Tucked away behind the iron fence of the swimming pool at Dean Lane is this fabulous collaboration combination piece from Werm and Zake. Werm, more than adequately providing the symmetrical letters, and Zake offering a couple of different cheeky characters peering over the top of them.
Werm and Zake, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2025
The horizontal band colour scheme, painted on an off-white background, works really well, and Zake has cleverly incorporated the band of colour into his characters. I’m not quite sure what it is about it, but this feels like a really classy piece to me, and I really like it.
Totosoapcity, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2025
I have seen quite a few pieces by Totosoapcity in Bristol before, but hadn’t known who the artist was, so haven’t posted them. This could mark the opening of a little floodgate for when I do some digging in my archives, which I like to do from time to time. I’m not sure that Totosoapcity is from Bristol, but must be reasonably local I would think, because we see visits every few months.
Totosoapcity, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2025
This piece is part of a large collaboration from a group of artists I am not too familiar with, but who have done a great job on this wall, selecting a themed colour approach to all their writing. I think the letters here spell ARS(Z)A, and have a pleasing symmetry to them. The red, pink, black, brown, yellow and orange colours are not my favourite combinations, but work reasonably well – not sure about the pink. They do, however, contrast perfectly with the themed grey banner background, which is consistent through the entire collaboration.
#DFTE and Dave Sharp, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2025
These two artists collaborated on almost this exact spot back in July 2022 – how time flies, I had it in my mind that it was last year. From what I can gather #DFTE and Dave Sharp are good friends, and this fine collaboration ‘anxious iron giants’ combines the distinctive writing of #DFTE with the artistic talents of Dave Sharp.
#DFTE and Dave Sharp, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2025
I would love to see more from #DFTE – the power of words is so beautifully presented with his unique style, going big on the drips, but he doesn’t seem to paint all that often. Dave Sharp, I don’t know much about, but he has captured the Iron Giant robot really well, perhaps tinged with a little anxiety… who knows. Their combination works really well, and as a bonus, here is their last one…
Dave Sharp and #DFTE, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2022
Doors 305 – Copenhagen, Denmark (part V), September 2024
Life is flashing by. April is over, and we are saying farewell to the first third of 2025. Unusually, we have had a pretty dry start to the year in England, especially March and April, and are experiencing summer temperatures this week, which is both delightful and worrying in equal measure.
I managed to spend an unseasonably warm few days in Copenhagen last September whilst on a city break with my mother. Perhaps ‘unseasonably warm’ or ‘biblical rainfall’ or ‘beast from the east’ are terms we will hear more and more frequently as we hurtle towards climate breakdown. I hope not, but it somehow feels like humanity has reached the age of stupid.
This week’s selection from Copenhagen are from the Kastelette citadel area to the northeast of the city and close to the most famous icon of all Denmark, the little mermaid statue, which is where I was heading for when I took these photographs. Here we go…
Door through a doorway, Bredgade, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Windmill door, Kastellet, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Kastellet door, Kastellet, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Gateway and guardroom doors, Kastellet, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024The Little Mermaid statue, Copenhagen, September 2024
Green door with perch, Store Kongensgade, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Green door and red shutters, Store Kongensgade, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Grand doors, skylight and brick surround, Borgergade, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Fine doors and roses growing out of nothing, Sankt Pauls Plads, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024Three-panelled double doors on St Paul’s church, Gernersgade, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024A simple symmetry of doors windows and shutters, Gernersgade, Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2024
So there it is, this week’s Thursday Doors post has melted away as quickly as the year so far has. Still more to come from Copenhagen next time… and the time after that…
If you have made it this far, you probably like doors, and you really ought to take a look at the No Facilities blog by Dan Anton who has taken over the hosting of Thursday Doors from Norm 2.0 blog. Links to more doorscursions can be found in the comments section of Dan Anton’s Thursday Doors post.
Oh dear! Mr Crawls’ gull is looking a bit glum in this piece on the long hoarding at Greenbank. Painted on a favoured chrome background, the usually happy or cheeky gull looks like he is down in the dumps. It is clever that Mr Crawls can portray different emotions with tweaks to his ‘archetypal’ bird.
Mr Crawls, Greenbank, Bristol, March 2025
The stylised cartoon character has a downturned (mouth) bill and heavy-lidded eyes, dripping with sadness. The piece is really well presented and clean and tidy, and another in a wonderful series of character pieces by Mr Crawls.
This is an outstanding piece of graffiti writing from Minto, and is a great example of what is not there as being as important as what is there – if that makes any kind of sense. There is a lot of empty space alongside multiple illustrations and decorations throughout.
Minto, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2025
The letters spell out MINTO, and there are some regular motifs that the artist has used before, such as the character and a pair of sneakers at the base of the letter M. I’m not sure whether there is a coherent story or whether the piece is simply a collection of ideas and thoughts bundled up together. Either way, there is plenty to look at in this energetic piece.
Lis seems to do herself proud every time she goes out to paint, and this is another fine outing, with a couple of small pieces in Dean Lane. Here she has painted one of her mushrooms, but this time as a rather cute skateboarding character, which is totally appropriate for the spot.
Lis, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2025
I anticipate a great future for Lis, who I am sure will start to attract commissions, the more she practices and the more exposure she gets. As well as this character piece, she also left behind a little ‘extra’ on a nearby wall, featuring a cluster of toadstools. This is going to be a most enjoyable journey as Lis goes from strength to strength.
A quick couple of posts today, written last night, because I have an early start today, running a workshop in the middle of nowhere, somewhere in rural Shropshire. This is another fine piece from my short visit to Liverpool from one of my favourite wheatpasters, LostHills.
LostHills, Jamaica Street, Liverpool, March 2025
You might notice that this isn’t a paste up, but a painting, something LostHills has been doing more of in recent years. His characters are based on Jake the Dog from Adventure time, but I am not sure what the cultural reference is in the piece. A nice one to find.
Although I have only posted one other piece by Coloquix before, I am familiar with the artist’s work, and have been following their Instagram feed for years. I was surprised to find this painted shutter piece, because More often I am used to seeing wheatpastes by Coloquix.
Coloquix, Kitchen Street, Liverpool, March 2025
The stylised character is the trademark of the artist, and here she nestles in a quarter moon with a friendly face. The horizontal bars of colour run across the piece nicely and overall it is a happy soulful piece and a good find during my stroll in Liverpool.
Liam Bononi, Jamaica Street, Liverpool, March 2025
There are many parallels between Bristol and Liverpool, in part due to the established trading routes with America and the West Indies. Unfortunately, both cities prospered through the trade in slaves, alcohol and tobacco, along with a huge amount of other less controversial goods. Place and street names tend to reflect the development of a city, and it is no surprise that both Bristol and Liverpool have a Jamaica Street, and that both are in areas that have seen a lot of change.
In Liverpool, the area around Jamaica street is a hotspot for street art, and I was lucky enough to find some superb pieces during my recent visit there, including this old piece by Liam Bononi.
Liam Bononi, Jamaica Street, Liverpool, March 2025
Liam Bononi has become one of the great high-end artists in Europe and is a favourite for premium walls and festivals, and this piece, I think, was painted sometime last year. Much of his work contains contorted, agonised or corrupted portraits, perhaps reflecting an inner struggle. This beautiful portrait piece appears to be cracked and disfigured as if it were a broken mirror, and as a result is a little unsettling. Although based in the North of England, Liam Bononi does manage to travel around the country a little, which is great news.
Natural adventures 