A gallery of superb abstract figure pieces by Bristol artist Shab.
Instagram: @s.h.a.b
All photographs by Scooj
Shab
Tag: Abstract
6755. Cumberland Basin
This post has been written in advance, because I will be making an early start today departing for our skiing holiday to the French Alps. I will try to post every day while I am on holiday, but it all rather depends on how things go. Meanwhile, I’d like you to enjoy this beauty from Hire.
Although Hire’s work has been difficult to decipher from to time, the letters are always there, however, I have noticed that there he is drifting into a kind of abstract presentation, and this piece isn’t unlike some of Ments’ pieces, which I used to describe as organic/abstract. I love the colour selections, the shapes of the letters and the neon glow of the border green in this writing. First class stuff from Hire.
6634. St Werburghs tunnel (469)
I believe that this piece by Mr Klue was painted at breakneck speed. On the day it was painted, I checked out the wall around lunchtime, and there was nothing there. Paul H visited the spot a while later and the piece was completed. This is my account of events… of course I might have had a ‘moment’, or a blind spot and walked past the piece without noticing it, but I simply don’t think that happened. Anyhow, all’s well that ends well, and I managed to snap it up as if it were new, eventually.
2024 was a stand-out year for Mr Klue, and what a way to round-off the year with this fine abstract writing piece set on a festive gold background. The letters spell KLUE, and are more defined here than in some of his more ephemeral pieces. The orange and turquoise work well together and are augmented with splashes of lime green and purple. A fine piece. I am looking forward to another great year from Mr Klue in 2025
6600. Upfest 2024 (59)
Dave Bain is a reasonably well known muralist in Bristol, and I have featured a few of his pieces before in Natural Adventures. This was his Upfest 2024 piece, which as you can see took up the whole front of a terraced house, giving it that something special compared to its neighbours.
Dave Bain’s imagination and creativity have run wild in this floral piece which combined familiar shapes and figures with abstract ones. There may be a little symbolism in the piece too, with a spaceman-like figure holding up a polyhedral shape on a starry background. I feel that sometimes Dave Bain could be a little bit more adventurous with his colours, because this colour palette is quite subtle, and perhaps doesn’t do the artwork justice (my view only). An interesting festival piece.
6588. St Werburghs tunnel (463)
It has been a very good year for Mr Klue, who has been both productive and creative. This new piece in the tunnel differs from many of his others in the use of several colours in a single piece. Perhaps it was a dregs piece, or maybe he simply wanted to switch things up a bit.
The letters KLUE are about as obvious as you are going to seen in a Mr Klue piece of abstract graffiti writing. The top edge of the piece is noteworthy too, with his piece bleeding into the cream background. The photographs don’t really do this one justice, as I remember thinking when I saw it how stunning the colours were. All good stuff.
6578. Frome Side (45)
This large piece by Mr Klue is unusual in that it isn’t in St Werburghs tunnel, his favoured spot. It was painted as part of a paint jam themed along the lines of a cartoon film ‘Ninja Scroll’ as determined by World Wall Stylers.
Although there is little to link this piece to the film, except perhaps the letters, which I can’t read, it was very much in keeping in terms of palette selection with the other artists in the paint jam. I do like it when Mr Klue ventures beyond his safe space of the tunnel, as it gives his truly unique abstract writing more of a chance of being seen by more people, although that isn’t necessarily the case under the M32.
6555. Frome Side (44)
Astrea is finding her feet in the Bristol street art scene and has been developing at pace. The first time I encountered her work was on a hot summer’s day in Muriel Alleyway for the mini street art festival organised by Rtiiika. Now her work can even be found in the difficult-to-access Frome Side spot, underneath the M32.
Astrea’s abstract designs in black and white, remind me a little of Prince’s squiggle, when he was represented by a symbol. This column piece is imaginative, and although her finishing needs a little work, she has painted a fairly intricate pattern. My eye keeps getting drawn to the lower right-hand side of the piece where one of the squiggles looks a little bit like a dancing figure. It is so good to see Astrea getting out and and about practising her artwork.
6512. Greenbank (139)
I tend to get quite excited when new artists begin to make a mark with their work, especially when you can see a style develop and confidence grow with each new piece. Astrea, who when I first encountered her operated under the moniker of HNH, is one such artist, and I am enjoying the challenge of finding her work in a variety of Bristol spots.
Astrea’s abstract style is different and refreshing. It looks like she has used paint brushes in this piece to be able to get such sharp lines. The overall effect is aesthetically pleasing with curved lines framing the whole thing nicely. The two-tone colour selection is very effective, although I think that the circle at the top should have been filed with the brilliant white used for the rest of the fills. Excellent and original work from Astrea.
6410. St Werburghs tunnel (448)
Benjimagnetic has been dropping pieces at about the rate of one a month or so for the whole year, many of them in St Werburghs tunnel, which leads me to think that he must live pretty locally to the spot.
This is a classic piece of deconstructive graffiti writing that Benjimagnetic specialises in. The letters spell out BEN, but without knowing that, you wouldn’t really be able to guess. The colourful piece is made up of so many independent components that all come together in a coherent abstract writing piece that makes a whole lot of sense. Very nice work from Benjimagnetic.
6403. Brunel Way (291)
This is a rather curious and abstract piece of graffiti writing from Mr Draws, who I know is always looking at ways to redefine his work, and likes to push boundaries. Sometimes Mr Draws will inject one of his ‘experimental’ pieces in the middle of a series of more customary work, and it is great to see.
In this one, there are some parallels with the style of Benjimagnetic, providing hints at the letters in amongst the decorative work. The ‘D’ and ‘R’ are clear but the ‘A’ and ‘W’ are more fused together. There is a nice cosmic feel to the whole piece and I like what I see. Keep pushing boundaries I would say.
Natural adventures 