Now I am full swing into sharing doors from Perugia and I don’t need to write too much by way of background. I hope you enjoy this week’s selection.
Church doors, Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023Inside church doors and fresco, Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023Plain door with a fancy stone surround (plus beer bottle), Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023Old door with rivets and fine stonework, Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023Plain door – plane arch, Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023Studded old door and modern concrete frame, Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023Well used door and rendered brick surround, Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023Lovely old wooden door, Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023Fine wooden door and parched colours of an Italian dusty summer, Perugia, Umbria, Italy, July 2023
I have one last set of doors from Perugia for next time, but think I will take a break from Italy after that and share some doors from English towns and cities for a bit before returning to Italy, probably in the New Year. Have a great weekend, and for those in the Northern Hemisphere… time to button up.
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.
Almost a month late, but better late than never, I am sharing this wonderful Halloween piece from Bloem (Hiccup). Bloem has brought something different and rather special to the streets of Bristol, with her simple, yet creative ideas beautifully crafted.
Bloem, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2023
What’s not to like about a spooky skeleton hand, complete with pink nails (of course), holding a fused pair of devil cherries with a smiley face on each. Slightly bonkers, but also great fun. I am very much enjoying Bloem’s contributions and look forward to the next ‘surprise’ she has in store.
Laic217, Zake, Face 1st and Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2023
Lately, Laic217 seems to have been adopted as a member of the ever-lively PWA crew, and certainly he appears to enjoy painting with them. This was a joyous paint jam, which Paul and I were lucky enough to witness in action (I returned a few days later to get the completed pieces), with all the contributors in great form.
Laic217 and Zake, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2023
To the left, Laic217 painted a small skull character, for which he can be forgiven, having already painted his Halloween piece on a nearby wall. Next to Lic217, Zake has painted another of his expressive face pieces. It is interesting to watch how Zake is slowly inching towards characters that are a little more realistic and I wonder if in five more years he will be dabbling with photorealism in the way that Shade One has.
Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2023
Face 1st is and always will be one of my favourite Bristol artists, my landmark and barometer of the graffiti art scene in the city. This fun piece has a girl with a particularly gloopy face holding some laughing girl balloons. Chatting to Face 1st, it turns out that he is working for a while only a stone’s throw away from my house, and I have seen him at work on at leat one occasion.
Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2023
Chill rounds off this wonderful collaborative wall with a nicely designed character piece with some interesting Picassoesque undertones and a mouth that Sweet Toof would be proud of. The leafy tendrils from Chill’s piece stretch across the whole collaboration as a bit of a golden thread. This was painted for Halloween, but the only references seem to be the graves under Face 1st’s girl. A great piece on a great wall.
By the time you read this, I will be in Birmingham for a greater team gathering, the first since Covid19 first struck, and long overdue. I will be (I am writing this last night) arriving 45 minutes early and will try to sniff out some street art in the Birmingham New Street area (if there is any – I know there is tons in the city, but I just don’t know where. Keeping my fingers crossed. This is a belter from Rusk, who makes his second appearance in as many days.
Rusk, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2023
I would describe this piece as being funky, it reminds me of the rather carefree 1970s, when fashion and style took a monumental dive, which we can only now really appreciate through rose-tinted spectacles. Pulsating with colour and flashes, there is a lot of disco movement in the letters RUSK. Of course the whole thing is finished perfectly and a complete banger.
Ha ha, this is a fabulous and tight piece by Biers (WD40) in the skate park. Adopting his customary writing and character combination, Biers has introduced the TV cartoon character Dexter, from the Cartoon Network series Dexter’s Laboratory. I fear I missed out on this animation extravaganza, but I seem to recall my children watching it.
Biers, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2023
The writing, spelling WD40, is really nicely painted with nice crisp and sharp lines nd outlines. The bubble fill works well with the bubbles flowing from the test tube being held by Dexter, providing read-across between the character and letters. Biers is turning out some great work lately which is great to see.
I met Hypo for the very first time when he was painting a piece adjacent to this one, which I sadly never got to photograph, because it had been painted over by the time I returned. What a lovely and interesting person Hypo is. I mentioned to him that he has been smashing it lately not only in quality of his pieces but in the quantity of them that he was turning out. He explained that he had been seriously ill a little while back and that while he was unable to work he was painting as part of his rehabilitation. It was good to see him looking well. It is amazing how our health completely shapes out lives, our losses and our opportunities.
Hypo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2023
I would not describe this as a typical Hypo piece, being a little more cryptic and busy than his more typical work. The black and white letters have plenty of extra details and lines and have been filled sparingly with coloured spots and stars. There are some nice shout outs to Hemper, Ulow, Soker and Minto, which puts his peers into clear context. Hypo painted this piece alongside his LDub mates Dun Sum and Zeks. Nice transformative work.
Rusk and Theartofsok, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023
There are times when you need to keep your eyes open and think rather than make assumptions. When I first saw this modest Rusk piece I raised an eyebrow, because it was obviously a ‘quick one’ but that the incorporation of a face was something a little different from rusk. My assumption was that this was a solo rusk piece but deeper thought brought me to the conclusion that it was a collaboration, and then the penny dropped that Theartofsok had painted a piece only a stone’s throw away at the same time and the face was in his style. This was a collaboration.
Rusk and Theartofsok, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023
Rusk has been quite busy painting in Bristol lately, which is great to see, because he does tend to go through quiet periods, or paints in unusual and faraway spots. The writing here is classy as ever, beautifully filled and bordered. The profile face to the right-hand side by Theartofsok is outstanding, and its beauty is in its simplicity. A very fine and unexpected little collaboration, which I can’t imagine anyone saw coming.
* The trains in England are a disgrace and an embarrassment. Visitors from overseas must be utterly bewildered by how bad our train services are.
Underfunded, with profits being creamed off by shareholders.
Why on earth do we put up with it? People will pay hugely inflated prices only to stand on a train, sometimes for several hours. Oversubscription is the norm, which must have implications for health and safety of passengers.
Surely if every passenger had to book a seat, sales would be curtailed when the train was full. I believe that is the system in America.
Delays, cancellations and reduced carriages are the norm. Often the electronic booking systems are broken. Encountering a ticket inspector/guard is a rarity.
Even if you get a seat, trains are grubby and cramped. Food and refreshment services patchy and expensive. The whole thing makes for deeply unpleasant experiences. It wasn’t always like this, and people used to mock British Rail!
Nationalise and subsidise the trains or set higher standards/penalties for operators.
The Privatisation obsession of Thatcherite Britain has failed its people but made a privileged few unimaginably wealthy. Disgusting.
Natural adventures 