What a wonderful piece. This is Face 1st at his traditional best. It was pieces like this that first attracted me to the work of this Bristol artist, and although he has diversified his subjects a little this year, this one is right back to his core work and rather comforting for it.
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2019
The piece is clean and fresh, it has a crispness about it. The colours in the hair, spelling out FACE, are nicely selected and contrast strongly with the yellow surround. So good to see a piece like this in one of his favourite haunts.
On a ramp at St George skate park is this rather tasty clean and tidy piece by Fiva. I have only been visiting this skate park for about three months and it has yielded so many lovely pieces. The turnover here is quite high, because all the surfaces get pretty scuffed pretty quickly – luckily I got to this one when it was stil pretty fresh.
Fiva, St George skate park, Bristol, September 2019
I am racking up quite a decent collection of pieces by Fiva and this one is a little different from many, with a slightly more forgiving font and softer cloudy background although the whole thing is set on a rather austere blue brick wall background. I like Fiva’s work a lot and always get a bit of a kick out of finding new pieces by him.
Readers of Natural Adventures will know that I am a monumental fan of the work of Laic217, and here is the latest collaboration with his often painting partner Cort in Dean Lane. I have to say though that this is not their best piece in my opinion. There is something not quite right about it. The two elements of the collaboration do not complement each other and I think these would be better as stand-alone pieces. Don’t get me wrong, this is still great work only not quite up to the usual high standard.
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
The central Cort writing is book-ended by two rather dark characters by Laic217. Although we are used to seeing Cort write CORT, he has also taken to writing PADY this year – I’m not sure what has prompted this variation, but writers often do this probably just to swicth it up a bit.
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
On the left side is a post-apocalyptic character with a skeletal face and mask. The mask could be interpreted as a gas mask or spraying mask and the two seem to intertwine. It all feels a bit chilling and like something out of a Terminator movie.
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
On the right of Cort’s writing is another character in the same dark and depressing regalia wearing a full overhead gas mask. These two Laic217 characters speak of doom and convey a dystopian future in a chilling and convincing way. I would have liked to have seen these characters separated from Cort’s writing, which is at odds with them.
As part of the 3Dom birthday celebration paint jam down at Dean Lane Hemper painted this wonderful piece of writing on the curved wall that has played host to so many incredible pieces over the years.
Hemper, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
The letters are bold and the colours blended from top to bottom are exceptional, but it is the texture of the piece and the drips melting down that show the true craftsmanship of this fabulous Bristol graffiti writer.
Finding a gem is always most gratifying and discovering this beautiful understated piece by Gvnly was a real treat. I had been aware of the piece via Instagram, but had no idea where it was and stumbled across it on a random lunchtime walk – often the best way to find new pieces. I have met Gvnly a couple of times, and he has been kind enough to offer tips and advice for which I am most grateful.
Gvnly, Little Paradise, Bristol, September 2019
This little piece is so beautifully executed and almost falls into the category of micro-art. Not only is the subject really interesting and skilfully painted, it is also framed perfectly… it is as if this space was always meant to be Gvnly’s. Lovely piece.
When you see some street art that is a little weird and creative in Bristol, it is likely to be the work of 3Dom or Sled One and if you are particularly lucky it might be a collaborative effort from both of them. This is one such collaboration and weird and creative it is too.
3 Dom and Sled One, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
The mash up of Mr Potato Head and a balloon is not the sort of image that comes readily to mind, but seems to come with such ease from these two. I think that the division of labour of the work was 3Dom on the left and Sled One on the right, and maybe a couple of other bits shared out equally.
3 Dom and Sled One, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
This piece, together with a whole bunch of other ones was all part of a late birthday jam for 3Dom, and looking at his Instagram feed, it looks like they all had a really great day – lucky for us really.
How can this not be an enlarged photograph? Sam Art is surely playing with our eyes and deceiving us. This incredible piece was one of the first I saw at the festival and was in place early on the Friday when all the walls around were yet to be painted. I believe that he painted it off-site before installing it in Cheltenham North Place car park.
Sam Art, Paint festival 2019, Cheltenham, September 2019
The theme for the festival was literature or books to celebrate the 70th year of the Cheltenham Literature Festival and this portrait of J.K. Rowling could hardly be more fitting.
Sam Art, Paint festival 2019, Cheltenham, September 2019
It is way beyond my comprehension how artists produce photorealistic art like this so I prefer not to understand it but to wallow in its glory. An extraordinary piece from Sam Art.
Whether it is a large piece or a small one, Chinagirl Tile never ceases to amaze with her imaginative and often slightly subversive ceramic tiles. I think this must be one of my favourites and I loved it from the first second I saw it. Created for the Cheltenham Paint Festival 2018 this striking dinosaur piece takes centre stage in one of the town’s car parks.
Chinagirl Tile, Paint festival 2018, Cheltenham, September 2019
The dinosaur is enormous and one of the larger pieces I have seen by Chinagirl Tile. It is genuinely a fabulous work of art and Cheltenham are lucky to have it as a piece of public artwork. I cannot imagine how long this might have taken Chinagirl to design, fashion, glaze and fire, let alone bringing it over here from Austria where she is based, but it was definitely worth it.
Chinagirl Tile, Paint festival 2018, Cheltenham, September 2019
An additional part of the overall piece is a ceramic listing of ‘rules for girls who want to become street artists’ with the words ‘BRING A DINOSAUR’ written over the top of it. Skill, charm, wit, placement, patience, dedication… this piece has it all. Bravo.
This is an unmistakable piece by My Dog Sighs, which was one of several little ‘gifts’ left behind in Cheltenham by him at the Paint Festival in 2018. Having never been to a Cheltenham Art Festival before I was discovering so many of these beauties for the first time this year. I love this photograph… there is something about the placement of the piece on this particular wall and its immediate environment, such as the carpet and the weeds that come together to make an outstanding image.
My Dog Sighs, Paint festival 2018, Cheltenham, September 2019
I don’t think I’ll ever tire of these eyes, and although they are one of My Dog’s trademark pieces, each is individual and independent of the others. The most amazing thing about this one is how you can look at it and in your mind know that it is on a flat surface, but the skillful artwork has a depth and the shine on the iris makes it look aqueous, just like a real eye. Magnificent in so many ways.
What a cracker! This is an absolutely stunning piece by Dice67, AKA Andy ‘Dice’ Davies, the architect and organiser of the Cheltenham Paint Festival which was held this year on 5-8 September. This colourful piece is a portrait of Debbie Harry and I think is probably the best freehand piece I have seen from Dice67 yet.
I felt it appropriate to start my Cheltenham posts with this piece and I’ll be interweaving more of them into my regular posts over the coming weeks/months.
I have not been to Cheltenham since I was a little kid, and so on this visit I was able to catch up with some of the pieces from last year’s festival too, and they really are rather impressive. Dice67 has tried to find new walls each year of the festival so that the old ones can remain in all their glory alongside the new ones rather than being over-painted. Let’s hope he doesn’t run out of walls!
Dice67, Paint festival 2019, Cheltenham, September 2019
Back to this piece… it is so beautifully worked, especially the amazing reflections on the glasses, and this is all a far cry from his stencils which was my introduction to his work. There was a festival theme this year which I think was books and in this piece the link is that Debbie Harry will be atending the Cheltenham Book Festival later this year – Dice67 is rather hoping that she’ll be photographed standing next to this portrait of her. A great way to introduce the Cheltenham Paint Festival to Natural Adventures.
