6975. Dean Lane skate park (840)

Fade, Acid Face with a Brace and Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025
Fade, Acid Face with a Brace and Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025

One of the best pieces of the year so far (in my view), this is an outstanding production triptych by Fade, Acid Face with a Brace and Dibz. What is difficult to convey is the scale of the collaboration, because not only is it wide, but it is also tall as well.

Fade, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025
Fade, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025

There is so much happening here, and it starts off with a superb piece of writing from Fade. The letters are complex and multilayered, with great fills, deep 3D drop shadows that appear to be translucent and some ‘tape’ wrapped around the ends of the word. The purple bubbly background is present through the whole piece.

Acid Face with a Brace, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025
Acid Face with a Brace, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025

Arguably the most eye-catching part of this collaboration is the central character by Acid Face with a Brace, a writer from Birmingham. The scary, hooded mummy-type character is superbly painted, with tons of movement, and brilliant folds in the fabric and bandages. The blue face and big red eyes are superbly crafted. This is simply awesome.

Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025
Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025

Rounding off the collaboration is a mirroring of Fade’s writing to a large extent, but with enough signature elements to be different and ‘Dibzy’ enough. The way these three have combined their talents to create this amazing production is a testament to their individual and combined skills. A little bird tells me that wall may get a facelift while retaining the character – you heard it here first.

6974. St Werburghs tunnel (504)

Scrapyardspec, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2025
Scrapyardspec, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2025

Scrapyardspec has been back in town with a raft of new wacky faces, including this long piece just outside St Werburghs tunnel. Over the last week or two, I have been finding more and more of these goofy monsters, which has been rather fun, and you can expect to see more here soon.

Scrapyardspec, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2025
Scrapyardspec, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2025

This piece fits the size and shape of the wall perfectly, being squashed and elongated, affording space for three eyes, and a very long toothy smile. I love the way that Scrapyardspec manages to maintain an incredibly consistent style with all different shapes and sizes of characters. A creative idea/theme nicely executed.

6973. Dean Lane skate park (839)

Mesk, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025
Mesk, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025

I have recently met Mesk (@lazureness) a couple of times recently, and he is a lovely chatty bloke. I am sure I have seen his work before, and feel like I have posted it, but it looks like this is the first piece of his that has appeared on Natural Adventures. Furthermore, I am hoping to photograph another oner today, if it is still there and I can park nearby.

Mesk, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025
Mesk, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2025

I watched as Mesk started this piece off. It is a small spot, but I think he has done a brilliant job with it. Such tidy presentation is assisted by buffing out the wall first with a neutral grey. Great letters, straightforward colours (three horizontal yellows) and a nice deep red and black 3D drop shadow. What’s not to like?

6972. M32 roundabout J3 (688)

Posh, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Posh, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025

There was a fabulous turnout for Hypo’s birthday paint jam a little way back, and one of the highlights for me was this small piece by occasional artist Posh. By occasional, I mean that he doesn’t paint the streets all that often, which is a real pity, because his work is refreshingly different.

Posh, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Posh, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025

Posh has painted a collection of curious characters who seem to be having a fun time. I think the monocles and top hats are part of the whole posh thing. Is that a cake the girl is holding? And who is the dude in the aeroplane?  There is lots happening in this busy sketch piece. Looking forward to seeing more from Posh.

6971. Cumberland Basin

Kush, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025
Kush, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025

Although I see a little bit of his work around the place, this is only the third piece by Kush that I have posted on Natural Adventures. His selection of ‘fruit salad’ colours gives his writing an uplifting presence. The letters KUSH are nicely designed and uniform with nicely graded fills.

Kush, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025
Kush, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025

Some nice depth is achieved with his orange 3D drop shadow, but the piece is probably most notable for the message ‘Free Palestine’ which is a common theme in street art in Bristol. Kush has also filled his letters with loads of shout-outs, and a smaller message in case you didn’t get it first time, ‘stop arming Israel’. While the world disintegrates and wars dominate the headlines, these guys modestly protest and document the world around them.

6970. Greenbank (161)

Conrico and Werm, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2025
Conrico and Werm, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2025

This is a fine collaboration from two artists who never seem to stop, both totally dedicated to their art and sharing it with us. This is the kind of collaboration which is more about artists painting together rather than any kind of fusion between their styles, colours or design.

Conrico, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2025
Conrico, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2025

On the left, Conrico presents a portrait of a woman in the foreground, who looks like she is taking a selfie in front of an island paradise – probably a Japanese island in the East China Sea. Conrico’s portraits are improving all the time and becoming more of a feature of his work. Of course, he has enough paint to add in his letters, with a feint reflection in the inviting sea.

Werm, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2025
Werm, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2025

To the right, Werm’s letters are beautifully presented, with the middle two letters a little smaller and ‘sitting on top’ of the rest of the piece. Lots of depth and intricate design work in this graffiti writing. Both artists have very different technical styles, but this collaboration works incredibly well.

Conrico, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2025
Conrico, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2025

Walled garden

Row of rhubarb, Nostell Priory, West Yorkshire, May 2025
Row of rhubarb, Nostell Priory, West Yorkshire, May 2025

.

Enclosed assembly

hums rhubarb, rhubarb, rhubarb

pollinators buzz

.

by Scooj

Beautiful noise

.

Swifts take the high notes

the air thick with sparrow chirps

and magpies squawking

.

by Scooj

6969. Peel Street Green (43)

Bloem, Peel Street Green, Bristol, May 2025
Bloem, Peel Street Green, Bristol, May 2025

There is an unwritten rule in street/graffiti art that suggests that you shouldn’t paint over a piece that is better than the one you are covering it with. Of course, this is unenforced (it is a jungle out there) and also is subjective. The logical conclusion is that you end up with every wall having high-end pieces that remain forever. This is where taggers and bombers come in – they have little regard for conventions and bring every wall back to square one. The ecosystem seems to work.

Bloem, Peel Street Green, Bristol, May 2025
Bloem, Peel Street Green, Bristol, May 2025

I mention this in passing, because I was surprised to see this Bloem piece appear on this particular wall only a matter of days after it had been painted by 3Dom. In the grand scheme of things, there are few better artists than 3Dom in Bristol, and seeing this Bloem piece certainly raised my eyebrow. Fortunately, I don’t think 3Dom is at all precious, and Bloem is rising up the ranks of Bristol artists with each new piece she paints.

To have replaced 3Dom’s piece with this superb flower character/design certainly softens the blow. Bloem has a keen eye for design and matches it up with superb technical ability. I have to remind myself that she really only started painting walls a couple of years ago and has progressed at an alarming rate. This is a real beauty, and she has perfected chrysanthemum petals to a tee.

6968. M32 roundabout J3 (687)

Face 1st, Zake and Soak, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Face 1st, Zake and Soak, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025

I cannot think of a time when I haven’t been utterly delighted to come across a PWA collaboration, and this beauty filled me with good cheer a couple of weeks back. There is a good chance that the collaboration will; remain intact for a while, as this stretch of wall tends to have quite a slow turnover.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025

The three artists contributing to the collaboration are Face 1st, Zake and Soap. Face 1st needs no introduction and is probably the artist who has appeared most on Natural Adventures, and deservedly so. This is a classic theme for the artist, with a laughing girl’s face and big hair spelling out FACE, with some diamonds chucked in for good measure.

Zake, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Zake, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025

In the middle is this wonderful cartoon character piece from Zake which also fits into his archetypal style, with so much depth, the face seems like it could roll off the wall and into the pathway. Zake seems to be painting at least once a week at the moment and is smashing it.

Soap, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Soap, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025

The triptych is completed with a lovely piece of writing from soap, who doesn’t get out as much as he used to, but still manages to collaborate reasonably often with his PWA chums. His letters and fills are sublime and, as is usually the way with his work in recent years, has an Adventure Time influence with the incorporation of the Ice King. Superb collaboration with a shared inclusion of a colour scheme throughout.