Tag: Cartoon

1884. The Bearpit (169)

Even though it is becoming more difficult to find clean walls to work on in The Bearpit, and the Council are taking more of an interest in artistic activities, some of Bristol’s finest are still able to make their mark. This is a fine piece by Nevla.

Nevla, The Bearpit, Bristol, November 2018
Nevla, The Bearpit, Bristol, November 2018

What makes this quite unusual for a Nevla piece is the inclusion of colour. Most of the work I have seen before has been two or three colours only. I don’t know if this is a budget driven thing or a fast getaway thing, but this time he seems to have branched out a little. His cartoon style continues to keep up a happy and light-hearted perspective in this little corner of Bristol.

1847. Upfest 2018 (88)

Shade One is a Bristol artist who has been spraying since 1985, so can probably be considered as one of the godfathers of street art in the city. Having said that, I am relatively new to the street art scene here and anything older than about five years is a bit of a murky area and I need to do extra research.

Shade One, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Shade One, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

This is a striking cartoonesque portrait that for me has Disney written all over it. Something about it reminds me a little of Cruella de Vil. Fabulous crisp lines and solid fills, this is the work of an expert.

 

 

1833. West Street (4)

Another fabulous Halloween treat, this time from Kin Dose just a stone’s throw away from Dean Lane skate park, where I left Rusk who had tipped me off about this fresh piece.

Kin Dose, West Street, Bristol, October 2018
Kin Dose, West Street, Bristol, October 2018

I have seen better pictures of this wall from people who were lucky enough to be here when the sun wasn’t casting shadows all over the place. I seem to be making lots of excuses about poor quality pictures at the moment, but I have to take the shots when I can as I never know when I am going to be back, and tagging and turnover are the enemies of archivists.

Kin Dose, West Street, Bristol, October 2018
Kin Dose, West Street, Bristol, October 2018

Kin Dose is an extraordinarily talented artist whose work is always of the highest standard. He doesn’t do an awful lot of street work, but whenever he does it is always beautifully executed. Comfortable with stencils as well as free hand work he really sets a very high bar.

Kin Dose, West Street, Bristol, October 2018
Kin Dose, West Street, Bristol, October 2018

This piece faithfully reproduces characters from Tim Burton’s ‘A Nightmare Before Christmas’. It is so crisp and clean and although in partial shade I felt lucky to see it in its first full day of being on this wall. A real beauty.

1832. Dean Lane skate park (173)

I got really lucky just before Halloween when I took my lunchtime constitutional down to Dean Lane. I always expect to see something new and occasionally expect to see an artist at work, but when that artist is Rusk it is a real treat and make no mistake.

Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2018
Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2018

Halloween I have observed is a time when street artists seem to enjoy hitting the streets and stretching their repertoire with a seasonal theme, which is always fun for people like me. This witty piece conflates Rusk with Count Duckula, the vegetarian duck vampire…who ever dreamed up that cartoon series?

Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2018
Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2018

Rusk always has time for a chat, and as he does so he makes fine adjustments to his work, always seeking perfection. Much of what I have learned about the Bristol street art scene and culture I have gathered from our conversations. I love the way he works so hard to get his pieces just right. It is a privilege to see him painting.

Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2018
Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2018

Unfortunately light conditions were a bit tricky – that autumnal sunshine is a real bugger, but at least I got some shots of the piece before it got tagged the following day. The day carried on being amazing with the arrival of Jee See just as Rusk was finishing off. My lunch break took a little longer than expected!

1823. M32 roundabout J3 (100)

The nice thing about going through archives is finding little gems, like this one from Nevla. As well as his cartoon characters, what I like about Nevla’s work is his messages which are almost always positive as in this piece ‘fun, not anger’.

Nevla, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2018
Nevla, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2018

In a troubled world it is all too easy to snipe from the sidelines or always take a cynical slant on things, but every now and again it is great to come up for air and see the good in things and be positive. Nevla has a lot of what I could do with!

Incidentally I cannot recommend the book ‘Coming up for Air’ by George Orwell highly enough. My stepfather suggested I read it (and a whole bunch of other books) a few years ago. A great book and not one you hear much about.

1806. Hepburn Road (8)

In the little lane that used to be the drug dealing centre of Bristol until a police clampdown some eighteen months ago is this little door and on it a small piece from Nevla. I’ve not seen any of his work for a while now, so it was good to come across this recently.

Nevla, Hepburn Road, Bristol, October 2018
Nevla, Hepburn Road, Bristol, October 2018

I am a big fan of his cartoon characters, nearly always in black and white and set on a solid colour background. There is a simplicity about the pieces and usually a little bit of cheeky humour about them. If you look carefully, you can see another face by Nevla just to the left of the door.

1804. New Stadium Road (9)

Top Cat, the most effectual Top Cat…

One of the most enjoyable cartoons of my youth was Top Cat, and seeing this piece by Deamze sent me into a long and deep reminiscence, which culminated in watching quite a bit of Top Cat on the Interweb. I was saddened to see the updated productions, which really weren’t a patch on the originals.

Deamze, New Stadium Road, Bristol, October 2018
Deamze, New Stadium Road, Bristol, October 2018

The chrome sets this piece off really well and the dustbin looks perfect, especially in this rather grubby setting. Deamze’s writing is in his really tight angular style, bookended by the bin and TC himself.

Deamze, New Stadium Road, Bristol, October 2018
Deamze, New Stadium Road, Bristol, October 2018

The character is nicely sprayed, as you would expect, but is difficult to capture on film due to the glare glancing into the tunnel. The pieces in here are always hard to photograph. I guess it is best to come here on an overcast early evening. Great nostalgic piece from Deamze.

1761. Upfest 2018 (55)

At last year’s Upfest, one of the most distinct cartoon pieces was by the brilliant Kid30, and this year he has followed up with this rather gory, but equally excellent piece. His work is so very crisp and clean and the shadows work well to lift the characters up from the background.

Kid 30, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Kid 30, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

I think Kid30 has a bit of a thing for stitching, and his characters and often stitched in a bit of as Frankenstein monster way. I guess it is probably better not to delve too deeply into the artist’s mind to understand what is underlying here, rather just to sit back and admire his talent.

Kid 30, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Kid 30, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

The speech bubble is rather fun too, which brings me to a question which is why is it always blah, blah, blah and not Blah or Blah, Blah or even blah, blah, blah blah? The symmetry of three.

Kid 30, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Kid 30, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

1748. M32 Spot (27)

I have been prompted to publish these wonderful cartoon faces by Zake from my archive because I am aware that he has done some more recently. I was hoping that I could find out a little bit more about the artist in the meantime, but all my searches have been fruitless.

Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2018
Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2018

Zake’s faces are wonderfully expressive and in terms of their size and format seem to work very well within the rather tight constraints of the columns under the M32.

Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2018
Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2018

Another characteristic of Zake’s work is the selection of brown colours for the faces, which seems to provide a good contrasting base for the features. I love this man with the pens in his shirt pocket. These are great small pieces, and it would be good to see where Zake takes this work.

Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2018
Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2018

1745. Brunel Way Bridge (9)

It has been a long while since I last posted a piece by the extraordinarily talented Sled One, so it was great to come across this piece in the Cumberland Basin a week or so back. The wall itself is always tricky to photograph because there is a lot of glare that streams across it – this may be an artifact of the time of day I usually visit this wall.

Sled One, Brunel Way Bridge, Bristol, September 2018
Sled One, Brunel Way Bridge, Bristol, September 2018

I will not pretend that I have anything other than utmost admiration for the work of Sled One – his fantastical creations are the stuff of cartoons and surrealism combined. Add to that potent mix a technical gift and you have some of the best artwork being produced in Bristol at this moment in time.

Sled One, Brunel Way Bridge, Bristol, September 2018
Sled One, Brunel Way Bridge, Bristol, September 2018

Earlier in the year I met Sled One a couple of times, and it turns out he lives on my road (although I think he travels around a lot too, originally coming from York (I think)). On his Instagram account he labels this piece as a self-portrait. I guess he is fond of Nike shoes! He says it started as an ASK (the crew he belongs to) piece, but that it ended up elsewhere. I can’t read ASK concealed anywhere in the illustration. Fabulous work.