Tag: Caravan

6143. St Werburghs

Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2024
Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2024

Most of the photographs that appear on Natural Adventures are taken while I am out walking the long-suffering dog. Just occasionally, when he is in one of his more stubborn moods, he drags me in a different direction to my well trodden beat, and on this occasion he discovered this Zake piece on the side of a caravan in St Werburghs.

Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2024
Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2024

I have no idea how old the piece is, but it looks like some of Zake’s older work. Three wonderful cartoon-style face characters are bobbing on a splashy sea, or that is how it looks to me. His work is centred around light and shade and reflection, and it is brilliant to see how the blue of the water is reflected on the underside of the faces. A nice discovery by Rover.

3635. Brunel Way (97)

And they just keep coming. Rosalita (Raw) has been smashing it all over Bristol during the last six months and if I am honest, I couldn’t be happier about it. There is something about her work that feels very honest, at times brutal but so very full of soul. The subjects and the rich colours she uses are quite unusual in the street art world and her work stands out because of it.

Rosalita, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021
Rosalita, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021

This piece, at the end of the Brunel Way concrete support depicts a lady carrying a heavy load, in fact a caravan, on her back, looking like a Sherpa Porter. Entitled “if this is my home, where do I go?” This is a powerful piece on the subject of right to roam. So good.

3145. M32 roundabout J3 (251)

If you can’t find a wall to paint, then you just have to get creative and find something else. In Bristol there are many people who live in vans and caravans and park up in quiet side streets. For some this is a lifestyle choice, for others it is borne out of necessity. Many occupants are open to having their homes decorated, and these guys got a fabulous makeover from Face 1st.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2020
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2020

I understand that Face 1st has fun painting this and got on well with the occupants of the caravan. The piece itself is colourful and happy and in the style of a girl’s face with hair spelling out FACE, which is one of his regular compositions. I like this for so many reasons.

2773. St Werburghs tunnel (147)

Just outside St Werburghs tunnel there are several caravans and mobile homes, which give the area something of a distinctive character. It seems to be a situation that the local residents, council and police put up with, although one never knows how long patience will last. Several of the vehicles get little make-overs every now and again, and this little caravan has been decorated by Minto.

Minto, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2020
Minto, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2020

This is a particularly nice caravan pieve, as sometimes they can look a little perfunctory or rushed, but not this one, it is a beauty. I haven’t seen too much of Minto’s work, which I guess is because although he lived in Bristol for a while, he now lives in London and I imagine only visits from time to time. Great to have this mobile piece though.

1527. M32 roundabout J3 (85)

Adjacent to the M32 roundabout is a little side road where I like to park when I photograph street art in the area. There are always one or two caravans parked up here too, generally occupied by homeless people. Actually this is becoming quite a big issue in Bristol at the moment, as there are an awful lot of these old caravans appearing all over the city being used as temporary homes. The homeless suituation in the UK is reaching crisis point and austerity continues to hit the marginalised hardest.

Ryder and T-Rex, M32, Bristol, May 2018
Ryder and T-Rex, M32, Bristol, May 2018

On the upside, the caravans are used as canvases for many of the street artists as the ‘owners’ really don’t seem to mind the decoration. On this one we have a rather nice quick collaboration from T-Rex and Ryder. There is real movement in that dinosaur.

252. No fixed abode (1)

I caught sight of this caravan across the M32 while out for a walk last week. It had all the hallmarks of a work by Aspire, but it wasn’t until I downloaded the pictures onto my PC that I was able to see the signature.

Aspire, Caravan M32, Bristol, May 2016
Aspire, Caravan M32, Bristol, May 2016

When I see a piece like this, which I might add is another beauty, I am left with so many questions. Who lives in the caravan? How does Aspire know them? Was it a commission? and so on. This is an unusual and distinctive piece.

Aspire, Caravan M32, Bristol, May 2016
Aspire, Caravan M32, Bristol, May 2016