This outstanding abstract piece of graffiti writing by Mr Klue has it all, and has taken a bit of a shift in colour composition from his usual palettes of blues, greens, purples or oranges. It is really quite unusual to come across a piece by the artist with a white background, and it leaves the viewer with quite a different impression.
Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2024
The wispy letters spell out KLUE, and I am pleased to note the incorporation of his floating steps, which I think really adds something to the mystery and spirituality of his work. It is interesting to see that he, and others before him, have chosen not to paint the semicircle of chipped wall along the top of the piece. Wonderful work from local artist Mr Klue.
On the corner of Cheltenham Road and Elton Road, is a rather progressive funeral parlour (we used to call them undertakers when I was growing up) called Divine Ceremony, and recently they commissioned Farrah to paint a large mural in the car park behind their business. Farrah’s abstract work lends itself so very well to this kind of commission.
Farrah, Elton Road, Bristol, July 2024
There are a handful of artists who land a whole lot of commissions in the city, and perhaps the best known are Andy Council, Alex Lucas and Farrah, who between them have a great many intact pieces on both sides of the river. I could attempt to put my take on the wonderful mural, but I thought it would be better coming from Farrah herself, and the following was taken from her Instagram feed:
Such a pleasure to paint this mural for @divineceremony – a female owned and run business for such a beautiful and honourable service for humanity.
It was like a godsend for Dee Ryding at Divine Ceremony to find and connect with me last year. She said I was the perfect fit to paint the walls for her funeral business and now I truly understand why it was meant to be!
I love to bring joy to people through my art. And they bring joy too when it is so much needed in immensely difficult times. They celebrate a persons life and care for them and their families in such a gentle and beautiful respectful way, for the next part of the journey. What beautiful people! Wow.
I have come to realise myself recently that there is so much beauty in sadness too. And hope in the unknown. I believe life always continues in this beautiful divine universe. Hence my mural is like the flow of life, never ending, forever flowing. It may seem like the end on this planet for people that have passed on. But I think it’s only the beginning and that there is another beautiful and divine place beyond what we see. Beauty and eternal joy beyond the darkness, beyond that portal. It is always with us.
Thank you Divine Ceremony for choosing me to paint for you. It was a absolute privilege 🙏
Farrah, Elton Road, Bristol, July 2024
I had to return to the car park a second time, because there was a car parked right in front of the left hand end of the wall the first time I visited. This is probably the nearest street art to where I live, and I will see it most days, which is a great thing really. The perfect commission perfectly executed by Farrah.
Emotional Waterfall Art, Upfest 24, Exeter Road, Bristol, May 2024
If you like bright and colourful abstract designs, then this piece by Emotional Waterfall Art painted at Upfest 2024 will be right up your street. The artist is no stranger to Upfest, and she painted an enormous mural for the 75×75 event in 2021. I am not certain, because her social media accounts are vague, but I think that she is Bristol-based, or at least from the West of England.
Emotional Waterfall Art, Upfest 24, Exeter Road, Bristol, May 2024
This piece is painted on a gate in Exeter Road (one for Thursday Doors in a year or two) adding a vibrant splash of colour. There is a whole ton of positive energy coming at you from the mixture of shapes and patterns in this delightful mural. I believe, from reading her Instagram post about that this piece, that she had a really great day painting it.
Mr Klue has been smashing it, not only recently, but for years with his original abstract ephemeral graffiti writing. He definitely favours painting in St Werburghs tunnel, where virtually all of his pieces have been in recent years. He used to paint in the Bear Pit in the good old days, and a few other spots in north Bristol, but his range appears to have narrowed.
Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2024
The letters, as usual, spell out KLUE, and have a slightly more solid look to them than some of his pieces. His favoured blues and purples are carefully positioned to create light and shade and add perspective to the piece, which the yellow lower edges and white upper edges amplify. A lovely example of this enigmatic artist’s work.
Ments, Hen and Chicken, Greville Road, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
It has been a while since I last saw Ments painting, so it was great to see him working on this piece for Upfest. The nature of this year’s Upfest has meant that there is far less graffiti writing than in previous years, with more of a focus on high-end murals. Knowing that, it was extra-cool to see this abstract writing from Ments.
Ments, Hen and Chicken, Greville Road, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
There is a beautiful flow through this piece, which has a wonderful natural vibe running through it. The gentle colours are held together in geometric ‘crystalline’ forms and transition markedly from left to right. I am guessing that this Bristol-based artist has been busy over the last couple of years, because I don’t recall seeing any street work for a very long time.
Ments, Hen and Chicken, Greville Road, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
If you like this you can see more of his incredible ‘organic’ writing in this gallery.
Ooh, I like this rhapsody in pink and yellow from Mr Klue very much. There is a wonderful balance in the piece, which can’t necessarily be said of all his work, but here he has absolutely nailed it. Mr Klue’s abstract style is best described as being ephemeral, like a wisp of smoke that might disappear at any moment.
Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2024
After the winter slumber, Mr Klue is once again dominating in the tunnel, which is no mean feat, as there are still many very strong pieces there from Ryder’s paint jam at the end of March. I would normally expect the letters here to spell out KLUE, but if I am really honest I cannot pick them out, and wonder if it might read something else. Whatever the letters, this is yet another wonderful piece from the quiet and modest Mr Klue.
This is a throwback piece to last June, which has remained dormant in my archives, because at the time of photographing the piece the artist was unknown to me. Since then, the artist’s identity has emerged and is known as j9449j, which is a bit of a mouthful. This is great news, because I have several more pieces in the archives to share and I really like their work.
j9449j, Greenbank, Bristol, June 2023
The abstract piece hints at a rural landscape, certainly there are some organic forms in the piece. This artwork is so original, at least in the context of street art, that it is difficult to assess against any normal criteria or conventions. For example the small additional piece to the right works perfectly as a counterbalance to the larger piece on the left, There are some lovely shapes and patterns and a carefully thought out colour palette. Enjoyable and unusual stuff from j9449j.
Marckinetic and Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2024
Marckinetic and Kid Krishna have been having a rather productive spring following what might be described as a reasonably lean winter. This collaborative pair of pieces, sharing a background and elements of a colour palette, is on the long wall at Cumberland Basin.
Marckinetic, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2024
To the left Marckinetic has written the letters FFS, which would be difficult to know if you didn’t already know, if you know what I mean. His trademark galactic space cloud kind of fill is incorporated in the letters and the semicircle, to great effect. He has also painted a very nice black shadow, in the same mode as often used by Acer One. This is a creative and, as ever, interesting piece.
Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2024
Kid Krishna, who has recently changed his Instagram account to @name_dropin, has been smashing it of late, and here he is again with one of his CRIE pieces so full of colour and interest in a fairly abstract presentation. I particularly like the ‘canyon’ at the bottom of the piece. I have so many unpublished pieces by Kid Krishna in my archive, and I am trying to figure out how I can post them all. A very nice collaborative wall.
This is a great occasion. I have been trying to find out who this artist is for absolutely ages (I know I am not alone) and at last their name ‘j9449j’ appeared as a tag on an Instagram post a week or two back, and we are no longer in the dark. What this also means is that I can release a whole bunch of their work from my archives which has been itching to be posted.
j9449j, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2024
j9449j has a very distinctive collage style with plenty of shapes, symbols and plants, bound together with clever use of colour ‘patches’. The work is original and quite unlike anything else we routinely see in Bristol. How nice it would be to actually meet j9449j and find out more about their art, style influences and so on. This is the first of many posts (retrospective and future) I hope.
Mr Klue, Peel Street Green, Bristol, February 2024
Mr Klue has definitely woken from his winter slumbers and is doing what he does so well, and decorating the walls of Bristol with his unique abstract ethereal letters. I am not too sure though that I have ever seen a piece of his on this wall before, and it is nice to see him break away from the security of his favourite spot in the tunnel.
Mr Klue, Peel Street Green, Bristol, February 2024
I suspect that Mr Klue has a large stock of blue, green and white tints, as his last three pieces have all had very similar colour schemes. The letters spell, as usual, KLUE, but are so very well disguised. I am guessing, and hoping, that this early year flurry of pieces extends well into 2024.
Natural adventures 