2992. M32 roundabout J3 (216)

What an utterly outstanding piece this is from Spanish artist Wiflywin. This was his contribution to the poland – Spain paint jam on the M32 roundabout at the back end of May. Meeting Wiflywin and speaking with him during this paint jam was the highlight of my little trip to the spot, and I am without doubt a big fan of his work, which I am seeing more and more of dotted around North Bristol.

Wiflywin, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020
Wiflywin, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020

The work in progress (pictured above), which in itself is outstanding gives an indication of just how good this piece of graffiti writing was going to end up, and so it was. The design is outstanding and really compelling with lots of nice curves to draw the eye in and a great central vanishing point for the letter shadows. The finishing touches to the background perfectly set the piece off. This is outstanding art for sure.

Wiflywin, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020
Wiflywin, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020

Poland 2 Spain 1

2991. M32 Spot (74)

Something good pretty much always results when these two PWA artists collaborate, which fortunately for us is often, this time under the M32. Soap and Face 1st seem to have a telepathic connection like Pires and Henry (I had to choose Arsenal players, but think of any deadly football partnership and you’ll know what I mean), and their collaborations feel so comfortable and easy if you know what I mean.

Soap, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2020
Soap, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2020

I don’t quite get what the story is but there is consistency across the whole collaboration. On the left Soap is the writing of Soap which is filled with a sophisticated array of colours and techniques and is truly a thing of beauty. Soap’s fills just seem to get better and better.

Face 1st, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2020
Face 1st, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2020

On the right we have a rather unusual Face 1st piece of a girl riding on the back of a cigarette-smoking frog waving a bee on the end of a stick in front. What?!? I must ask him what on earth is going on in this piece next time I see him. Wild, imaginative and wonderful.

Abandoned

.

Good sense of humour

which in the circumstances

could be essential

.

by Scooj

2990. St George skate park (10)

Another artist who has been really busy lately is John D’oh whose running commentary on all aspects of the coronavirus epidemic has given us a record of events through the medium of street art. This way of capturing contemporary events has been a major aspect of art through the ages, and although much of the art is ephemeral some remains and helps to tell future generations what happened in the past and where they came from. John D’oh’s stories are important ones to tell.

John D'oh, St George, Bristol, June 2020
John D’oh, St George, Bristol, June 2020

This lovely stencil on the side of a ramp at St George skate park, celebrates the fabulous and unrelenting hard work of NHS workers through the pandemic with more than a little nod to Wolverine of X-Men fame. Slightly sinister, slightly edgy but with a great heart. A nice piece from John D’oh.

2989. M32 roundabout J3 (215)

Ahh! This is the second piece from the eight artist paint jam on the M32 roundabout recently. Four Polish and four Spanish artists lined up and sprayed the long wall on a gorgeous sunny day at the end of May. This piece is from the superb Laic217 who has sprung back into life over the last three weeks or so.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020

I was lucky to witness Laic217 in action and grab a quick chat while he was about half way through this fabulous skeleton piece. The picture above gives you a feel for the full length of the wall on the southwest side of the roundabout.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020

There are many features in this piece that fans of Laic217 will recognise… the ghetto-blaster, spray can, a skull and excellent tones to create the fabric of the skeleton’s clothes. So nice to see so much of his new work in a short space of time. worth waiting for.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020

Poland 2 Spain 0

2988. Brunel Way bridge (34)

Unfortunately the photographs of this fine stencil by Madderdoit simply don’t do the piece justice, which is a pity because this is the first piece I have knowingly seen from this Bristol artist. How did that happen?

Madderdoit, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Madderdoit, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020

The column piece features a woman wearing a blue face mask, which is I’m sure to become an iconic symbol for the year 2020. I see some similarities in technique to Stephen Quick’s work, which is of course a good thing. I love surprise pieces like this one, they keep me interested (not that that is difficult). I’d love to see more from Madderdoit.

2987. Brunel Way bridge (33)

So far, since the lock down restrictions were first eased, there seem to have been an extraordinary amount of collaborative sessions, I guess because artists have missed each other through the lengthy coronavirus isolation. In this case the artists combining their talents are Varo and Saik.

Varo, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Varo, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020

Varo is an artist I met for the first time a couple of weeks back when he was painting alongside his Spanish compatriots during a paint jam on the M32 roundabout. I haven’t posted any of his work before, but that is all going to change from this moment forward. This is a nicely done piece spelling out VARO and has a natural, organic feel to it.

 

Saik, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Saik, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020

Saik is no stranger to Natural Adventures, but it has been quite a long time since I posted anything by the artist.  This piece of graffiti writing is really nicely done, nice and tidy with an interesting fill in shades of green. An unexpected and interesting collaboration under Brunel Way.

Thursday doors – 11 June 2020

Doors 110 – even more graffiti/street art doors (groan…)

I promise that I will get back to some ordinary doors soon, but I am rather enjoying my archive graffiti doors at the moment so might persist just for a couple more weeks if that is ok with you.

In my last Thursday doors post I think I had broken into 2017, so I will kick off there. Enjoy…

Inke, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Inke, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Laic 217, Moon Street, Bristol, May 2017
Laic 217, Moon Street, Bristol, May 2017
Andrew Burns Colwill, Gathorne Road, Bristol, May 2017
Andrew Burns Colwill, Gathorne Road, Bristol, May 2017
Kin Dose, Stokes Croft, Bristol, September 2016
Kin Dose, Stokes Croft, Bristol, September 2016
Talmo and Miel, North Street, Bristol, June 2016
Talmo and Miel, North Street, Bristol, June 2016
Deamze, Kings Square Avenue, Bristol, April 2017
Deamze, Kings Square Avenue, Bristol, April 2017
Copyright, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Copyright, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Decay, Wilder Street, Bristol, April 2017
Decay, Wilder Street, Bristol, April 2017
Boogie, Moon Street, Bristol, July 2017
Boogie, Moon Street, Bristol, July 2017
Louis Masai, North Street, Bristol, July 2017
Louis Masai, North Street, Bristol, July 2017
Oze Arv, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Oze Arv, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
D7606, Charles Street, Bristol, July 2017
D7606, Charles Street, Bristol, July 2017
Bex Glover, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Bex Glover, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

So another Thursday doors draws to a close, I hope you enjoyed it. See you next week.

If you have made it this far, you probably like doors and you really ought to take a look at the Norm 2.0 blog – the originator of Thursday Doors where there are links to yet more doors in the comments section at the end.

 

by Scooj

Flood

.

A long time ago

back in 1882

the Frome burst its banks

.

by Scooj

 

Read about Bristol Floods

2986. M32 roundabout J3 (214)

I love making discoveries. Finding things that were meant to be found, but only by those who are looking. This drawing is one such discovery, in one of the tunnels of the M32 roundabout. There are a trio of other pieces by the same artist not far away. Regular readers will know that I am particularly fond of paste ups, and when they are by an artist unknown to me, they are that little bit more special.

Jarvis, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020
Jarvis, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020

I think the artist is called Jarvis, but that is as much as I know about them.  The crown on the top of the signature indicates to me that this artist understands street art culture and is deliberately being a part of it. The piece itself, roughly A4 size, is vibrant and striking. The colours and elements are simple and bold. A red figure in profile, the sea, the sun, the moon and a possible reference to Bristol, a hot air balloon. The wheatpaste is set on a jaunty angle and seems to have been torn from a pad at the top edge. I like this paste up very much and it feels like we might be seeing the emergence of another Bristol street artist. I’ll post the other three pieces soon, and will be on the lookout for more.