Natural adventures

6692. M32 roundabout J2 (8)

Chill, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, January 2025

It is always a little sad when street/graffiti artists move away from Bristol, but some consolation that new artists are emerging or moving to the city, generally at a faster rate, growing the incredible pool of talent. PWA (Pirate Wall Art) took a double hit at the end of 2024, with both Face 1st and Chill leaving town and leaving behind a significant void. Face 1st, it should be registered, has returned several times to paint, just as he said he would. This piece by Chill, however, I think was painted before he left, which made it all the sweeter to find.

Chill has managed to squeeze one of his stylish cartoon characters onto a column with great skill and without making it look too distorted or contrived. I will miss his urban street-wise people with their caps and ear discs. If you miss them too, here is an updated gallery of his outstanding work.

Thursday doors – 30 January 2025 – Doors of Peterborough

Doors 294 – Doors of Peterborough (Part II)

As is so often the case, I am a little pressed for time this week, having been volunteered to take on some extra work (which I have no capacity to do) for another parallel team until the end of March. New relationships, ways of working and projects adds up to heightened pressure, but I will not allow this to interfere too much with my mindful moments such as Thursday Doors and photographing street art.

This is the second selection of doors from Peterborough, which bring us closer to the area around the Cathedral, and an area that was historically wealthier than the surrounding districts. I hope you enjoy them.

Grand central portico with Corinthian columns and panelled doors, Peterborough, April 2024

Ordinary door on a Grade II listed building built in 1911, Peterborough, April 2024

Black door with stained glass surround, Peterborough, April 2024 — Black door with stained-glass surround, Peterborough, April 2024

Exotic doorway fusing the old with ther new, Peterborough, April 2024 — Exotic doorway fusing the old with the new, Peterborough, April 2024

Pair of doors, steps and flower pots, Peterborough, April 2024

Black door and sturdy stone surround, steps and flower pots, Peterborough, April 2024

Two black arched doors in the grounds of the Cathedral, Peterborough, April 2024

There is not a lot more to add this week, so I will look forward to next time.

If you have made it this far, you probably like doors, and you really ought to take a look at the No Facilities blog by Dan Anton who has taken over the hosting of Thursday Doors from Norm 2.0 blog. Links to more doorscursions can be found in the comments section of Dan Anton’s Thursday Doors post.

by Scooj

6691. Sparke Evans Park (118)

Peggy, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025

This beauty was painted by Peggy at the RBF paint jam celebrating Desi and Even’s birthdays. She has adhered perfectly to the theme of the paint jam, which was the Japanese Studio Ghibli and presented this No Face character from Spirited Away.

Of course, the central element of Peggy’s piece is the floral patterns, with each flower stem containing an eye, something of a signature in her work. Wrapped around the flowers is a black cloak belonging to the No Face character. Three cute little fluffy spiders finish the piece off nicely.

6690. Greenbank (150)

Mind 49, Greenbank, Bristol, January 2025

So Mind 49 gets the year off to a cracking start with this fine piece, combining two contrasting styles, demonstrating his awesome technical ability. Mind 49 has always had an activist streak, and many of his early pieces were themed along the lines of animal rights. This one appears to be more about peace, and might be a commentary on the overthrow of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria.

The character is beautifully painted, peering over a scarf that covers up the lower half of his face. The folds in the material are superbly painted. Superimposed over the portrait is a crudely drawn cartoon of a gun being snapped in half and a dove of peace flying off. The peace symbol to the right indicates quite clearly what this wonderful work is all about. I’m looking forward to a great year ahead from Mind 49, I also think it might be time for a gallery of his work.

6689. Frome Side (47)

Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, January 2025

I don’t get down to this spot underneath the M32 nearly as much as I’d like to, but I do get there often enough to capture most of the pieces that are painted there, because the turnover is quite slow. This is a wonderful Bloem piece that was painted alongside her friend Sub.

I have noticed that quite a few of the pieces that have been painted over the winter in this spot are showing signs of rain damage, including this one. This piece is a bit of a ‘retro’ piece for Bloem, taking us back to some of her earlier themes when she was painting under the name Hiccup, such as the ‘brick’ mobile phone clutched in a hand with very long fingernails. It is always such a treat finding her work.

6688. River Avon (77)

Biers, River Avon, Bristol, January 2025

There are some artists in Bristol that I simply take for granted, in so much as I expect to find their work on a reasonably regular basis, while others may paint in fits and starts. Biers is one of those whose presence is always out there, and it is not difficult to stumble upon new work by him that I haven’t seen before.

These rather nice WD40 letters in pink work really nicely on the green background, and the letters have been a little bit compressed into his short-form. When Biers incorporates characters to create combination pieces, the letters tend to sprawl out a little bit more. Some interesting fills, and a smattering of inverted crosses finish the piece off nicely.

6687. Purdown (82)

Conrico is a very unusual street artist. He appears to be equally comfortable with graffiti writing or characters or landscapes and so on, always appearing to tell stories in his work. Much of his art and creativity is influenced by Japanese culture, and his spray technique looks much more like brush work than spray-painting. He is quite unique.

This piece was painted in three hours and features an Asian lady in an American diner – I found out this information from his Instagram feed. The piece is based on a photograph of Minami Yuzuzu, a Japanese actress/popular figure? His blend of cultures and special style has created a special and imaginative piece, not the sort of thing you might expect to see walking the dog through a WWII gun emplacement (unless you lived in Bristol).

6686. Sparke Evans Park (117)

Even, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025

Earlier on this month, there was a very well attended RBF (Resting Bitch Face crew) paint jam in Sparke Evans Park, celebrating Desi and Even’s birthdays. This piece is one of the birthday girl’s offering, and it is really rather good.

This combination piece, brings together some lovely curvy letters in Even’s classic style and the ‘V’ is replaced with a fabulous smiling Cheshire cat. The piece is really bright and joyful, and certainly stood out on a rather cold and wintery day. There is so much more great work to post from this particular paint jam.

6685. Brunel Way (310)

Squire, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2025

Living in Bristol is, for so many reasons, a privilege and a joy, especially if you like a dusting of cosmopolitan urban heritage and culture. There are many things to be proud of and other things, such as the trade in slaves, tobacco and alcohol, that need to be understood and processed. It is a city that has a sense of excitement and a buzz about it, and I am sure that the street/graffiti art culture adds to that sensation.

We have a lot of visiting graffiti writers and artists that come to paint here, and every time I go out taking photographs, I find work by artists I have never encountered or noticed before. This writing by Squire, isn’t a style I recognise, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are a visitor, just that I haven’t seen their stuff before. I like the letter shapes and the simple but effective black fill and purple pattern, set on a chrome background. A nice piece of writing.

6684. Greenbank (149)

Kool Hand, Greenbank, Bristol, January 2025

Kool Hand always brings his own very distinctive character style to the party, and has been doing so for some years now. His pieces usually feature animals, in particular, orangutans, leopards and crocodiles. His preferred approach is to have bold black outlines and string colour fills.

This piece, painted as part of a collaboration, features a green leopard wearing a bucket hat, a pretty cool character. The colours are nice and strong, and Kool Hand has used two-tone green shading to emphasise light and shade, offering a little depth to the character. It is always a pleasure to find Kool Hand pieces, and observe how he is constantly improving and evolving.

	Dan Antion on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…
	Suzette Benjamin on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…
	Laura Newhampshire on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…
	paulh121 on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…
	wrookieschu on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…

	Dan Antion on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…
	Suzette Benjamin on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…
	Laura Newhampshire on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…
	paulh121 on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…
	wrookieschu on Thursday Doors – 19 Marc…

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