4502. Upfest 2022 (14)

Nol is another artist who is no stranger to Upfest and appears to really enjoy himself with his lighthearted and rather geeky monsters. This year Nol introduced an element of gamification to his work. His main piece was an identification parade of four monsters, each of which could be found dotted around Bedminster, and could be ‘collected’.

Nol, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Nol, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

I managed to find three of the four monsters, and I have a feeling that the fourth had been painted over before I ever managed to photograph it, which I guess is the story of street art all over… you snooze, you lose.

Nol, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Nol, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Nol, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Nol, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Nol, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Nol, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

4501. Upfest 2022 (13)

Alongside all the newcomers to Bristol’s Upfest festival, there is a cohort of ‘regulars’ who turn up and wow us with their talent, year after year. One of these regulars is RTC (Rich Turner) who has been present at several festivals and presented us with this magnificent British bulldog stencil piece this year.

RTC, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
RTC, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

RTC manages to produce these massively detailed and multi-layered stencil pieces that are photorealistic in their appearance. The backgrounds too are beautifully constructed with hexagons bubbles and stars all adding to the structure of the piece. What is most amazing is that it is all contained with; one of the small 1m squared board.

L is for learner

.

Driving Miss Scoojlet

or rather she’s driving me

the circle of life

.

by Scooj

4500. Upfest 2022 (12)

This post marks a small milestone in the development of Natural Adventures, being my 4,500th street art/graffiti post. I never thought that this would happen when I first set up this blog, but it is funny how things happen in the most unexpected ways. This Upfest 2022 piece is by Bjor, and is a striking and beautiful piece, a little reminiscent of some of Jody’s work.

Bjor, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Bjor, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

I guess the contrast between the greyscale portrait and the abstract colourful swirl of thought/imagination/soul is what makes this piece so intriguing, there is a story happening somewhere in this splash of colour.

Bjor, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Bjor, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

I have not seen any of Bjor’s work before (one of the joys of Upfest is seeing the work of so many artists for the first time), and it is very fine accomplished stuff. Bjor comes from Norway and his artwork, which you can see on his Facebook page, is definitely worth a look.

4499. Upfest 2022 (11)

I have said many times on this blog that one of the great things about street art is that much of it chronicles the times we live in, either overtly in a political context or sometimes in more subtle ways through visual cues or references. This Upfest stencil piece from Daisy Mae Morris is an overt reverence to the war in Ukraine and features Volodymir Zelensky.

Daisy Mae Morris, Upfest 22, May 2022
Daisy Mae Morris, Upfest 22, May 2022

The piece is a take on the famous Lord Kitchener poster of the First World War and seeks to gain the support of Britons in the struggle Ukraine face against dictator Putin and his Russian army. It is a nicely done stencil and I was lucky enough to watch her doing the very final touches to the piece, but not lucky enough to stop for a chat. Great work from Daisy Mae.

4498. M32 roundabout J3 (412)

Like many other established artists in Bristol, Soker is emerging from a rather quiet couple of years, and we are beginning to see his work about the place more frequently. This, for any fan of top-drawer graffiti writing, is good news indeed.

Soker, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2022
Soker, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2022

This fine piece, on the M 32 roundabout, is classic Soker, spelling out SOKEM, with beautifully presented letters sharply contrasting with the fully buffed and decorated background. It is easy to spot great quality when you see it, and this is right up there with the best.

4497. St Werburghs tunnel (295)

More abstract fantasticness from Mr Klue, who after a long absence from the streets has now hit a rhythm and it turning out some lovely pieces in the St Werburghs tunnel on a regular basis.

Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2022
Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2022

This one is in his prime spot, which I am sure will have made him very happy, and reintroduces another of his recurring themes, floating stairs or steps. I don’t quite know the significance of the steps, but Mr Klue uses them in a lot of his work. A stairway to heaven perhaps? Such is the new productivity of the artist, I am struggling to keep up with posting his work, especially with Upfest and a trip to Porto to report on. Never been so blog-busy.

Deportation

.

How can it be right

to demonise refugees

it cannot be right

.

by Scooj

4496. Cattle Market Road (11)

The Bristol Womxn Mural Collective are a wonderful group of femxle (to use their convention) artists who come together several times a year to get out of their studios and try their hand at painting on the street. The outcome is invariable something rather special and different from the more conventional work we are used to seeing.

Nina Raines, Cattle Market Road, Bristol, May 2022
Nina Raines, Cattle Market Road, Bristol, May 2022

This is a superb study of a toadstool by Nina Raines, whose works are so incredibly diverse and don’t conform to a style, on account of her ‘proper’ profession as a theatrical scenic artist. This piece definitely works for me, with its different layers and textures. Great work… more to come from this paint jam.