Door three.
Stokes Croft, Bristol.
Artist: Alex Lucas
by Scooj.
Thursday doors
Tag: Alex Lucas
665. Picton Street (2)
This is another photograph that goes back a fair old way, but I am glad to say the building has remained unaltered. This is what the front of a house looks like when the owner is a hugely talented designer…I am of course referring to Alex Lucas whose pieces can be found all around the Montpelier area of Bristol.
The building, which doubles up as a little shop, is a famous landmark in Montpelier and features dozens of floral patterns and little birds. It is reminiscent of Victorian wallpaper, with a modern twist. I have just noticed that there appears to be a ghost of ‘Smilie’ in the reflection of the window…or maybe I am just seeing things.
549. York Road (1)
There are rewards to be had when making the effort to walk just that little bit further, or turn down a street you’ve not been down before. My reward recently for doing this was to come across this beautiful mural on the front of a small terraced house in Montpelier.
451. Picton Mews
Deep in the heart of Montpelier (Alex Lucas land) there is a recent, and rather small, addition to the street art landscape. A hare and a purple baloon, which might be a reference to her work with the Ribena Colouring Cafe in Covent Garden.
303. St Andrew’s Road
There are times when you think you know it all, or perhaps I shouldn’t judge…I’ll start again. There are times when I think I know it all (just ask my children), and I thought I pretty much knew where to find all the best places for graffiti and street art are. Writing this blog has shown me how utterly wrong I am. There I’ve said it.
Two dear friends of mine walked home with me a few weeks back, and were terribly polite by showing interest in my rather overbearing desire to tell them all about every piece of art we walked past. Who painted it, when they did it, what was there before, where you might find more of their work, who they collaborate with…and so on…oh my goodness they must have been very bored. They didn’t show it though, they are friends after all.
During our conversation, they asked whether I knew about the Alex Lucas bats piece by Montpelier Park. No I hadn’t. So they took me there straight away, and what a gift.
This beautiful work by Lucas adorns a small council tool shed on the edge of the park. The bats are so typical of her superb illustrations and so full of character. To top it off she has added a quotation by Gilbert White one of the early and pioneering English naturalists in the eighteenth century and author of Natural History and Antiques of Selborne, a book given to me by my late step father when I was a boy.
I like everything about this Lucas work. Where it is, the colours, the illustrations, the quotation, the fun of bats ‘playing’, the obvious love for nature, everything.
So I concede I really don’t know where all the street art in Bristol is, and I will be forever grateful to Jon and Jane for pointing this jewel out to me.
288. Cheltenham Road, the Little Shop
It has been a little while since I last posted anything by Alex Lucas. This wonderful piece has decorated the Little Shop for a few years now and sits right on the cusp of Cheltenham Road and Stokes Croft – both street names appear in the featured image.
In this commissioned mural Lucas does what she does so very well. Rabbits. Wonderful line drawings of rabbits interspersed with what appear to be pineapples. This junction with Ashley Road is really at the heart of Bohemian Bristol and there is barely a building without some kind of street art decorating it. I have the pleasure of walking this way to work every day (in the Summer at least) and never tire of this Lucas work.
The left hand side of the building is part of the 123 Space – a gallery which is linked to the People’s Republic of Stokes Croft (PRSC) next door. The 123 Space is a place for the local art community to create, connect, dream and build together. The Facebook page is here.
189. Cheltenham Road, Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party cafe marks out the northern border of the Stokes Croft area for street art. It is also a great place to start a tour of all the wonders in the area. This is a lovely commission by Alex Lucas adorning the front right hand side of the building. I presume it is a March hare, given its boxing gloves.
Unfortunately the piece and many others nearby have been obscured by red spray, really calling into question the whole debate about art, street art, commissions, illegal, graffiti, tagging, vandalism and so on. It will be very difficult to clear this piece up – maybe she’ll get a commission to replace it (please).
185. Stokes Croft, Pop up Shop
This playful commission was painstakingly crafted between the 5th to the 11th of April 2016. It is unmistakably the work of the brilliant Alex Lucas, and adds to the overall wealth of her pieces in the Area. It is great that so many small local businesses commission her work. Her stamp is fast becoming part of the Bristol USP.
These hares, painted and marked onto shutters, will I’m sure, become a local reference point. Looking carefully, you might also catch a glimpse of Mrs Scooj walking past the triptych with an umbrella.
I managed to have a quick chat with Alex a couple of times while she was working on this piece, and was struck by how approachable and incredibly nice she was…it must get very tiresome having people interrupt your work and ask inane questions, but at no time did she make me feel unwelcome, in fact completely the opposite.
Alex did disclose that shutter work is a bit of a pain and rather difficult, but she has done a great job with this. I really look forward to her next commission.
Alex Lucas, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2016
Alex Lucas, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2016
Alex Lucas, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2016
Alex Lucas, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2016
Alex Lucas, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2016
Alex Lucas, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2016
160. Stokes Croft, The Art House
Hardly a day goes by when I don’t stop to take a quick look at this familiar and wonderful piece. It is a constant when all around it is in continual flux.
‘Dandy Lion’ is a private commission, presumably for the householder, and has commanded great respect from the tagging community over the years; it remains unscathed.
Both the lion and the mouse are delightful. You can see the care and preparation that went into the work on the Lucas Antics website.
8/10
153. Picton Street
Anyone who wanders around the streets of Bristol, particularly in the Montpelier area, cannot fail to have seen works by the wonderful Alex Lucas. They are everywhere, and together with her designs, they have become somewhat synonymous with the identity of Bristol itself. I posted this back in November 2105.
Nearly all of her work that I have seen includes portrayals of animals, often in anthropomorphic poses. Unlike most of the street artists I feature, Lucas is very much on the legitimate/commission-based side of brightening up our streets, and although some might perceive this as lacking in edge, Bristol would be greatly diminished without her outstanding pieces.
I only clocked this one walking home last week with some friends. I think it must be reasonably new. I should think Picton Takeaway are thrilled. Alex lives opposite in a house decorated in her own style, deserving of a post in its own right.
The quote from Oscar Wilde is perfect. Oh yes, and there is another Fox!
8/10
Natural adventures 