Tag: Art

536. Upfest 2016 (75)

HAPPY CHRISTMAS ALL!

I haven’t seen much micro stencilling since I started writing about street art and graffiti art, so it was a real discovery to see this incredible stencil by Eins92. I’m sure it was no reflection on the artist, but there was no biography in the Upfest programme, so I have had to dig a little deeper to find out anything about him.

Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Eins92 is a German street artist who has recently spent some time in the UK going to various urban art festivals and leaving behind his little treasures. There is a really good interview with him in this Global Street Art feature. I can’t believe I didn’t photograph another of his stencils on the other side of the bus.

Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

This work is so intricate, and the stencils he cuts are so incredibly tiny. This is really skilled work and he produced it perfectly.

 

 

535. Upfest 2016 (74)

A little while back I posted an amazing wall painting by Andrew Burns Colwill from Upfest 2015. It was the goldfish leaping out of a bowl piece in the Tobacco Factory car park. Well, Andrew was back again this year, and this time I managed to get some pictures of him at work.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
This work looks to be a little more cryptic, it appears to be full of symbolism and I am not too sure what it all means. The balloons have faces on them and a sea of paperwork is disappearing down a plughole…or something.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Whilst I am not as keen on this as the goldfish, I am drawn to it every time I walk past it. I guess I will have to try and find out more about it.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
I have recently become aware of another of his works very near my work, on the side of a container near the back of Bristol aquarium. I will try and get a photograph soon. It has been there for a while…I just never ventured to take a look. Unusual for me.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

527. Moon Street (16)

This is one of the best walls in Moon Street (Stokes Croat even). It stands out, is a great size, and allows only for one piece at a time, giving the artist space to frame the piece nicely. Mr Klue is, I would suggest, the best abstract street artist in Bristol – instantly recognisable and very easy on the eye.

Mr Klue, Moon Street, Bristol, March 2016
Mr Klue, Moon Street, Bristol, March 2016
Mr Klue seems to be comfortable working alone, or working in collaboration with others, and I have many examples of both in this blog. Consistently good, and some of his more recent work is looking very interesting indeed. I just have to get out and find it.

524. North Street, Standard (3)

It would appear that the wonderful Hannah Adamaszek recently paid a visit to Bristol and left us with this beautiful portrait on North Street. The colours and earthy tones are typical of her amazing work, and the face is calmness itself.

Hannah Adamaszek, North Street, Bristol, November 2016
Hannah Adamaszek, North Street, Bristol, November 2016
All of Hannah’s work has this peaceful quality…perhaps if there was more of her work out there the world would be a more peaceful place. I know it sounds cheesy, but that’s how I feel about a lot of street art.

Hannah Adamaszek, North Street, Bristol, November 2016
Hannah Adamaszek, North Street, Bristol, November 2016
Come back soon Hannah, you are always welcome.

522. M32 Roundabout, J3 (24)

This is the first of two recent works by Voyder that mark him out as one of the truly outstanding graffiti writers in Bristol. This piece of writing, set to his typical hand-writing style, shows off his incredible use of colours, providing an effect that makes the whole thing look like it is illuminated.

Voyder, M32, Bristol, December 2016
Voyder, M32, Bristol, December 2016

I have said before when writing about Voyder that it is great to see his work in an accessible setting, as many of his grand pieces are sprayed in derelict buildings where one requires more guts than I have to enter such places. I love this work.

521. Wapping Wharf (1)

Wapping Wharf is a new Harbourside development in Bristol that includes residential flats and some rather upmarket restaurants and food outlets. At one end there is a rather unusual block of ‘container’ shops and cafes called @cargo.  It would appear that at one end of this block there is a public art space, and the first piece to be displayed there is this beautiful work by Gemma Compton.

Gemma Compton, Wapping Wharf, Bristol, November 2016
Gemma Compton, Wapping Wharf, Bristol, November 2016
Gemma is no stranger to the street art scene in Bristol and indeed her artworks were the promotional face of Upfest 2016. You may recall the post I wrote about her lovely work on the front of the Upfest shop in North Street. This work carries the same characteristic blue colours (reminiscent of spode pottery) she uses and is adorned with flowers and butterflies. A lovely piece, and just look at those drips.

505. Raleigh Road, Tobacco Factory (5)

This is a beautiful piece of art that I think had been painted for Upfest 2015, although I am not certain. I took the photographs a little while ago, and the wall has since been painted over.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Raleigh Road, Bristol, April 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Raleigh Road, Bristol, April 2016
The work is by Andrew Burns Colwill, a Bristol fine artist whose watery paintings have an incredible serenity and dream-like quality about them. I didn’t know much of the artist until I read his extraordinary bio on his website, and it really is worth a quick click and read.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Raleigh Road, Bristol, April 2016
Andrew Burns Colwill, Raleigh Road, Bristol, April 2016
Of course, I particularly like this piece because it has fish in it and I am very fond of fish. (Note to self – do a street art fish special some time). Andrew’s touch is delicate and detailed, and beautifully captures the movement in the piece. One of my favourites of the year.

504. Armada Place (4)

Some more writing today, this time from one of the less prominent graffiti artists in Bristol, ‘Subtle’. On first appearance this looks like quite a raw piece of work and could easily be missed, but on closer inspection, it is a fine sophisticated piece of writing.

Subtle, Armada Place, Bristol, January 2016
Subtle, Armada Place, Bristol, January 2016
Nothing much lasts very long on these hoardings, and I would guess that I only ever capture about 20% of what appears here, which gives you some idea of the volume of spraying that happens every week across Bristol…certainly way too much to write about it all. I am pleased to have photographed this when I did though.

493. Dighton Street (2)

At one end of Dighton Street there are two small walls which look like they had once been rather fancy gateways and which have since been filled in. They offer street artists an opportunity to spray a pair of related works should they wish to do so, as the spots come as a pair and are separated by a stone wall of about 20 feet.

Deamze, Dighton Street, Bristol, October 2016
Deamze, Dighton Street, Bristol, October 2016
Deamze is the latest Bristol-based street artist to occupy these walls with his recognisable vertically elongated Deam Ask style of burner. His colour selections are once again striking and emphasise his clever use of shadowing the lettering.

Deamze, Dighton Street, Bristol, October 2016
Deamze, Dighton Street, Bristol, October 2016
The previous pieces here had been sprayed by Sepr, and were a couple of my favourite works of last year. I will miss them, but turnover on this wall has been very slow, and they had a long run out. Now it is the turn of Deamze.

491. Upfest 2016 (65)

This is one of the most beautiful and sensitive pieces that I saw at Upfest this year. The artist, Sokar Uno has created something really touching and outstanding. This is without doubt one of my favourite pieces from this year’s festival.

Sokar Uno, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Sokar Uno, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Sokar Uno is a young German artist who has been painting and illustrating since he was twelve. Clearly he is very talented.

Sokar Uno, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Sokar Uno, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

There is a wonderful explanation of the approach he takes to his art on his excellent website which is really worth a visit.

Sokar Uno, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Sokar Uno, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I am thoroughly taken with his ‘classical’ style and would really love to see more of his work. I fear I might have to travel to Berlin to see it though. It is a real privilege to see him at work in Bristol.

Sokar Uno, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Sokar Uno, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016