Today is the first day of our skiing holiday, and it is going to be a bit of a challenge to write posts this week. Forgive me if they end up being a little brief. I have found a quiet moment before we have got going this morning to post this rather lovely piece of writing from Lewse.
Lewse, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2023
There is no question about it, Lewse is utterly underrepresented in Natural Adventures. Her accomplished pieces, sometimes accompanied by characters, appear reasonably frequently, but a special feature of her work is its longevity, with many pieces lasting a year or more. This is a perfect example of her work, with a Pink Panther character and some beautifully filled letters, along with a superb blue patterned background. A fabulous piece of graffiti writing.
I am rather fond of Jevoissoul’s work. It doesn’t have the sharpness or precision of writers like Dibz or Smak, nor does it create extraordinary characters in the way that Sled One or 3Dom can, for example, but it has a charm and authenticity that underpins the vast spectrum of art and graffiti that we see in Bristol. On such solid foundations great things are built.
Jevoissoul, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2023
Jevoissoul has painted two of his characters with ‘Popeye’ smiles. The fills and shading is basic and effective, creating some contrast and depth in its simplest form. No Jevoissoul piece is complete without the word ‘slow’ in attendance, although I don’t know why he writes it, nor why it is pointed at the character on the left. One for the next conversation I have with the artist.
Dibz, Shade One and Rusk, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2023
This is one of the last pieces I photographed in 2023, and what a belter of a collaboration it is, bringing together the outstanding skills of Dibz, Shade One and Rusk. As always, the light under Brunel Way rarely allows photographs to do the street/grafitti art pieces justice, but I think that it is possible to see what a classy collaboration this one is.
Dibz, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2023
On the left is some superb writing from Dibz, which is a tribute piece to a supporter of his work, ‘Marie’. What this piece of graffiti writing shows is that you can give Dibz any number or combination of letters, and he will be able to create something beautiful with them. The pink and black drop shadow against the gold letters works so very well.
Shade One, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2023
Shade One’s work is really something special, and this portrait piece of a young person wearing a hoodie and baseball cap set against the moon and silhouetted buildings, is exceptional. The portrait is painted in greyscale, and although there is a lack of colour, it doesn’t matter one jot, because the shade and shadows provide perfect depth and texture. A very fine piece indeed.
Rusk, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2023
On the right, Rusk, who is often found painting alongside Shade One, has created some gorgeous letters spelling RUSK, reflecting the gold and pink colours seen in Dibz’ piece. By using two tones of gold (bronze/brown) transitioning horizontally through the letters, it gives the illusion that the letters are a solid bar being tilted and catching the light in different ways. A tight and classy piece and collaboration.
Although Sako has only painted a handful of pieces in Bristol, they have not gone unnoticed. His colour selection alone gives his work away, often opting for a magenta character, with blues and greens augmenting his work.
Sako, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023
Originally from the Basque Country, it would seem that Sako has settled in Bristol for the last year or so. His mystical work seems to be centred around storytelling and mythology. In this piece, his female character appears to be bridging the space between the land and the sky. The urban landscape is represented with the blue circle, with a green mountain backdrop completing the scene. Although he painted this piece alone, Sako often paints alongside Zake and other PWA crew members. Great stuff, rather understated and modest. Time to hit a more prominent wall, I think.
As we approach Christmas and the end of the year, I expect my posts to get slightly shorter, possibly a little bit more reflective, and maybe even a little bit rushed. I suffer from ‘ground rush’ before breaking up for a holiday period, when a whole bunch of work needs to be tied up and out of the door in an ever-diminishing time slot. Alright, I get it, I am getting my excuses in early, and that is the way I roll.
Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023
Zake has had an extraordinary 2023, where his work has not only been more frequent, but it has blossomed, and he is pushing all of his boundaries to develop his unique portrait style. I first became aware of his work through his column pieces under the M32 in May 2018, and they have been a regular feature ever since, as you can see in this updated gallery of his work. There is lots of depth created by light and shadow in this piece, and a fair amount of expression in those wild staring eyes.
For many years, and more acutely this year, there has been a massive focus on the issue of compensation overflows in the UK. These overflows are essentially permitted activities of pumping raw sewage from water treatment plants, when heavy rainfall makes the processing of large quantities of sewage almost impossible. Some (and I include myself in this) point the finger at underinvestment in the infrastructure of water treatment plants, rather favouring healthy annual handouts to investors and shareholders.
The problem existed before the privatisation of water companies, but has been exacerbated by privatisation and a growing population and demand on the existing infrastructure, that simply isn’t up to scratch. Much easier to lean on a polluting permitted activity than to spend money fixing the problem.
Privatisation of water has, in my view, been a disaster, making a few investors, chief executives and foreign companies very wealthy indeed, but leaving the necessary investment and impact on the environment way behind. The public have had enough and are demanding that something is done about the situation. National commentary and pieces of art, like this one from John D’oh reflect this public mood.
John D’oh, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2023
In its minimalist way, this stencil by John D’oh distils the issue and makes it simple. ‘Shit doesn’t just happen (we have known about this problem for decades and done nothing about it), clean our rivers’. I have worked in the water/environmental sector my entire life, and John D’oh has nailed it. Clever placement too with the River Avon in the background. This is an understated and poignant protest piece. Bravo John D’oh.
Abbie Laura Smith, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2023
Paste ups are a much underused street art form in Bristol, which is a real pity, they just don’t seem to gain any traction here at all, so I am really pleased to see that we have a new wheatpaster in our midst. I have found a handful of paste ups by Abbie Laura Smith lately, and her black and white social commentary pieces. Her work contains tidy artwork and punchy messages. To see what she has to say in this one, you need to get a closer look.
Abbie Laura Smith, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2023
The portrait of a young woman, conceals the words (profanity warning) “Fuck you, I won’t do what you tell me” in the features of her face and in her hair. There is anger and attitude in the words, and sadness in the image. This is what public street art is all about, and I love it. I am constantly on the look out for more from Abbie Laura Smith.
I am in a conference all day today, so I wrote this one last night, not that it makes any difference to anything at all. As reported several times before on Natural Adventures, Dibz and Fade have been unstoppable this year, painting some incredible pieces week in, week out. This beauty was on the long wall under Brunel Way.
Fade, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2023
As with many of their recent collaborations, it can be difficult to know where the individual work ends and the combined work begins, but broadly speaking the writing on the left is by Fade, and under his tight writing he has the words ‘From up above’.
Fade and Dibz, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2023
The central character looks like something out of a Marvel or DC comic, but I am not sure that I can spend hours trying to find out who, although a quick Google search has led me to the door of Dark Phoenix from X-Men. Beautifully painted… these guys really are good. The banner spells out Tru Headz Kru (THK), which I assume is the two collaborating artists.
Dibz, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2023
To the right, Dibz gives us another of his flawless pieces of graffiti writing, looking stunning in shades of green with a purple drop shadow. I can see several possible words in the letters, but most likely is DIBZ, although I can also see DARK, which would cross-reference nicely with the character. Still more to post from these two!
Mr Draws has been working really hard to push the boundaries of his work and producing more of these art pieces alongside his familiar writing. This Pumpkin piece was painted recently to celebrate Halloween, and captures the atmosphere of the festival perfectly. Mr Draws does like to celebrate festival dates, such as Halloween and Christmas.
Mr Draws, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2023
This newish technique or presentation style by Mr Draws creates an atmospheric background as a ‘canvas’ for his subject, in this case the pumpkin. It is effective and fits Mr Draws’ rather unconventional style perfectly. I am led to believe that we can expect many more pieces like this by Mr Draws in the future.
Daz Cat painted this wonderful piece during a paint jam some while ago, which was themed along the lines of a dystopian future. I ought really to have written up the whole collaboration in one post, but felt that each element was worthy of its own write-up.
Daz Cat, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2023
I am not quite sure what the creature in the piece is meant to be, but I think that is in part the point. A goat? A cat? Whatever it is, it is well armed with some kind of futuristic ray gun. The background scene is suitably gloomy, and the ground appears to be composed of toes, eyes and teeth. All a bit weird. Something a little different from Daz Cat.
Natural adventures 