A gallery of sensational carnival pieces and other great work from Bristol street artist Rosalita.
All photographs by Scooj
Rosalita
Tag: Carnival
3562. Star and Garter (7)
A really unusual, and if I might say slightly scary, portrait piece from Rosalita Raw on the side wall of the Star and Garter in St Paul’s. Why is it that carnival imagery, which is supposed to be bright, happy and entertaining so easily drifts into the dark and edgy?
Rosalita has had an exceptional six months or so, and I am loving every second of this upsurge in activity from her. This piece is really nicely worked, and shares some similarities with Pekoe’s style although a little bit more detailed in the facial features. Who is she winking at? Is it a knowing wink or an affectionate wink? Unusual and compelling.
3538. Lower Ashley Road (5)
Rosalita is an artist who seems to have burst into life since November last year, and although I had seen a few of her pieces before then, she has jumped into another league of productivity. This is a great thing to see, because her work is exciting, imaginative, vibrant and thoughtful and adds another dimension to the Bristol street art scene.
This quick piece on the hoardings of Lower Ashley Road didn’t last long, so I am really pleased I made the effort to photograph it. Rosalita has painted an acrobatic figure, perhaps a carnival entertainer (she does like her carnivals), in a striped red and white costume (the best colours). There is a whole ton of movement in the piece and the body form is perfectly proportioned. I still have a couple more pieces from Rosalita to post and am hoping that this purple patch continues.
3400. M32 Spot (97)
Rosalita has been smashing it out of the park lately and this new column piece under the M32 is just the latest in a string of fine works she has created in the area. From what I have seen, Rosalita is particularly fond of painting carnival faces which she does on walls but also with the application of makeup on people, which she has a talent for.
Rosalita (who often signs her pieces RAW, has nothing to do with the Bristol-based crew Read and Weep, and that the use of the same initials is entirely coincidental) has used the column space perfectly and flooded it with colour and drama. The piece is a little unsettling, with the orange eyes dripping onto the cheeks. Great to see more from Rosalita. Keep it up!
2960. Wilder Street (40)
Ah what joy, a fabulous new piece from Hazard in the middle of St Paul’s. I understand the piece has been painted in lieu of the St Paul’s carnival, which of course won’t be happening this year.
Hazard has painted a stylish and colourful face with an incredibly ornate headdress loaded up with feathers and flowers. It is a really stunning piece and sits right up there with some of her very best work.
I sometimes have to pinch myself when I see her work here in her home town, we are truly blessed and privileged to see her pieces around us and in our manor. I suspect that unlike much of her work, this one will be around for a long while. An outstanding beauty from Hazard.
2334. Wilder Street (35)
Painted for the St Paul’s carnival, this is a wonderful collaboration by Decay and Pekoe. Of course the colour scheme of red, gold and green is wholly commensurate with the colours of the festival, the colours of the Rastafarian movement.
On the left is another stunning Decay piece in his full writing form, see previous post. There is such confidence now in this form which contains some regular features, such as the ‘rays’ in the top half of his letters, and of course his character, Chuck, as the letter ‘e’.
On the right is a joyful collection of faces, representing the local community looking on in wonder. I do think that Pekoe’s naive style captures the expression and mood of people in a way that is uncomplicated and unpretentious. I love her work.
Altogether, this is a fabulous and time -appropriate collaboration. Great to see these two working together.
1855. Brighton Street (1)
I have known about this wonderful piece by Decay for quite some time, but just haven’t had the time to get to this part of St Pauls until very recently. The abstract work was painted to mark the St Pauls carnival and Decay has exchanged his usual greys, blacks and reds for the Rastafarian colours of red, gold and green.
I feel like I have had slight withdrawal symptoms from having seen so little of Decay’s work since Upfest, so finding this was just what the doctor ordered. His abstract formation, or variations of it, are always pleasing to the eye and so distinctive that no signature is required. Nobody else does anything like this.
246. Wilder Street (4)
There was one final gift for Bristolians that Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky (Clandestinos) left behind on their recent trip to Bristol…this brilliantly colourful masked face. This was another surprise for me in Wilder Street, an area which is now firmly on my routine street art patrols.
There is something of acarnival feel to this piece, and it has an unmistakably South American touch.
I still feel privileged that Clandestinos came to Bristol and left these remarkable pieces, however the story is not all good I’m afraid. The piece I wrote about by Shalak Attack in Stokes Croft has been tagged with a rather poor ‘throw up’.
The great piece next to it by SPZero76 and Mr Wigz has similarly been defaced. For less than a week, all five arches of the Carriageworks had clean untagged pieces in them…a first since I have been writing these posts. No longer. It is the nature of the beast I’m afraid, but disappointing nonetheless.
92. Little Bishop Street
Since I’m on a bit of a Silent Hobo run at the moment, I thought I’d post one of his works which can be found in the heart of St Pauls, and celebrates the St Pauls Carnival.
Even in a contemporary setting his pieces have an element of mysticism about them.
8/10
