Category: 7.1. Upfest 2016

588. Upfest 2016 (82)

OK, I know, I just posted a piece by Face the Strange, and here we have another one. I have done this deliberately because I think that each of them deserves a post to themself. Occasionally I will combine pieces by the same artist, but mostly I like to concentrate on each work. It just so happens that there are two by FTS in a row.

Face the Strange, Upfest, Bristol, July2016
Face the Strange, Upfest, Bristol, July2016

I love this small paste up. It could have been easily missed, lurking on a doorway behind a tub of recycling. But take a closer look at this TV set and you will see that there is a still from ‘a Clockwork Orange’ and in the spirit of things, FTS has replaced the heads of the characters with oranges wearing bowler hats. Any artistic reference to this great film has to be a good thing. This wheatpaste is witty and fun, and the style of FTS’s work is always slightly unsettling and anarchic. Great work.

587. Upfest 2016 (81)

Face the Strange seemed to have a great time at Upfest 2016, spreading the love all over North Street with a fine selection of his wheatpastes, each one of them curiouas and humorous.

Face the Strange, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Face the Strange, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

This one seems to show four red-shirted gentlemen with projector or television tubes for heads. Nobody said that peculiar wasn’t allowed at Upfest, so Face the Strange has provided it in bucket-loads. A commentary on techno-geek-physics-heads? Reminds me a little of Kraftwerk, remember them?

 

569. Upfest 2016 (80)

I guess I am about half way through my posts from Upfest 2016, and I don’t think I will have finished posting them until Upfest 2017! I am becoming overwhelmed by the number of pictures I have in my archive and am not sure how best to share them with you. Less of the rambling writing might be a blessing for you and more shorter posts each day…but that could risk graffiti fatigue, and I wouldn’t want you to be bored with increased posts. I have to say though that this is quite a pleasant conundrum, which would be all the better if I didn’t have to work!

Voyder, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Voyder, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
This is a great piece by the magnificent Voyder, who was given two prominent walls for Upfest 2017, Writing his name on this one, and writing ‘Bristol’ on the other. Both were sprayed in the same style. Voyder is certainly one of the most brilliant artists in Bristol, if not the country. His work never ever disappoints, and he is constantly exploring different genres and designs to write his name. So much good stuff coming from him.

568. Upfest 2016 (79)

It is always really nice when artists who come to Upfest leave additional works dotted around Bristol. These ‘extras’ range from commissions to ‘naughty’ pieces, but as far as I am concerned they are always welcome.

Angerami, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Angerami, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

This amazing owl by Angerami will have been missed by most visitors to Upfest, and indeed to North Street, because it is in an alleyway with a huge iron gate in front of it. I didn’t notice it at first, but of course, I am always on the look out for such things.

Angerami, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Angerami, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

The owl is beautiful, but I can’t help thinking it was done as a special request, because it really isn’t very accessible for anyone other than the owner of the alleyway. You might recall from an earlier post his incredible fish. I love street artists who paint wildlife and Angerami is right up there with the best.

567. Upfest 2016 (78)

This was one of the larger pieces from Upfest, and I have just spent 20 minutes looking for some other pictures that I took of it once it was completed, but can I find them…? It is quite an unusual piece by Fin DAC, and I have to say I think it is brilliant.

Fin DAC, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Fin DAC, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I particularly like the way the chimney stack has been incorporated into the work (which of course, you can’t see from these crappy pics) – I love it when street artists use the environment they are painting in to enhance the work. Fin DAC is an artist from Ireland but who now resides in London. I don’t think I have ever seen anything like this before, but it has some real overtones of Japanese culture in it, which I don’t think is common to his other work. Maybe that is just me. Really nice piece.

Fin DAC, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Fin DAC, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

566. Upfest 2016 (77)

This rather nice large, clean piece by 45RPM, one of Bristol’s finest street artists, captures the theme of the festival ‘Mr Men’ (and little Miss) with a new addition of Mr Paint? I’m not sure what he is called, but it is a witty piece painted in the spirit of the event.

45 RPM, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
45 RPM, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

The wall though is a complete bugger to photograph. It would seem that the parking bay in front of it is reserved 24/7 for white van man (although in this case a Range Rover)! I can’t count how many times I have been to north street to photograph this piece, and there it is…some bloody van. So I will calm down, and you will just have to put up with van pollution in my pictures. To help me retain my poise, I offer two other pieces by 45RPM – an owl, and an anteater…ahhhh that’s better.

565. Upfest 2016 (76)

2016 was a highly charged year on the political front, and many artists who came to Upfest presented various viewpoints and commentaries on the major issues of our time. One of the most compelling was this incredible portrait of Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the opposition.

Andy O'Rourke, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andy O’Rourke, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
The quote next to the portrait reads:

‘When you cut out a man’s TONGUE, you are not proving him a LIAR, you’re telling the world that you FEAR what he might say’

This was a view supported by many on the left of the Labour Party, and is a nice quote. The portrait itself is really stunning, and captures the man extremely well. right down to the beige suit.

Andy O'Rourke, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andy O’Rourke, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
I like O’Rourke’s entry in the Upfest programme which reads…‘Born to dabble. Wannabe polymath. Jack of all trades, master of nuns. Photorealism, anamorphic illusions, trompe l’oeil, cartoons, calligraphy, digital stuff, itchy feet.’ Great biog.

536. Upfest 2016 (75)

HAPPY CHRISTMAS ALL!

I haven’t seen much micro stencilling since I started writing about street art and graffiti art, so it was a real discovery to see this incredible stencil by Eins92. I’m sure it was no reflection on the artist, but there was no biography in the Upfest programme, so I have had to dig a little deeper to find out anything about him.

Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Eins92 is a German street artist who has recently spent some time in the UK going to various urban art festivals and leaving behind his little treasures. There is a really good interview with him in this Global Street Art feature. I can’t believe I didn’t photograph another of his stencils on the other side of the bus.

Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

This work is so intricate, and the stencils he cuts are so incredibly tiny. This is really skilled work and he produced it perfectly.

 

 

535. Upfest 2016 (74)

A little while back I posted an amazing wall painting by Andrew Burns Colwill from Upfest 2015. It was the goldfish leaping out of a bowl piece in the Tobacco Factory car park. Well, Andrew was back again this year, and this time I managed to get some pictures of him at work.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
This work looks to be a little more cryptic, it appears to be full of symbolism and I am not too sure what it all means. The balloons have faces on them and a sea of paperwork is disappearing down a plughole…or something.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Whilst I am not as keen on this as the goldfish, I am drawn to it every time I walk past it. I guess I will have to try and find out more about it.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
I have recently become aware of another of his works very near my work, on the side of a container near the back of Bristol aquarium. I will try and get a photograph soon. It has been there for a while…I just never ventured to take a look. Unusual for me.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

534. Upfest 2016 (73)

An interesting commentary piece at this year’s Upfest by MAS972, and artist based in Tel Aviv. I don’t know if it reflects his experiences in the UK, but we certainly are a nation awash with CCTV cameras.

MAS972, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
MAS972, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Another visiting artist I know little about, but you can see more of his work at this London street art design website.  think the text is a reference to the slogan from Candid Camera, which was ‘smile, you’re on TV’, if I remember correctly.