A gallery of creative writing from Spanish graffiti artist, Varo.
Instagram: @varo_conspiracy
All Photographs by Scooj
Varo
Tag: Bull
6064. Montpelier Park
Now this is a rare thing indeed, a piece by DNT, an artist who hasn’t painted too much in Bristol over the last few years, but who at one time was one of the central artists painting in the Stokes Croft area of the city. His unusual and creative pieces have always been on the margins of the mainstream art we see so much of here.
This piece was painted alongside Klashwhensober recently, and is most welcome. The character is a bull, smoking a rather large joint, reminding me a little of the ‘Camberwell carrot’ from the outstanding film ‘Withnail and I’. There is detail and accuracy in the piece that gives away his skills and experience as an established artist. I sincerely hope that this might be a renaissance from one of my favourite artists. You can see more of his work in this gallery.
4957. Devon Road (18)
I don’t venture to Devon Road very often, but the irregular visits I make are pretty much always worth it. On my most recent visit, I found this interesting design piece by Rozalita (Rhozi). The black and white bull’s head on a red background has a bilateral symmetry, and more than just a passing resemblance to the Pizza Express logo (without the horns and ears).
Unfortunately, it was raining when I took the pictures and I hadn’t noticed a raindrop on my lens until I was saving the photographs onto my computer – it is an occupational hazard, but one I should be more careful with. I think I might just about have got away with it. The character above the bull’s head is the chinese character for bull, and is used in the Chinese zodiac, which is what this piece is about I am guessing. Lovely work and something a little different from Rozalita.
4293. Dean Lane skate park (472)
For a little while Varo was a quite quiet, but over the winter and into spring he has become very busy indeed, often pairing up with compatriot and painting friend Zake. It seems that everywhere I go at the moment, I see a new throw up or bull head, but with this piece down in the skate park, he has really raised the bar, in my view.
There are actually two Varo pieces on view here, the upper one has been there for a while and is a classic piece of Varo writing, but the new piece below it is a beauty. A clever symmetrical design spelling VARO, with the vague appearance of a bull with horns and a little halo. The colour blending has worked really well between the pink and peachy colours, and the whole thing has a sumptuous deep 3D shadow in red. A fine offering from Varo.
3255. Leonard Lane (27)
Varo has really hit on something that totally chimes with me – painting the same basic mega-tag of a bull in a variety of forms in different places. A simple idea that lends itself to the conditions of the spot chosen to paint and the amount of time available. To take this approach one step higher would be to paint them in the style of different artists, for example David Hockney, Matisse or Dali. That could be a lot of fun.
This particular bull, tucked away in a doorway in Leonard Lane is the full beast, including a tail rather than just the head, which we are more used to seeing. This is quite a raw piece, but is of interest because one knows that the artist is capable of doing much tighter work when the environment permits. A decent throw up.
3194. Brunel Way bridge (55)
I am really enjoying the stylistic variations of Varo’s bull at the moment. He is an artist who has emerged on the Bristol scene over the last couple of years, and his mega-tags are becoming more sophisticated and experimental with each outing.
This bull is part of a larger collaborative spread with other artists including Kool Hand and Daz Cat (to follow). This time the bull’s head is in profile rather than face on and has a rather cheeky grin. I think that Varo is on to a great theme here, painting the same subject in a variety of styles… endless material and interest value. I can’t wait to see more.
3172. Purdown HAA Battery (11)
It’s that man again Varo with his recognisable mega-tag of a bull’s head, no doubt inspired by his Spanish heritage. This piece is a variation on his throw-up version and is rather an attractive looking beast with a rather foppish haircut.
There is something of Picasso in this piece, deliberate or otherwise and although it is nothing like it, it reminds me of Guernica, or his bull’s head sculpture made from a bicycle seat and handlebars. I like the cheeky boldness of the piece. Great fun.
3135. M32 roundabout J3 (249)
Varo is a really interesting artist whose work is most recognised for the large and dominant bull super-tag that he paints around the place, but this somewhat betrays his talent as a great writer. This colourful piece appeared on the M32 roundabout a week or two back and shows off Varo’s talent.
The left hand side is a beautiful piece of writing, spelling out the name VARO, with a quite unique 3D shading that gives the whole thing a sense of movement and energy. On the right is a fabulous 3D rendering of his bull tag which has something of the exotic about it – maybe something to do with its Spanish creator. A wonderful And energising piece.
3045. Cattle Market Road (4)
There aren’t really the words to describe how good this bull piece by The Hass is. The trip down to Cattle Market Road would be worth it for this piece alone. The bull, so the story goes, escaped from the cattle market (we are talking some years ago) and terrorised the locals until it was captured.
The Hass coordinated the gathering of five artists to decorate the hoarding around the development site at the back of Temple Meads station, and I have to say the collection is one of the highlights of the year so far, and this piece is the highlight of the highlights.
The composition and colours are utterly stunning and contrast so amazingly with the blue sky and piles of rubble behind the hoarding. I think that the buildings represent the old Post Office sorting office that was knocked down to create this brownfield development opportunity. The bull looks a little bit more like a Spanish bull rather than a British one, but I’ll forgive The Hass for that.
I don’t want to go overboard on a description, but rather just leave you to enjoy and study the piece for yourself. Magnificent.
396. Moon Street (10)
There are not enough great words to describe the work of Sled One. He is one of the most talented graffiti/street artists in Bristol, whether it is wildstyle writing or freestyled scenes like this one, he is without doubt a master of his craft.
This is a crazy and fun picture, and as with most of his creative scenes, there is surely a story going on here. I don’t know what the story is, but it incorporates a bull in a camper van and some other weird stuff going on. There are some similarities to the work of 3Dom, in that they both can create these dream-like landscapes and stories.
This piece needs looking at to enjoy it, and I looked and I enjoyed. Spend a while seeing all the little details and see if you can figure it out. Another triumph from the awesome Sled One.
Natural adventures 