out a high-quality character piece with great panache and style. The skull s beautifully drafted and has an animated humour about it. A nice touch to have an ASK speech bubble coming out of the cigarette.

Smak, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2018
Smak, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2018

On the right hand side of the collaboration is a clean, crisp and straight forward Smak piece which stands out from the wall thanks to the yellow outline and bright highlight spots. The whole collaboration has been painted on a shared background and colour selections and was a welcoming sight on this stretch of cycle path.

2898. Leonard Lane (25)

This wonderful stencil piece in Leonard lane is by John D’oh and was one of several that were painted during a bit of a spree I think. The caption ‘People think I’m Banksy’  is a reference to Massive Attack star Robert del Naja (on the right), who has been suspected of being Banksy and who some still think might be him.

John D'oh, Leonard Lane, Bristol, November 2017
John D’oh, Leonard Lane, Bristol, November 2017

It is a classic piece of John D’oh single-layer stencil work, and is emblematic of the whole Bristol street art scene and sub-culture. I have more to publish from this John D’oh session in 2017 and will get round to more of them if the lock down persists.

2897. Bedminster

I don’t quite remember exactly the name of the road that this stunning Feoflip piece is in, but it is in Bedminster off East Street I think. Just one of the amazing legacy of works left behind by the artist during and after Upfest 2016. I like everything about this artist – his style and soft colour choices, his attention to finding the right spot and his adventurous spirit.

Feoflip, Bedminster, Bristol, July 2017
Feoflip, Bedminster, Bristol, July 2017

This Picassoesque face in grey shades on the mustard yellow background works perfectly on the red brick wall. Feoflip seems to have developed a technique that generates splatty thin lines that create the detail in his work and give it a really interesting texture. Unlike any other artist I have seen, Feoflip’s unique style works really well for me. I do hope he returns to Bristol before too long.