Tag: Cartoon

2359. Leake Street tunnel, London (6)

Every now and again I have to go to London for work, and a few days ago I ran a workshop in Lambeth. Although going to London can be a real drag, on this occasion I was only a fifteen minute walk from Waterloo Station and Leake Street, which made the whole trip worth it and some. So after the workshop was over, I pootled over to the tunnel and managed to get a few nice pics.

Ebee, Leake Street, London, July 2019
Ebee, Leake Street, London, July 2019

This is a beautiful piece by Ebee, whose name is spelled out on the building blocks, and the character is none other than the amazing Vanellope von Schweetz from the animation Wreck it Ralph 2. Unfortunately the piece is a bit tagged, which is the case with many of the superb murals in Leake Street tunnel, but it goes with the territory I guess. More Leake Street magic to come.

2286. M32 Cycle path (29)

This piece fills me with inspiration and belief, and there is a very good reason for that, it was painted by a street art hunter just like me, and better still, I caught him at it. Some readers will know that I am trying to learn the great art of spray painting and have aspirations to paint a wall or two when I am ready. It is great for me to know that it can be done and this piece by DFC1848 proves it.

DFC1848, M32 cycle path, Bristol, June 2019
DFC1848, M32 cycle path, Bristol, June 2019

I have met DFC1848 several times either at Upfest or just wandering arount the street art hotspots in Bristol. We always stop for a chat, but the chat we had when he was painting this lasted a little longer than usual. I am full of admiration for the fact that he has just got on with it and it fills me with courage and purpose for getting my act together.

DFC1848, M32 cycle path, Bristol, June 2019
DFC1848, M32 cycle path, Bristol, June 2019

I don’t know what his character is called, but it is a rather splendid cartoon-style bear thing. I rather like the ‘f’ too and wonder if it has anything to do with the f in DFC. I might try and copy this on my boards in the garden and see if I can replicate it. Great work from a man with a fantastic beard.

2282. The Bearpit (183)

In recent days, The Bearpit has been shut off and there is no access. Bristol City Council stealthily went in to evict a group of rough sleepers who had made themselves at home in a bus (formerly a cafe) and some container units. In forcing the eviction they have completely closed down the space. This was an not an inevitable conclusion to the problems caused by homelessness, addiction, antisocial behaviour in The Bearpit but  a terrible failure in ‘upstream’ thinking about how to tackle the issue.

As a result of this intervention, all the good things about this public space have been closed down, possibly permanently. In my view this has been really poorly managed by Bristol City Council, but I would concede that they are grossly underfunded and what we are witnessing is the result of years of austerity and public sector funding cuts, and this in one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Disgraceful.

I say all of this because this lovely piece by Panskaribas is likely to be one of the last I will be posting from The Bearpit for some time.

Panskaribas, The Bearpit, Bristol, June 2019
Panskaribas, The Bearpit, Bristol, June 2019

Panskaribas is probably the easiest artist to identify in Bristol on account of his kind of cubist-doodle style and this is a wonderful example of his work. The other outstanding thing about this artist is his incredible energy, he seems to be the most prolific artist in Bristol currently. RIP The Bearpit.

2233. The Bearpit (182)

Always lighthearted, the work of Nevla is instantly recognisable by his cartoon style and minimal use of colours. Often although not always, his pieces are on the small side and generally speaking are simply sprayed ove other stuff, a bit like a throw up really. To give the piece a bit of defiition he goes round the whole thing with a thick colour line, in this example it is a blue line.

Nevla, The Bearpit, Bristol, May 2019
Nevla, The Bearpit, Bristol, May 2019

I don’t know if his caption ‘soul contact’ is a wordplay on ‘sole contact’ or not, but it kind of works. His whole style feels very free, and looks like it would be equally at home on the page of a sketch pad as it is on The Bearpit wall. Great to see that some artists are still painting this spot, in spite of a council clampdown.

2107. Upfest 2018 (134)

Well here’s a whole box of fun from Boaster… a little bit too much fun perhaps. I love the style of this piece, and it reminds me a little of the imaginative creations that 3Dom produces from time to time. A wild cartoon-style reimagining of a crate.

Boaster, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Boaster, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

No stranger to Upfest, Boaster produced a posh monocle-wearing blue whale in 2017, and he obviously enjoys stretching the things we see around us and giving them new identities or personalities. A really enjoyable and humorous piece, definitely one for the quirky surrealists.

2094. The Bearpit (179)

More cubist doodling from Panskaribas in The Bearpit. In this piece we see one of his characters at a record deck on a magnificent red pink and white swirly background. I really like his work, especially as it is quite original and unlike anything else in Bristol at the moment.

Panskaribas, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2019
Panskaribas, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2019

There is a quirkiness and humour in his pieces and a kind of movement too. Because his characters are not instantly obvious, you have to work quite hard to make out the features which keeps your eyes busy dancing around the whole piece to make sense of it. Loving the work of Panskaribas.

2083. St Werburghs tunnel (68)

Well what a lovely surprise from a few days ago. I took a quick trip to St Werburghs tunnel and right next to one of the Fiva (Fiver) pieces was this fabulous Robot face by Snub23.

Snub23, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2019
Snub23, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2019

I have only known Snub23 to come to Bristol for Upfest, so it was extra special to find a piece here at this time of year. Snub23 adopts two instantly recognisable styles… this one of cartoon-style robots and sci-fi scenes and his geometric patterning which is similar to the work of Bristol’s Paul Monsters. Sometimes he combines both styles in a single piece. Brilliant to find this nice piece.

2071. St Werburghs tunnel (66)

Possibly the most distinctive style in Bristol belongs to Atchue and his ultra pink cartoon faces, such as this one from a little while back in St Werburghs tunnel. As with the work of Stupid Stupid Meathole there is something a little grotesque in these gurning characters.

Atchue, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2018
Atchue, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2018

It is impossible to ignore a piece like this and it stands out from the plethora of burners and throw-ups that adorn the walls of this tunnel. A simple idea which is nicely painted that picks you up and slaps you around the face just to make sure you are paying attention. Nice work.

 

 

2062. M32 roundabout J3 (129)

Panskaribas is my favourite ‘discovery’ so far this year, and this piece is slap bang next door to the first piece of his that I found, in fact you can just see the edge of it to the right of the picture.

Panskaribas, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2019
Panskaribas, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2019

His pieces have what I would call a sophisticated doodle style to them that feel like a mash-up between a cartoonist and a cubist… cuboonist maybe. I have absolutely no idea whatsoever is going on in this piece, but I am intrigued by the hand on the piano keyboard and by the main character’s facial features. So much more to come from Panskaribas.

2043. Upfest 2016 (161)

The big news for 2019 is that there will be no Upfest this year, the organisers have decided to have a fallow year to regroup and hit 2020 with renewed vigour. What this means is that I might be able to catch up a little on Upfest pieces passim that still need writing up. I am starting this batch of 2016 pieces with work from, I think, Douglas Trodge.

Douglas Trodge, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Douglas Trodge, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I have looked all over the Interweb, but I cannot find a Douglas Trodge, so am unable to write anything further of any use here. The two cartoon portraits are rather unusual and certainly memorable… way too good to sit in my archive forever.

Douglas Trodge, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Douglas Trodge, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I might have to do a little more research on this piece.