.
Temperatures rise
tempers rise in harmony
it’s time to keep cool
.
by Scooj
3805. Upfest 2021 75×75 (15)
I have had a few days away from Bristol, which came on the back of a period of self-isolation, and as a result have gone into a bit of blind panic. This is the 15th 75×75 Upfest piece that I have written about, and I understand that 50 have now been completed, so I have a lot of work to do to catch up on some of these. This piece from Sophie Mills was one of the first I photographed, and was lucky enough to be there when she was just finishing the piece off.
A rhinoceros wearing a party hat is certainly a fairly unusual theme, and the hat looks a little incongruous, not only in it being a hat, but also in the painting style, almost as if it had been added by someone else after the event. Another interesting thing which might have been deliberate or coincidental is that Sophie Mills Thomas’s trousers are a perfect colour match for the piece she is painting.
This is a small but impactful piece that is bang in the middle of North Street and next to an Inky/Cheo Mibsy tribute piece that has remained intact for several years. A fine addition to Upfest’s summer event.
3804. Gloucester Road
The wet fish shop on Gloucester Road is a bit of a landmark, and certainly you always know when you are walking past it. At weekends and in the evenings you might get lucky and see the shop when the shutters are down and enjoy this fishy mural from Nina Raines.
Although the piece has been here for some time, I only recently walked past it at the right time with a camera handy. As a marine biologist (by training and in my heart) I love seeing marine themed street art and these lobsters, crab and mackerel are just the ticket. Something of a contrast with Nina’s wonderful collaboration piece on the dental practice in Bedminster, showing off her versatility.
Topsy-turvy
.
English summer sun
in Belgium and Germany
catastrophic floods
.
by Scooj
3803. Park Road
Finding pieces you were not looking for is probably the most rewarding part of photographing street art, and with the 75 walls in 75 days event being held by Upfest, I am having to explore a little bit more of Bedminster and in doing so I stumbled upon this wonderful stencil piece from Stewy.
The stencil is part of a local icon series and features Ken who is something of a character and legend in the neighbourhood. Bristol, like so many towns and cities, seems to have a great many local characters, bringing colour to the city. Stewy’s work is pretty much always a single-layer stencil, and counterintuitively is probably more difficult to portray depth and detail than multi-layered stencils. This is a skilfully crafted and most excellent piece.
3802. M32 roundabout J3 (337)
I mentioned in a recent post that Zake has been busy of late, and this new piece is a fine example of the rich vein of form he is in at the moment. Painted in collaboration with Soap and arte.mis.29 on the M32 roundabout wall.
The face (what else?) appears to be that of a woman and her hair blends into a head scarce, and it is hard to know where the one ends and the other begins. As always with Zake’s work he pays a lot of attention to shading and shadows to create relief in the feature of the face. A really lovely piece.
Centaurea
.
In sun-baked meadows
sweet purple stars ascending
summer in full swing
.
by Scooj
3801. M32 Cycle path (133)
This piece, and one or two other recent ones, mark a slight change in style for Pl8o, whose large block letters might be more familiar to regular readers. This time he has gone with something more akin to script lettering and it all comes together rather well.
It is always refreshing to see artists try something different, switching things up a bit. I like this piece a lot, but I think that prepping the wall with a slightly more solid wash would have been beneficial. Other than that a fun new direction from Pl8o.
3800. Upfest 2021 75×75 (14)
What a terrific way to mark my 3,800th street art post with this magnificent mural tucked away just off North Street in a miniature park called Ebenezer gate pocket park, by Hampshire artist Sian Storey.
The park is so small that it is quite quite difficult to get a full shot of the wall, so it is best visited in the flesh where you can soak up all the beauty and detail from the comfort of a bench. The watercolour effect of the piece brings a light and delicate touch to the wall, and the composition of two hummingbirds surrounded by flowers over a central patterned circle is delightful.
This is a skilfully painted piece that typifies the high standard of murals at this year’s Upfest event, and although things haven’t quite turned out as expected this year, the 75 walls in 75 days initiative has really captured the imagination and will leave a legacy of stunning artwork for both Bristol citizens and visitors alike.
Jurassic Coast
.
Millions of years
in the making, ammonites
incredible Earth
.
by Scooj
Natural adventures 