Tag: bird

2279. Porlock Road

Exploring new parts of Bristol always has its rewards, and I found this piece by Andy Council completely by accident when I went on a pilgrimage to see the My Dog Sighs and Curtis Hylton collaboration up on Windmill Hill.

Andy Council, Porlock Road, Bristol, April 2019
Andy Council, Porlock Road, Bristol, April 2019

It seems that Andy Council’s pieces are dotted all over Bristol, and after five years of writing posts like this one, I still have several more to find. The reason that his work is so dispersed is that he does a lot of private commissions and so he is not confined to the few ‘legal’ spots in Bristol to show off his fabulous work.

Andy Council, Porlock Road, Bristol, April 2019
Andy Council, Porlock Road, Bristol, April 2019

This splendid peacock is a great example of Andy Council at his very best in which the whole creation is made up of buildings typical of the area in Bristol. The blue colour scheme suits this piece and the wall superbly. A great find, and good to know that there are still these hidden gems all over the place.

Downward

 

Precariously

pigeon pair shuffle slipping

roof ridge tile challenge.

 

by Scooj

2180. Rivington Street, London, (8)

This doorway (if you care to look on streetview, which is a little out of date now) used to be reasonably clean, and only the little squirrel stencil (bottom right) by Bristol’s Stewy occupied the space. Things move fast in the street art/graff world and I have seen dozens of wheatpastes and larger pieces on the doors. This one I think has to be the pick of the bunch.

Nether410, Rivington Street, London, April 2019
Nether410, Rivington Street, London, April 2019

Although I had been aware of this beautiful piece by Nether410 from my trip to Shoreditch last November, it wasn’t until I visited in April this year that I actually found it. There is a big story unfolding, which touches on incarceration and freedom, humanity and nature. A stunning and thoughtful piece. Skylark security can piss off though. (My apologies).

Blessing and a curse

 

What separates us

from the animal kingdom

is our compassion.

 

My heart weeps for a fledgling

too sickly to carry on.

 

by Scooj

 

  • In a garden hedge in my road, this small ball of fluff was hiding its head from this scary world under its wing. Obviously recently fledged and confused its liklihood of survival are pretty low. It showed no signs of response to noise and will be an easy target for cats or foxes of which there are a great many in the neighbourhood. It was heartbreaking. No sign of its parents.

Yaffle

 

Am I mistaken?

I think I heard the call of

a green woodpecker.

 

by Scooj

1972. M32 roundabout J3 (119)

There are not enough great words to describe the work of Sled One. One after another he turns out the most incredible pieces that explode with colour and imagination. I have noticed that often his compositions are amalgamations of bits of ideas that all come together to create a magnificent whole.

Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2019
Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2019

This piece is quite extraordinary, pulling together bird parts to form a bird skull/head stuffed with leaves and plants. Another bird wing and beak juts out of the back of the head – I am not sure what is happening there.

Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2019
Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2019

The whole piece, although adorned with a cartoon smile and glint in the eyes, also for me has a darker side, but I can’t put my finger on why that might be. Even his signature is classy, a pink neon moniker a la Voyder. So Good.

1813. Upfest 2018 (73)

Yet another new wall for 2018, and how well it has been utilised by Dinho Bento. I guess this wall could have been split into two or three slots, but what a great decision to keep its integrity.

Dinho Bento, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Dinho Bento, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

Dinho Bento is a Brazilian artist whose work seems to draw inspiration from the natural world. A quick glance at his Facebook feed tells you that he is interested in portraying the interconnectedness of humanity with our environment, and the organic green strands in this piece are a representation of that connection – or at least, that is my interpretation.

Dinho Bento, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Dinho Bento, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

I can’t necessarily put my finger on it, but artists from different countries definitely have national styles, or perhaps continental styles, and this piece really screams out South America. I guess the more art you see, the more you recognise this phenomenon, and while it is not true of all artists, it is a real thing.

Dinho Bento, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Dinho Bento, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

The natural world themes and story of this piece really chime for me. It is called ‘Listen to Nature’ – something I have done all my life. Great work Dinho Bento.

1751. Tower Hill (1)

A colleague alerted me to this hoarding, which is within lunchtime walking distance from my work, so I felt obliged to go and take a look. Sometimes such tip-offs can be a bit of a disappointment, because not all ‘street art’ is worth the trip. This wonderful piece by Smak however was absolutely worth it.

Smak, Tower Hill, Bristol, August 2018
Smak, Tower Hill, Bristol, August 2018

I had kind of been aware of these hoardings but didn’t know that there was anything decent there. In fact there were three notable pieces of which this is the first. Smak is an interesting artist in that he has two personas. This is his ‘graff’ persona, but he also does high-end pieces and commissions under another name – he even painted a large wall at Upfest this year (to follow).

Smak, Tower Hill, Bristol, August 2018
Smak, Tower Hill, Bristol, August 2018

This wildstyle writing is really skilfully done and spells out SMAK. In the middle of the work he had woven in the head of a bird, and there are some feathers in there too. A classy piece.

1710. Upfest 2018 (35)

Max ‘syther’ Oughton is no stranger to Upfest, and indeed I wrote a short post covering his work from Upfest 2017. This artist, from East Anglia, is making a niche for himself with animal studies and illustration, so the Upfest programme notes tell us and this piece certainly covers that territory with a seabird entangled in the tentacles of an octopus.

Max Syther, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Max Syther, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

The colour selections which are calming and serene betray the rather brutal scene which is a skilfully executed juxtaposition. Max Oughton has a great eye for the natural world, and it is great to be able to see his work for two years running.

Max Syther, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Max Syther, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

 

I think that Max was just tidying up after finishing the piece when I took this last picture…a celebratory fag hanging out of his mouth.

1548. Dean Lane skate park (135)

There is not too much to say about this lovely little toucan by Touc, other than I think it was the first one of his little birds that I found, and I have just retrieved it from my archive.

Touc, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2018
Touc, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2018

I’ve not seen any new ones recently, but am always on the look out.