1465. Upfest 2017 (164)

It took me a lifetime to get round to finding this collaboration and at last posting it. It is just a little too far from my work to manage in a lunchtime, so I had to make a special trip. It is by the incredible Fanakapan and Insane51.

Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

There is so much to love about this piece (except its location) that I don’t know where to start. I could try to start with the cracked wall, which is cleverly done and lets us into the world of these two artists. It is interesting that the character is both behind the hole (see his head) and in front of it (see his left arm further down). I don’t know if this is intentional, but it adds to the wackiness of the piece.

Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

The flamingo and tin can are the work of Fanakapan and the double image of the baseball caped man is by Insane51. The whole piece is utterly bonkers and brilliant, so beautifully executed and incredible attention to detail.

Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I love the reflections in the sunglasses and in the tin can – these are the things that highlight how talented these artists are. the wall itself is a bugger to photograph, because there is not much room between it and the wall behind, as you can see from the long shot. I’ve been saving some of the really good Upfest pieces until last.

1464. Upfest 2017 (163)

Where do I begin with this piece, a collaboration from Will Barras and Xenz? Not that we knew it at the time, but this is the swan song for this premium wall on the Masonic pub. The second hand car business has sold up and developers will be moving in soon.

Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I spoke to Will Barras Before he started this piece, and he felt rather intimated by the size of the wall, by the previous piece (Pichiavo) and by collaborating on something this large. However, he faced his demons and got on with the job.

Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

My first impression was not favourable – I didn’t like it. I felt the wall was way too big and there was so much going on it was difficult to engage with it. It has taken me several months to change my views, but change they have – I have become a fan.

Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I’m not sure why I think this, but I think it is called ‘she’s a waterfall’ – a song by The Stone Roses – anyhow I might be wrong about that. The two artists with similar styles, but different subject matter preferences (Xenz – fantasy worlds and birds, Will Barras – bikes and abstract stuff), have combined to create a huge picture story which contains beauty, hope, fantasy and of course a bike. A fitting farewell to this stunning wall.

Luis Seven Martins (L7M), North Street, Bristol, May 2016
Luis Seven Martins (L7M), North Street, Bristol, May 2016
PichiAvo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
PichiAvo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

 

1463. Upfest 2017 (162)

This gorgeous piece by Olivier Roubieu was definitely a hit with critics and visitors to Upfest 2017, receiving a lot ov coverage immediately after the event. It is a classy sophisticated piece beautifully painted, and something quite unusual for the walls of Bristol.

Oliver Roubieu, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Oliver Roubieu, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I note from his excellent website that Olivier Roubieu paints a lot of nudes, and I wonder if he toned this piece down for the conservative British audience. In general, it is rare to see nudes in street art in the UK and yet, it seems to be quite common on the continent. I don’t really know what is at the root of it – is it the people or the authorities?

Oliver Roubieu, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Oliver Roubieu, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

The dancers caught in an instant are full of movement and poise and stand out from the ethrial background ‘noise’. Difficult to believe that this has been created with spray cans. A fabulous contributiion to Upfest 2017.

1462. Upfest 2017 (161)

Back to some more pieces from Upfest 2017 starting with the third collaboration from Caro Pepe and Age Age. I love the work that these two do together, and their different subject matter and styles complement each other so well and in this piece fuse together perfectly.

Age Age and Caro Pepe, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Age Age and Caro Pepe, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

At last year’s Upfest they definitely went for this subtle colour scheme of mauves and browns, which is actually very effective. These are not brash ‘in your face’ works, rather they are gentle comforting studies.

Age Age and Caro Pepe, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Age Age and Caro Pepe, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Age Age’s contribution begins on the left and Caro Pepe’s on the right. The central panel is where they come together creating a robot girl whose right eye is covered over under the face mask. Of their three contributions, this is my favourite. I think they are returning this year and it will be interesting to see if they work together again.

Caro Pepe and Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Caro Pepe and Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Caro Pepe and Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Caro Pepe and Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

1403. Upfest 2017 (160).

There is an interesting story to this collaboration ‘Girl and Death’ in so much as it was not a planned collaboration at all…it just kind of happened. How do I know this? I discovered it on the Instagram feed of one of the artists involved, Nino Werner:

After a night of crazy partying, we started this painting with no real direction first & just enjoyed the fun show that is Bristol Streetart Festival called @upfest . What first started as two separate pieces merged together in the process when we got to know the very talented fella (Luke) next to our dedicated painting spot, who was also painting in black and white, but also added gold. We like shiny things so we grabbed some golden paint and made the separate artworks merge together. The painting is either a reference to a sketch of famous Norwegian artist Edvard Munch (also called Girl and Death) or the fun party night and the hangover David had the next day when we painted it.

It is always great to get a bit of insight from the artists themselves.

Nino Werner, Javi, David Schumann, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Nino Werner, Javi, David Schermann, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

The girl on the left of the collaboration is by Nino Werner, Javi and David Schermann, who I believe visited Upfest from Austria. And on the right of the piece is an intricate skull in black white and gold by Luke Gray.

Nino Werner, Javi, David Schumann and Luke Grey, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Nino Werner, Javi, David Schermann and Luke Gray, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Luke Gray has a fabulous website which is well worth a visit. His biography states that he is from the UK and is a nomadic surrealist symbolist painter. He was born colour blind and works in an almost exclusively black and white pallette, using patterns and textures rather than colours.

A fine accidental collaboration.

 

1402. Upfest 2017 (159)

This, slightly unfinished, piece by Envol presents visitors to Upfest with something very different from the usual fare served up.  His work is best described by his entry in the Upfest programme:

Envol paints realism fused with experimental, Deco era inspired designs and a touch of neoclassicism. His ethereal yet bold compositions are crafted with a mission to delight senses.’

Envol, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Envol, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Everything abut this piece oozes class and the style ensures it stands out from the crowd. I don’t know much about the artist, but a quick trawl through Google came up with some magnificent work from this artist.

 

 

 

1401. Upfest 2017 (158)

There was so much great street art at Upfest 2017, it has been difficult to try and post ass much as I possibly can. This is a lovely piece by Hide2 which was at the Ashton Gate site, and in common with my other posts from there, the piece is not quite complete in these photographs.

Hide2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Hide2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

On his visit for the festival, he left a nice ‘gift’ in Wilder Street which I wrote about back in August – it seems strange to now only be posting his official Upfest piece.

Hide2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Hide2, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

His work here is absolutely brilliant, both the portrait and writing are sensational.

Hide2, Wilder Street, Bristol, August 2017
Hide2, Wilder Street, Bristol, August 2017

1400. Upfest 2017 (157)

Last year at Upfest there were many black and white/greyscale pieces, of which this was probably one of the best that used contrast to its best advantage. The strong blacks and whites on the grey background really lift the design out from the surface, and I think this is a really accomplished piece.

Drojan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Drojan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This was one of two pieces by the Drojan at the festival, and I hope I have left enough time to feature his other one in a post before Upfest 2018 catches up with me.

Drojan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Drojan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I know little about the artist (there was no entry for him in the programme), but this short video made by a visitor to Upfest 2017 shows him paining this piece, in the video he reveals he is from Venezuela, emphasising the incredible international reach of this festival. Already getting very excited for July.

1399. Upfest 2017 (156)

I absolutely love this piece for many reasons. Firstly, it taps in to my love of fishing and is one of several angling-related pieces at Upfest 2017. Secondly, the cartoon style is really unusual and quirky…it has a great many similarities with the style of Bristol’s own Sepr, which in my view is a really good thing.

Mariojin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Mariojin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Mariojin, the artist, comes from Milan in Italy and in the picture above it looks like there might be an element of collaboration going on.

Mariojin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Mariojin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Apart from Mariojin’s fabulous website which shows off some great work, I don’t know too much about the artist beyond what is in his Programme notes for Upfest:

Mariojin grew up in the outskirts of Milano, where the cohabitation of different cultures offers inspiration to the first movements of the Milan writing. He develops the passion for drawing and colours since childhood, inspired at first by his aunt’s canvas, artist and teacher, and subsequently, from the garish colours, forms and dimensions of Graffiti’s world. Attracted by this world he begins to paint with sprays at the end of the 90s. He is Member of Nuclear1 crew, which organizes an important graffiti jam “Meeting of Styles” Italy since 2014. He paints using a mix of influences between illustration and graffiti.

1398. Upfest 2017 (155)

Andrew Burns Colwill is a great Bristol artist and one who has championed  environmental awareness vigorously in recent years, particularly with his 20:50 vision pieces. At Upfest 2017 he really excelled himself with this magnificent polar bear sitting on what at first appears to be a piece of ice, but which is actually a pick up truck floating in a sea of plastic.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

His ongoing commentary on the destruction of our planet, and visions of what it might look like in 2050 results in a series of haunting images, of which this is one. A prophet of what might be, if we don’t pull our fingers out and get things sorted. Andrew Burns Colwill, like many others in the environmental movement, has been talking about plastic for some time…at last it feels like the government is listening.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This is one of the best pieces of the 2017 festival, and the good news I understand is that it is here to stay. The Coopers Arms pub, where this piece can be found, will be keeping it. ABC’s fine art pedigree shine through in this work and he is truly the king of murals in Bristol. I salute you.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017