Rafamon, Upfest 2026, Exeter Road, Bristol, May 2026
There are some murals that appear at Upfest that simply brighten your day. They have that uplifting vibe, without being overtly spectacular or knowingly understated. They are just sunny and vibrant and good for the soul. This delightful mural by Rafamon is one of those pieces.
Rafamon, Upfest 2026, Exeter Road, Bristol, May 2026
You can see simply by the design and content of the piece that it has a South American look to it, so it is no surprise to learn that Rafamon is from Brazil. Set on a deep blue ‘sky’ the piece features a hummingbird created in a stylised composition of colourful feathers and flowers. A festival piece with a fiesta appearance. Lovely work.
Artez, Upfest 2026, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, June 2026
My favourite piece from Upfest 2024 was an outstanding composition by Artez, and this year the Serbian artist has again excelled himself with this incredible study on the large premium wall of the Tobacco Factory.
Artez, Upfest 2026, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, May 2026
In this piece, two people, a man and a woman are presented in a gentle acrobatic pose. Although the body positions look quite unnatural in that you’d rarely see people together like this, there is a calmness and tenderness that emanates from it. Artez, whose real name is Andrej Žikić, uses brushes to paint his murals, rather than spray cans.
Artez, Upfest 2026, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, June 2026
There is no question about it that this piece was one of the highlights of Upfest 2026. It would be nice if they could remove the parking spaces in front of the piece, but I don’t suppose that you can have everything that you want.
Artez, Upfest 2026, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, May 2026
One of the things I enjoy most about this wall, is that you can catch glimpses of it from further away, which creates a whole different experience and context for the viewer. The image below is Artez’ piece from 2024. What a brilliant artist.
Softtwix, Upfest 2026, North Street, Bristol, May 2026
Upfest 2026, Europe’s largest street art festival (so they say), has introduced, once again, such a variety of artists, talent and style to the streets of Bristol, and we are truly fortunate to be surrounded by these magnificent pieces. In Bedminster it can sometimes feel like living in the middle of a giant art gallery. The organisers, Steve and Emma have done an amazing job this year. All that was missing was a live event in a park, but I understand there were good reasons why that couldn’t happen this year.
Softtwix, Upfest 2026, North Street, Bristol, May 2026
In the middle section of North Street is this remarkable greyscale portrait piece by Softtwix, a French visual artist and photographer-plastician known for her striking black-and-white paste-ups, collages, and urban street art. This striking piece is a paste-up – pretty much a poster – that is full of detail and intrigue. The portrait is cleverly framed with a brick archway, giving the 2d piece so much depth.
Philth and n4T4, Upfest 2026, East Street, Bristol, May 2026
I first saw these two, Philth and N4T4, painting alongside each other, but not collaborating at Upfest 2016. Each of them was painting a portrait in their distinct styles. Since then, N4t4 appears to have stuck with his beautiful portrait pieces, and Philth has transitioned towards elaborate and stunning floral patterns.
Philth and n4T4, Upfest 2026, East Street, Bristol, May 2026
This is a wonderful spot, above Hunters (an estate agent I think) which can be seen from quite a distance away, so you have plenty of time to enjoy it as you approach. This is one of those collaborations where the whole piece presents as one, with the portrait by N4T4 and the flower ‘print’ by Philth.
Philth and n4T4, Upfest 2026, East Street, Bristol, May 2026
There is something rather dreamy about this piece, perhaps it is the predominant purple tone. Beautifully sited, framed and executed. Did you even notice the windows? More Upfest mmagic from the pair.
Jimmer Willmott, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, May 2026
You really can’t get more Bristol than Jimmer Willmott, and you can’t get much more Bristol than this magnificent alphabetti spaghetti piece either. This curious and wild concept is weirdly compelling, and also quite awe-inspiring how accurately he manages to present such a familiar food in an unfamiliar way.
Jimmer Willmott, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, June 2026
I guess that this is pretty close to photorealism, but based on something that doesn’t actually exist. The phrase ‘Alright me babber’ is a Bristol greeting meaning ‘hi, how are you’ sort of thing. This is a brilliant Upfest attracted a lot of attention. Witty and technically brilliant. Bravo me babber.
Hazard, Upfest 2026, Ashton Gate Terrace, Bristol, May 2026
Hazard is a darling of Bristol street art, and although she no longer lives in the city, she returns often enough is very fondly and highly regarded by all in the local street art scene. From humble beginnings she has risen to extraordinary highs in her work.
Hazard, Upfest 2026, Ashton Gate Terrace, Bristol, May 2026
This Upfest piece is, by her standards these days is probably on the smaller side of things as she now paints some enormous commissions all over the country and beyond. In this portrait piece she blends her portrait work with her skilfully crafted and beautiful flowers.
Hazard, Upfest 2026, Ashton Gate Terrace, Bristol, May 2026
Hazard’s style is developing all the time and these pixelated images seem to work extremely well, providing some abstract artwork, creating interest and something different. Hazard has a great command of colours and the rich and sumptuous colours in this piece absolutely stand out. Another fine Upfest piece from Hazard.
My Dog Sighs, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, May 2026
An unusual and rather grotesque piece by My Dog Sighs at this year’s Upfest, one of two very different offerings by the artist. I don’t think I have ever seen something similar to this by My Dog Sighs, and it is a departure from some of his staples, although the eye is very much a part of his repertoire.
My Dog Sighs, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, May 2026
My Dog Sighs has managed to use the space perfectly to present his ugly and distorted monster face. The mouth is perfectly placed over the door, consuming all that enter here, and there are dropped eyes either side of it. The eye on the right is a window of the building, but looks like an integral and deliberate part of the character piece.
My Dog Sighs, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, May 2026
Stretched green skin with stitches and warts add to the overall creepiness of this character piece. The signature eye is what gives this away as an MDS piece, in which you can see a reflection of the viewer and a wall and tree behind. Such incredible detail everywhere you look. Utterly outstanding in every aspect.
Cuicasolo, Upfest 2026, Willway Street, Bristol, May 2026
Cuicasolo (Elaine Carr) is a Bristol artist who I have known about for a very long time, but don’t believe I have ever met. She doesn’t paint all that often, or in many spots, but her work is rather iconic and tends to stick around for a long time.
Cuicasolo, Upfest 2026, Willway Street, Bristol, May 2026
This is a fabulous structural/architectural piece, typical of her work, confusing the eye with depth created through the use of different shades, tricking the eye into seeing something utterly three-dimensional. Simple and very effective and beautifully painted. The technique uses the same kind of shading techniques we see in anamorphic graffiti writing.
Luke Smile, Upfest 2026, North Street, Bristol, May 2026
Luke Smile has been to Bristol a few times over the years, mainly for Upfest, and this year he painted this beauty in North Street in his fantastic deep and hollow 3D block letter style.
Luke Smile, Upfest 2026, North Street, Bristol, May 2026
This piece took Luke Smile a fair while to paint, I guess with something so geometrically focussed, there is no room for error. The letters spelling MANIFESTATION are beautifully presented in a tidy, untidy manner, if you get my drift. The colours are magnificent and the shadows too. A fascinating piece, with such depth that draws you in to take a while to enjoy it.
DNT, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, May 2026
What a rare treat, not only to find a new piece by DNT for Upfest, but to be able to catch up with him and have a chat while he was painting this piece alongside Zake and DJ Perks.
DNT, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, May 2026
Compared to when I first started this blog, ten plus years ago, DNT has slowed down his pace of work considerably, and spent some of the period abroad. I got the feeling that he really enjoyed painting this piece and getting back into the groove, and it was great to see that.
DNT, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, May 2026
The piece returns to a space theme which he has always enjoyed, with a humanoid robot character and an alien robot, and in between them some curious space flowers, one with a large eye. There is a great story going on here, and it looks like a frame taken from a longer comic book kind of thing, leaving the viewer wondering what as going on and what will happen next. I hope DNT uses Upfest as a springboard to painting more often on the streets of Bristol, we have missed him.
Natural adventures 