Category: 5. Street Art

846. Leonard Lane (11)

Sirens is getting rather busy all over Bristol at the moment, and here is a recent piece that he produced in my favourite Bristol backwater, Leonard Lane. What to make of this piece?

Sirens, Leonard Lane, Bristol, June 2017
Sirens, Leonard Lane, Bristol, June 2017

What Sirens has done here is create a green space in a sea of messy graffiti. I believe it is metaphorical as well as physical and therefore has a double impact. Even more unexpected is that this is, so he says on his Instagram account, a six layered stencil and took a long time to do.

Sirens, Leonard Lane, Bristol, June 2017
Sirens, Leonard Lane, Bristol, June 2017

The abstract nature of this work is at complete odds with the chaos that surrounds it. A small green window of tranquility. It has an impressive impact on those that venture down this ancient lane.

845. The Bearpit (73)

I believe this is the third J. Dior piece that I have posted on this site, and still I am oddly attracted to his naïve style. In this work we have some rather unusual reference to the ‘Caped Crusader’ but I am really rather baffled by the figure with six arms and three heads.

J. Dior, The Bearpit, Bristol, May 2017
J. Dior, The Bearpit, Bristol, May 2017

The fellow on the right appears to have a specially made super hero suite designed to show off his manhood. Whatever is going on in J. Dior’s mind in this piece is probably best kept there. As far as I’m concerned another winner. I would imagine that his work divides opinion as it may fall into the category of ‘I could probably do that’. The point is that people who say that never do…and If they did it would probably be crap. A bit like me saying that I could play football better than Wayne Rooney (even though I probably could).

844. M32 Spot (6)

Another column piece at the M32 Spot, but this one is rather easier to photograph (marginally) because it is on two faces only. The artist is, of course, the fabulous Decay.

Decay, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2017
Decay, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2017

To those that know his work, probably the most striking thing about this piece is that he has introduced some additional colours into his palette, notably yellow, orange and blue. The centre and bottom half are in the colour scheme that I am more accustomed to. To cap it all off, he has wonderful drips. Great work.

843. M32 Roundabout, J3 (41)

A rather nice quick one from Whysayit. I particularly like the work of this graffiti artist because of the range of colour selections and fill patterns he uses to what is essentially the same tag. Sticking to his format, he can play with the decoration.

Whysayit, M32, Bristol, June 2017
Whysayit, M32, Bristol, June 2017

Another thing I rather like is that his work remains edgy, and as well as these ‘full-blown’ YSAE pieces, he also has shorter versions and still tags his letters. He hasn’t yet abandoned his beginnings, and I rather admire that…even though I don’t much care for tagging.

842. Upfest 2016 (135)

OK…I will say that this, for me, is one of the most fantastic small pieces, not only at Upfest but anywhere, that I have seen. The portrait of Einstein by Yassen Nenov (Yasko) is kind of crazy, but beautifully sprayed. There is something about it that just ticks all my boxes.

Yassen Nenov, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Yassen Nenov, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I’m not sure if it is the use of the space, the colours, the subject or the execution, but it just works for me.

Yassen Nenov, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Yassen Nenov, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Yassen Nenov, originally from Bulgaria (I think), is now based in Portsmouth. He specialises in bespoke pieces for cars and bonnets, helmets and walls and murals, and is making a name for himself for his custom work.

Yassen Nenov, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Yassen Nenov, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I am less interested in his commissions (these things are always so ridiculously outside my price bracket) than I am in his public art, such as this piece. Great, great, great.

841. Upfest 2016 (134)

Let’s hear it for the local RAW (Read and Weep) artists…Ryder and T Rex. I think one of my favourite things about Upfest is that it combines high-end street art with local graffiti art, and bridges all the divides that may be out there in the world of street/graffiti art – at the very least for a few days.

Ryder and T Rex, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Ryder and T Rex, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Ryder and T Rex often paint together, and their collaborations can be seen plastered all over Bristol. They have a particular penchant for spraying vans and caravans. I fear they are rather too under represented on this blog, something I will have to rectify.

Ryder and T Rex, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Ryder and T Rex, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

For now though , take time to appreciate the magnificent ‘fairground influenced’ writing of Ryder and the cheeky, possibly clumsy, dinosaur from T Rex. A popular combo from the Bristol

840. Upfest 2016 (133)

At Upfest 2016 there was one site where there were about thirty or so of these smaller (metre square) boards. I rather like seeing some of this smaller street art, which tends to have a bit of a crossover with fine art, perhaps exemplified by this portrait by Lauren Maria Hill.

Lauren Maria Hill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Lauren Maria Hill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This young Bristol artist appears to focus on portrait work and seeks out commissions and freelance work on her website. Her images, including this one seem to concentrate on the face itself with great detail, leaving the surrounding hair as a complementary feature, but somehow separate from the face. I like her work, and hope to see more of it around Bristol.

839. Upfest 2016 (132)

An interesting abstractish sort of piece in one of the prime window slots on North Street, currently occupied by a Copyright and Paul Monsters collaboration. This piece is by Age Age, an artist I am struggling to find out much about.

Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

His piece here is next to the Upfest work of Caro Pepe, which is interesting, because in my trawl of the Interweb, I have found several collaborations between these two artists. A quick look on his Facebook page confirms this.

Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Age Age, Hannes Höhlig, is an illustrator and graphic designer from Berlin who, it would appear, likes to get out and spray the streets from time to time. His work is a little surreal and attractive – there are stories going on here. This was a nice festival piece which sadly was defaced not too long after the festival, along with several other pieces in the area. My understanding is that some of the Bedminster locals spray the pieces they don’t like or don’t respect. Oh dear.

Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

838. Upfest 2016 (131)

This is a stunning piece by Naskool that was situated on hoardings just off North Street, next to the Green. Naskool is an Austrian artist who started spraying in 2004 and now specialises in photorealistic street art.

Naskool, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Naskool, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I managed to take pictures while he was still creating this piece, and it is interesting to see how he built the layers. It seems different artists adopt different techniques.

Naskool, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Naskool, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

This is one of the great works of the 2016 festival in my view – the expression and character that oozes from this piece is quite captivating. Alas, it didn’t last very long, as these hoardings were fairly swiftly ‘corporatised’ by the construction firm who are developing the site.

837. M32 Spot (5)

Another column under the M32, and another brilliant piece which is impossible to do justice to with my limited photographic skills. This distinctive and crisp piece is by Zase and Dekor with an imaginative and creative underwater scene.

Zase and Dekor, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2017
Zase and Dekor, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2017

I love the artistic style of this duo and the combination of the wildstyle 3D ZASE lettering combined with a fantastical scene.

Zase and Dekor, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2017
Zase and Dekor, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2017

The interesting thing about painting a column is that the story that unfolds is caught up in a loop, never-ending. There is no beginning and no end, simply a scene. This must present a bit of a challenge to the artists who choose to spray all four sides.

Zase and Dekor, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2017
Zase and Dekor, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2017

There is a wit and charm about this particular work – the diver is holding a roller and seems unaware of the looming shark. Perhaps he will beat it off using his artistic weapon of choice. I am a fan of this project, but columns really are a nightmare.