4266. Dean Lane skate park (466)

We are blessed in Bristol to receive a constant stream of fabulous street artists and graffiti writers that come and visit the city and leave behind beautiful presents for us. This is one such example from a short while ago by Asmer art.

AsmerArt, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2022
AsmerArt, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2022

I know nothing about the artist, beyond their Instagram profile that says ‘Czech artist based in London’ but I can spot class when I see it, and this is a very classy piece from an accomplished artist.

AsmerArt, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2022
AsmerArt, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2022

A writing/character combination that works so well and has been executed beautifully, and a seriously compelling image that draws you in to take a closer look. I sincerely hope that it isn’t too long before AsmerArt returns for another trip to Bristol.

4265. Albert Park Place (5)

One of my favourite walls in Bristol and one that changes probably less than once a year. The wall is tucked away in St Paul’s and has been brilliantly painted by a trio of Bristol artists, Wxttsart, Rozalita and Stika.

Wxttsart, Albert Park Place, Bristol, January 2022
Wxttsart, Albert Park Place, Bristol, January 2022

On the left of the triptych is a wonderful ‘Milk’ piece of graffiti writing by Wxttsart. I have seen a lot of his work about the place, but I think that this might be the first time I have posted anything by him. It will not be the last.

Rozalita, Albert Park Place, Bristol, January 2022
Rozalita, Albert Park Place, Bristol, January 2022

The centrepiece, and my favourite part of the collaboration is by Rozalita. I have said plenty in recent weeks about her diversification, and this is yet another outstanding example of her progress and development. It is a wonderful and slightly peculiar portrait piece with loads of expression and interest. Very lively.

Stika, Albert Park Place, Bristol, January 2022
Stika, Albert Park Place, Bristol, January 2022

To the right is some fine writing from Stika whose ability to switch from writing to character pieces is second to none. There is something quite logical, mathematical and regimented in his writing here, and it has a uniqueness to it. The colours match those of Wxttsart, and bring a completeness to the whole collaboration. Some lovely stuff here.

Wxttsart, Rozalita and Stika, Albert Park Place, Bristol, January 2022
Wxttsart, Rozalita and Stika, Albert Park Place, Bristol, January 2022

4264. Cumberland Basin

Not much time for today’s posts, as I and my wife are off to Bath this morning for a trip to the theatre, which makes a nice change from our usual Saturday routine. This is yet another fabulous piece from Pl8o, whose work is just getting better and better.

Pl8o, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2022
Pl8o, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2022

This writing and character combination is becoming the norm for Pl8o and he is really good at it too. In this one his letters, beautifully crisp and clean with sharp lines, are accompanied by a breakdancing bee. I don’t know the bee character, and if I had a little more time I would try to find out more, but I will have to leave it there. Another fine and confident piece from the artist.

Broken-hearted

.
The tempo of the moment

I drag my feet behind me

slow, slow, quick, quick, slow

a leaden, broken-hearted, tango

.

Newsbeats punctuate the day

fuelling my impotence

wading through treacle

a saddened, broken-hearted, people

.

Generation’s legacy

it’s as if we’ve learned nothing

and Putin’s disdain

fragmented, broken-hearted, Ukraine

.

by Scooj

* I always feel it is a bit of a risk writing poetry like this. I don’t have a particularly highly developed skill for it, but I just wrote the words on a notepad, and, well, I’m sharing them. I am struggling to come to terms with the war in Ukraine, but it is only one of several defining moments of our time which have been handled rather badly… Climate crisis, biodiversity crisis, COVID-19, nationalism and war. What a bloody mess.

Cloak

.

Darkness surrounds us

a thick veil over Europe

light of peace snuffed out

.

by Scooj

4263. Dean Lane skate park (465)

Well, blow me down with a feather. This lovely piece of writing from Xenz came as a complete unannounced surprise in Dean Lane, and is all the better for it. Finding a street art piece that you don’t know is there is like a palaeontologist uncovering a fossil never seen before, or something like that at least.

Xenz, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022
Xenz, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022

The piece spells out XENZ in a rock-like appearance with vines draped above and on the letters. The highlight, as is often the case with Xenz’s work, is the careful placement of little birds perching on the vines. Although we don’t get to see Xenz very frequently in Bristol, it is always noteworthy when he paints here. Fine work.

4262. M32 Cycle path (166)

One of our most productive graffiti writers/artists in Bristol is Werm, formerly known as Eman, and he appears to have been concentrating on his writing in recent months, rather than his characters. This is another of his block letter writing pieces on the cycle path. He is so productive, that many of his pieces don’t get posted on Natural Adventures… I’ll have to find a way to remedy that.

Werm, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, February 2022
Werm, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, February 2022

The writing spells WERM and was painted as part of an extensive LRS (Last Radical Souls) crew collaborative paint jam a couple of weeks ago. The block letters are clear, with a couple of nice horizontal colour fill transitions. The decorations are nicely done, especially the stars through the middle of the piece. Werm is a talented artist, but I’d like to see him develop his character as well as his writing.

War

.

Horror of horrors

wish fulfilment unfulfilled

Putin starts his war

.

by Scooj

  • in spite of Russian war preparation, I genuinely hoped/believed it wouldn’t come to this. Today I am shocked and deeply worried by the events unfolding in Ukraine. This is where unfettered nationalism gets us. Putin, Trump, Farage, Bolsenaro, Johnson, Bannon… any more?

4261. M32 Cycle path (165)

One of the highlights of the winter, and forgive me if I have said this before, has to be the regular visits by Logoe to Bristol, during which he paints five or six pieces in as many days. This one was one of several I photographed in quick succession in and around the M32 area a few weeks back.

Logoe, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, January 2022
Logoe, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, January 2022

Logoe’s style typically takes the form of script writing spelling out Logoe, decorated with horizontal rows of colourful spots and often accompanied with some text. In this piece the text reads ‘Dance for me, Dance for me, Dance for me,… oh, oh, oh.”Probably lyrics from a song, but I don’t know which. Beautiful stuff from a great graffiti writer.

4260. St Werburghs tunnel (280)

It was while she was painting this outstanding piece that I met Rozalita for the first time, and it was a great moment, because I have long been an admirer of her work, and it is always nice to make a connection with the artist in person. We chatted for a while about the technique she was using to paint the piece, which is referred to as a doodle grid.

Rozalita, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2022
Rozalita, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2022

This piece also marked a departure from her customary carnival and clown themed pieces, for which she has made a name for herself in Bristol. This is a deliberate shift, designed to broaden her portfolio the the aim of picking up some commissions, and making a living from her art.

Rozalita, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2022
Rozalita, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2022

This mural is rather unusual, showing two faces in an apparently distressed pose. There is something odd, creepy almost, about the two characters, and I think it has to do with the eyes. It shows how unsettling it is to see representations of faces with eyes without pupils. This is a powerful piece, and could easily represent the horror of the unfolding invasion of the Ukrain by Russia today, even though it was painted a few weeks ago.