Bex Glover, Upfest 2026, Ashman Road, Bristol, May 2026
This piece by Bex Glover is a beauty and a treat, and one of two pieces she has painted for Upfest 2026. Her work is right up my street, nearly always featuring a natural history narrative, painted in her unique style, usually steeped in her light blues, but in this instance augmented with a stunning deep red archway.
Bex Glover, Upfest 2026, Ashman Road, Bristol, May 2026
The piece has at its centre a stunning fox, beautifully presented, standing on a patch of grass and peering through the archway to a watery scene with a town in the distance, perhaps a depiction of old Bristol itself. A stunning piece for Upfest from one of our own artists.
Well, this year’s Upfest has crept up on me a little. I have been very busy and not had much headspace to recognise Europe’s largest street art festival which began last weekend, and will continue until the end of May 2026. This time the festival has been spread over three weekends and is rather fragmented, with no single festival focal point, which is a pity. This approach has been implemented to spread the crowds over a longer period and avoid some of the festival shenanigans that have caused a few problems for the council in the past. It is funny how they continue to allow the Harbourside Festival to operate, and which has a terrible reputation for antisocial behaviour, but curtail the much friendlier Upfest. Some unconscious bias at work methinks.
#DFTE, Upfest 2026, Lime Road, Bristol, May 2026
My opener for this year’s festival is this wonderful musing by #DFTE, the master of the thoughtful slogan and repairer of souls. His message this year is short and sweet “Today will be a good day” and for most festival visitors that is probably about right. It is worth having a little look at this charming gallery of his thoughtful work.