Evening silence
interrupted only by
the roar of burners.
by Scooj
- last evening flight of the Bristol Balloon Fiesta 2017
Tag: Bristol
948. Upfest 2017 (18)
Regular viewers of this blog will be familiar with the talents of Georgie, a Bristol artist who uses many different techniques for her street art work. This time she has selected a collage and spray piece with a nice big smiley face. She has incorporated other pieces of her work in the surrounding collage, including the ‘Citizen of Nowhere’ stencil.
947. Upfest (17)
Upfest this year hosted so many talented artists and they produced a plethora of really striking pieces. This one by graffiti artist Sonic Oner is a real eye-catcher, and a quick look at his Facebook page shows you what an extremely talented artist he is.
It was a real challenge to take good pictures at Upfest this year, because of the very changeable weather conditions, and these pictures just don’t do justice to the amazing contrasts between the black background, the bright green and wispy white.
This wasn’t the only Upfest piece that Sonic Oner did…he managed to find a permanent wall as well which I will feature in a future post. This really is an outstanding piece.
946. Upfest 2017 (16)
First impressions count, and when I was doing my first walk around Upfest on the Saturday, this piece leapt out at me and grabbed my attention. Although I tend to have many favourites much of the time, I think I would have to say that this was the outstanding piece for me at Upfest 2017.
This friendly monster is by Bisser, a 27 year old Belgian artist and according to his Upfest biography notes ‘he’s influenced by graffiti, street art, muralism, cartoons and comics. His visual style is figurative and is very recognisable’.
The first thought I had when I saw this monster was of the book ‘Where the Wild Things Are’, by Maurice Sendak. So much expression, a simple idea beautifully executed. This piece deserves a permanent wall. Maybe if he comes to Upfest again he’ll get one – he certainly ought to on the back of this.
I chatted for a while with Bisser, and he is such a decent unassuming, modest fellow. He told me that his name in Flemish (I think that’s what he said) means ‘taken twice’ in relation to exams/college work – I think the equivalent in English would be ‘retake’. He adopted the name because he had to do his art exams a second time after first failing them. I like it that he has found strength and even a moniker from facing up to challenges. My favourite piece at Upfest.
945. Stokes Croft, the Carriageworks (27)
The work of Face F1st continues to develop and improve. Recently he has moved much more into pastel shades for much of his work, which gives his pieces an unassuming quality. They blend in more with the walls with modesty.
944. The Bearpit (82)
I am always struck by the work of Sirens. He seems to create stark images in which he contrasts the beauty of the world with utilitarianism. Rural versus urban. Or at least this is how his pieces come across to me.
In this one he gives us a gorgeous sunrise appearing over Aylesbury estate, where, reading from his Instagram feed, it would appear Sirens comes from. I keep bumping into Sirens when I go for my lunchtime walks. We always stop for a quick catch up, and every time it is a pleasure. He is unconventional in his approach to street art, and his work is all the better for it. I Love this piece.
943. Charles Street (2)
Some of the artists who came to Upfest made the most of their time in Bristol to decorate other areas of town, such as Stokes Croft. D7606 returned to ‘his spot’ as he described it, next to an Aspire robin. I think this must be the third or fourth telephone box that D7606 has pasted up here. This time with Debbie Harry ‘hanging on the telephone’.
I like to see his work in Bristol, as I don’t get to London much these days. A couple of the previous wheatpastes are shown below.
Truth and reconciliation
Soon the storm will pass
and the blue skies will return
then we will have peace.
by Scooj
942. Dean Lane skate park (71)
This is a very quick one from Si2, who also paints as Hull Graffiti. He was in Bristol for Upfest, and had a troubled time spraying the railway carriage down at Ashton Gate – the weather was not kind. Indeed I never got to see the final piece, but will post what I did get in good time.
Here he got some kicks by spraying a devilish head, and leaving a little Upfest souvenir. Thank you Si2. Pity it had been a bit dogged by the time I got to it.
941. Upfest 2017 (15)
Oze Arv was a very busy man during his short stay in Bristol for Upfest. This Portuguese artist from Lisbon uses patterns to mix expression and graphics. His style is instantly recognisable, as you will see as I post all of the work he left behind for Bristolians.
This is a lovely shutter piece on North Street, one of two ‘official’ pieces he sprayed for Upfest. Shutters are always hard, but he has been smart with this one, laying down a white background, which lifts the whole piece really well. I think most of his work tends to include the natural world.
I like the combination of the abstract and natural, I think it works well. I caught up with him for a few minutes, and he seemed like a really nice guy, happy to chat about his work. Lots more to come.
Natural adventures 