4757. Upfest 2022 (54)

Snub 23, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Snub 23, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

This wall is a powerful and significant wall, reasonably new to Upfest, that although is impressive, is really difficult to photograph. Because it is high up, the bright sky behind it tends to lead to underexposure of the artwork, so I have to do a little bit of post-production work just to make these pictures reasonable.

Snub 23, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Snub 23, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

The mural is by Snub23, a regular at Upfest, and one who pretty much always gets to paint one of the premium walls. Snub23’s work these days usually features comic book-style characters, caught in a narrative and almost as if they were ripped out of the pages and stuck up on the wall. What is the rest of the story behind this magnificent piece?

Snub 23, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Snub 23, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

Technically, this piece is beautifully painted, with fabulous detail in the character’s mask and in the material around his neck. The background is a perfect, patterned backdrop for the scene, providing an almost pixelated or white noise environment, which is very effective. This is a great Upfest piece from Snub23.

4756. Upfest 2022 (53)

Sphiza, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Sphiza, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

There are some paintings at Upfest that you fall in love with at first sight and this magnificent mural by Sphiza is exactly that. From the moment I first saw it, I knew it was something rather special.

Sphiza, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Sphiza, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

In this piece, which makes extraordinary use of colours to create shadings and texture (a bit like a stencil might), Sphiza conveys an important ‘peace’ message via a portrait of a youngster drawing a peace symbol on a sheet of paper. I don’t know very much about Sphiza, and haven’t seen any of her work before, but am especially interested because she is from Porto in Portugal, and regulars will know how much I love the city.

Haka

A gallery of writing and character pieces by Bristol’s magnificent Haka.

Instagram: @hakagraffiti

Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, February 2023
Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, February 2023

Haka, M32 roundbout, Bristol, January 2023
Haka, M32 roundbout, Bristol, January 2023

Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2023
Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2023

Haka, St George, Bristol, January 2023
Haka, St George, Bristol, January 2023

Haka, Greenbank, Bristol, January 2023
Haka, Greenbank, Bristol, January 2023

Haka, St George, Bristol, December 2022
Haka, St George, Bristol, December 2022

Haka, Greenbank, Bristol, November 2022
Haka, Greenbank, Bristol, November 2022

Haka, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2022
Haka, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2022

Haka and cats and that, Horfield skate park, Bristol, October 2022
Haka and cats and that, Horfield skate park, Bristol, October 2022

Haka, St George, Bristol, September 2022
Haka, St George, Bristol, September 2022

Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2022
Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2022

Haka, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, July 2022
Haka, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, July 2022

Haka, River Avon, Bristol, July 2022
Haka, River Avon, Bristol, July 2022

Haka, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Haka, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

Haka, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Haka, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

Haka, Peel Street Green, Bristol, March 2022
Haka, Peel Street Green, Bristol, March 2022

Haka, Spark Evans Park, Bristol, February 2022
Haka, Spark Evans Park, Bristol, February 2022

Haka, Thomas Street, Bristol, April 2016
Haka, Thomas Street, Bristol, April 2016

Haka, Thomas Street, Bristol, April 2016
Haka, Thomas Street, Bristol, April 2016

Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2022
Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2022

Haka, Feeder Road, Bristol, December 2021
Haka, Feeder Road, Bristol, December 2021

Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2021
Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2021

Haka, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, November 2021
Haka, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, November 2021

Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2021
Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2021

Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2021
Haka, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2021

Haka, Cattle Market Road, Bristol, June 2020
Haka, Cattle Market Road, Bristol, June 2020

Logoe and Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2020
Logoe and Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2020

Logoe and Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, November 2019
Logoe and Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, November 2019

Haka, Stokes Croft, Bristol, September 2019
Haka, Stokes Croft, Bristol, September 2019

Haka, Star and Garter, Bristol, July 2019
Haka, Star and Garter, Bristol, July 2019

Haka, River Frome, Bristol, June 2019
Haka, River Frome, Bristol, June 2019

Haka, Mina Road, Bristol, May 2019
Haka, Mina Road, Bristol, May 2019

Haka, Mina Road, Bristol, May 2019
Haka, Mina Road, Bristol, May 2019

Haka, The Bearpit, Bristol, March 2019
Haka, The Bearpit, Bristol, March 2019

Haka, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2017
Haka, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2017

Paris, Haka and Mustard Tiger, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2017
Paris, Haka and Mustard Tiger, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2017

4755. Upfest 2022 (52)

At last year’s Upfest, Cuicasolo was given a lovely wall in the Hen and Chicken café garden, this year she had to make do with one of the square boards, which she has painted expertly.

Cuicasolo, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Cuicasolo, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

Cuicasolo’s designs are nicely thought out and have a mixture of geometric discipline and abstract freedom, creating work that dances in front of your eyes. The colour selections work well together and the overall piece is pleasing, it is a pity she wasn’t allocated a wall to paint this year, but with so many artists, a large proportion of them end up painting boards,

4754. Upfest 2022 (51)

Philth, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Philth, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

In one of the prettiest backwaters immediately off North Street is the perfect street art wall. This miniature park, ‘Ebenezer Pocket Park’, has benefitted from some stunning murals over the years, and at Upfest 22 it was the turn of Philth.

Philth, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Philth, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

Philth is perhaps best known for his floral designs, one of which can still be seen in North Street Green, not far away from this piece. In this outstanding mural, which has a retro feel to it, Philth has painted a beautiful young lady in amongst an ocean of mushrooms and fungi. The ribs under the caps have been cleverly observed and recreated. What makes the piece special is the green tones that have been used and the splashes of red, lifting the whole design to another level. A truly wonderful Upfest piece.

Gorse spider mite

Gorse Spider Mite, Talland Bay, Cornwall, October 2022
Gorse Spider Mite, Talland Bay, Cornwall, October 2022

.


Gorse spider mite web

community of thousands

Queen Mab’s atomies

.

by Scooj

Gorse Spider Mite, Talland Bay, Cornwall, October 2022
Gorse Spider Mite, Talland Bay, Cornwall, October 2022

4753. M32 Spot (433)

Logoe, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022
Logoe, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022

The third in a rash of Logoe pieces from his recent visit to Bristol, this piece is on the container under the M32 and a surface that Logoe has painted before. I think that, with their corrugated sides, containers must be very difficult to paint, but Logoe has done a fine job of it here.

Logoe, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022
Logoe, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022

What really seems to help with this piece is the black background, which removes any distractions. As we would expect, the piece consists of Logoe’s own brand of script writing accompanied by an array of different sized dots liberally dispersed horizontally along the piece. I would love to see if Logoe could paint dome different letters and switch things up a bit, only because I know it would look amazing.

4752. M32 roundabout J3 (433)

Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2022
Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2022

This piece is another fabulous tribute to Sear by Stivs. Hidden behind a small tree on the M32c roundabout, this calligrafitti piece brings out all that is best in Stivs, including his compassion for a fellow artist.

Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2022
Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2022

The rich colours painted on a black background have a rather sombre tone and are perfectly fitting for a tribute piece.  The letters are beautifully proportioned and regular in size, with near-perfect accuracy and tightness. The drips simply add a great finishing touch.

4751. Lower Ashley Road (7)

Taboo, Lower Ashley Road, Bristol, August 2022
Taboo, Lower Ashley Road, Bristol, August 2022

On a shutter, next to another of his works (the Garfield one), Taboo gives us one of his typically irregular pieces of writing. The style he adopts is known as anti-style or ignorant-style, as explained in this rather weird vlog.

Taboo, Lower Ashley Road, Bristol, August 2022
Taboo, Lower Ashley Road, Bristol, August 2022

The letters spell out TABOO, and in keeping with the style, there is an irreverence for high design or regularity that you might find in wildstyle writing. There is pleasure to be had from the piece, however, and the pink background overlaid with white letters somehow works really well. No characters to accompany the piece on this occasion, but a fine work nonetheless.

4750. Jamaica Street (57)

Erviti, Jamaica Street, Bristol, August 2022
Erviti, Jamaica Street, Bristol, August 2022

I understand that Erviti, who has brought so much fine art to the streets of Bristol, is leaving/has left the great city, which is a real shame. Her impact, alongside the Bristol Mural Collective, has been noticeable and welcome, and her memorable cat under Brunel Way remains intact.

Erviti, Jamaica Street, Bristol, August 2022
Erviti, Jamaica Street, Bristol, August 2022

This piece was painted on the People’s Republic of Stokes Croft (PRSC) open air gallery in Jamaica Street, and was one of several pieces supporting the ‘My Body – My Rights’ campaign, shortly after the abortion ban in the USA. The piece was painted using Graphenstone paint that absorbs CO2 and is, I believe, a self-portrait. Lots to like here.