With each new piece from Avem808 there is a greater level of complexity and ever expanding stories. This is an elaborate combination piece, with a whole lot of action going on.
Avem808, River Avon, Bristol, August 2026
To the left, there is a car and a mash up dog, or so it looks to me, with lots of action and merging of ideas. To the right, a very fancy piece of writing with a deep drop shadow, which I am assuming spells out AVEM, but could be anything really. This is a piece that demonstrates what can happen when the imagination runs wild.
Graff Matt, Upfest 2026, West Street, Bristol, August 2026
This is an astonishing dream-like fantasy piece painted at Upfest 2026 by Graff Matt. I am not sure I know much about the artist, but I can only marvel at his work, which taps directly into the creative mind of a child.
Graff Matt, Upfest 2026, West Street, Bristol, August 2026
The imaginative and perfectly painted piece depicts a bashed up Mini car with a wooden shack on top, with wings and a wind turbine giving the whole structure the gift of flight. A little boy sits at the top of the flying machine. Simply brilliant.
Graff Matt, Upfest 2026, West Street, Bristol, August 2026
Another work trip, another town to explore. This time I was on a team trip to plant some trees in the Derbyshire Dales for an EU LIFE project called LIFE in the Ravines. Our team work in government nature communications, and this was a chance for us to ‘get our hands dirty’ on the kind of work we talk about and promote all the time, but less frequently get to experience.
What this meant was that I had to stay overnight before the morning of our tree planting, which gave me the perfect opportunity to explore Buxton (the spring water place) a town I had never been to, and spend the early morning snapping a few doors.
This first set of doors from Buxton is not what I was expecting to find, but my visit just happened to coincide with a classic car auction near the botanical hot house, and the opportunity to photograph some car doors was simply too good to resist. I am not really a car person, for me they are a way of getting from A to B, so my labelling these cars might be way off the mark, and I would be happy for any car buffs to put me straight. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did:
Jeep with no door, (is a bonnet a door?), Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
What car is this with the nice red door? (E type Jag?), Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
Convertible Volkswagen beetle with roof ‘door’, Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
Green door, green classic car, Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
Door of a boxy classic car (MG?), Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
Four door classic car with lovely curves, Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
Four door Jaguar, Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
This has to be some kind of Citroen van with rear doors (unseen), Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
A rather attractive four door family car (Austin?), Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
Vintage two door, four seat car, Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
Two-seater vintage car with an extra door on the toolbox, Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
A classic Landrover with classic Landrover doors. At 16 I was taught to drive on one of these by my 14-year old cousin on my uncle’s farm in Cornwall, Buxton, Derbyshire, April 2024
I expect that is enough cars for now. I am on holiday next week, but will try to post something if I get time. If not I’ll see you in two weeks. Have a great weekend.
If you have made it this far, you probably like doors, and you really ought to take a look at the No Facilities blog by Dan Anton who has taken over the hosting of Thursday Doors from Norm 2.0 blog. Links to more doorscursions can be found in the comments section of Dan Anton’s Thursday Doors post.
The sun wasn’t being kind when I took these pictures of Mind 49’s wonderful car piece recently, and these photographs really don’t do justice to the vibrant green paint used for the car. This amazing piece I find a little paradoxical, but I have got my head around it. There are elements that are a little ‘off’, for example the tyres are a little out of shape, and yet the reflections in the glass and panels of the car are nothing short of brilliant. The windows in particular give the impression that the car has been parked under some trees. An amazing effect.
Mind 49, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023
Sitting over the car is a huge number 49, a number that plays a significant part in Mind 49’s life, having changed his moniker from Mind Control a year or two back. If you look carefully, he has also written the letters MIND in tiny little letters over the side of the car. This piece is a real treat and one of my favourite of the year so far. Note to self: isn’t it about time we had a Mind gallery?
When they were toddlers, there is no doubt that the favourite toy that got the most play time was the buggy cozy coupé car thing, and this fabulous piece by Daz Cat brought a massive smile to my face, remembering those fun and uncomplicated days.
Daz Cat, Purdown Battery, Bristol, September 2021
Daz Cat has recently taken his work to a new level, creating more than a simple posed character, but instead a character in a scene that tells a whole story. Sophistication and detail have improved his already excellent work and I, for one, am thoroughly enjoying his expansion. It is always a treat to find his work.
