I have taken many photographs of this magnificent parrot since it was created at last year’s Upfest (2015), but somehow I just haven’t made time to put together a post. It is a difficult piece to photograph because of the white space on the wall and from the sky, which tends to bleach the picture out a bit.
Luis Seven Martins (L7M), North Street, Bristol, May 2016
The magnificent piece is by Luis Seven Martins, also known as L7M. He is another artist from Sao Paolo in Brazil (a hotbed of street art talent). Born in 1988, he has been working on street art from the age of 13. He specialises in drawing birds using a mix of spray paint and acrylics. This parrot is a beauty and one of the outstanding pieces of Upfest 2015. His Facebook page is here.
Luis Seven Martins (L7M), North Street, Bristol, May 2016
This is the second part of my marvelous Monday discovery. This is a piece by Bruno Smoky who is the husband of Shalak Attack and member of the Clandestinos Crew. I understand from his Instagram feed that Inkie was their host/guide over the weekend in Bristol, and who better to show them the best walls. I love the way the graffiti world hangs together.
Bruno Smoky, Stokes Croft, Bristol, 9 May 2016
This house on fire is a really breathtaking piece, and with the Shalak Attack work in the adjacent archway, the pair have really set the bar very high for the Carriageworks space. I hope the taggers stay clear and respect our visitors’ work. I like his nod to Buzz in the top left corner – respecting a little of our local thing.
Bruno Smoky, Stokes Croft, Bristol, 9 May 2016
Bruno Smoky grew up in Brasilandia, a neighbourhood in Sao Paolo, Brazil. He is now internationally recognised and has created works all over the world. I love this quote, lifted from his website:
“I do not neglect my roots, my greatest pleasure is to paint in communities, bringing art and culture to otherwise forgotten and precarious neighborhoods. I use Graffiti in the context of creating a space to exhibit my art to society, my themes are full of colors and forms of protest … ”
Bruno Smoky, Stokes Croft, Bristol, 9 May 2016
I feel genuinely privileged that they visited and painted in Bristol outside of any kind of art festival, such as Upfest.