This charming piece by Conrico is dated 2025, which gives you some indication of how infrequently I visit this spot. Given its age, it has lasted pretty well and hasn’t been tagged at all, the main tell-tale sign of age is the rain-splattered dust kicked up along the bottom margin of the piece.
Conrico, St Mark’s Avenue, Bristol, March 2026
A delightful and optimistic cat is featured, peering over the edge of a table on which sits some Japanese sushi, a culinary theme that Conrico has used before. For anyone who has owned cats, this is a familiar scene, especially the extended claws making ready for a smash and grab manoeuvre. Superb story-telling from Conrico.
Doors 346 – Doors from the City of York, (Part VII), June 2024
Today I bring you the final selection of doors from York, which were mostly photographed in the area around Monk Bar, a gate and tower north of the city centre – the following is a synopsis of Monk Bar from the excellent Jorvik website:
Monk Bar is the tallest and most elaborately designed of York’s four Bars, standing 19.2 metres high and forming the north-east entrance to the city. Built mainly in the early 14th century, with a fourth storey added in 1484 by King Richard III, it was designed so that each of its four levels could be defended independently. It once included a barbican (demolished in 1825) and still contains the city’s only working portcullis, which was last lowered in 1953 for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
The rooms above the gateway originally provided access to murder holes used to attack enemies, but today they house the Richard III Museum. Over time the upper floors have also served as a jail and a policeman’s residence, remaining inhabited until 1914. Later alterations included the addition of side arches in 1820 and the widening of the main arch for traffic in 1861, although the narrow, low stairwell leading inside the Bar remains unchanged.
It has been fun sharing these doors from York, and I’ll be moving on to pastures new next time, enjoy!
Monk Bar, city gate, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Monk Bar, city gate, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Entrance door to the city wall, Monk Bar, city gate, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Upper door to the city wall, Monk Bar, city gate, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Well-worn stable door from the city wall, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Shop door put to good use, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Pair of white panelled doors, spot the differences, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024Door of the Black Swan pub, note the black cat above the door, York, North Yorkshire, June 2024
When walking around York, if you look up at the buildings (something I do a lot of), you’ll see a number of cats on walls or resting on ledges – this is another wonderful curiosity of the city, and there is a cat trail that you can go on to find all 51 of them. I found a few on my trip, but at the time didn’t realise it was a thing, so wasn’t really looking for them. There is one above the door in the last picture.
I now have the joyful challenge of deciding what to dig out of my archive for next time, until then, 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 weekly Thursday Doors post and his Sunday recap.
Umbral and Dai Luk, Lucky Lane, Bristol, September 2025
With the turnover of pieces being rather slow this year, I have a quick opportunity to rifle through my archive, and this is a delightful piece by Umbral and Dai Luk painted at a Bristol Mural Collective paint jam in Lucky Lane last September.
Umbral and Dai Luk, Lucky Lane, Bristol, September 2025
The slightly fierce looking stylised calico cat is notable for its long curly tail. The piece is set on a blue background with a blue pattern running behind and in front of the cat. This is what I would term a true collaboration, where both artists have combined their skills to create the single piece. The calico cat is spinning its luck, but isn’t what I’d call a calico cat – but I am splitting hairs. Great shutter collaboration.
Unlike many other artists in Bristol, Daz Cat has had quite a productive winter. This column piece under Brunel was is an absolute delight, and typical of his constantly developing and improving work.
Daz Cat, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2026
This lovely cat is wearing a white hoodie with fancy orange draw strings. There are slots for the ears, a lovely detail that demonstrates the thought that went into the piece. On the nose is a heart, which is one of several shapes that Daz Cat likes to paint; others include arrows and leafy designs. A lovely piece from one of my favourite Bristol street artists.
Wow, this is a superb on-message piece by Daz Cat painted to celebrate Tera’s birthday. As we know, Tera is rather fond of his scary horror pieces and so Daz Cat has leapt straight in there with a cat horror piece of his own.
Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2026
Daz Cat has managed to capture a menacing look in this cat portrait piece, that has a tortured face. The cat creature appears to be emerging from a flower stem, and the two orange ‘hands’ are cat-like flower heads. This is a curious and imaginative piece by Daz Cat and a thoughtful contribution to the celebratory paint jam.
One of the central tenets of graffiti art is to protest against perceived and real injustices. Walls have been used for centuries to express support for, or dissatisfaction with, those in power, and this example from Rowdy perfectly demonstrates this.
Rowdy, Stapleton Road, Bristol, January 2026
The piece demands the freeing of the Filton 24. You might ask who they are, so I recruited ChatGPT to provide a summary as follows:
The Filton 24 are a group of pro-Palestinian activists, many linked to the direct-action group Palestine Action, arrested in connection with an action at the Elbit Systems UK site in Filton, Bristol in August 2024. Elbit Systems is an Israeli-owned defence company, and the protest was intended to disrupt what activists say is the company’s role in supplying military equipment used in Israel’s operations in Gaza. During the action, protesters breached the site’s perimeter using a modified vehicle and caused damage to property and equipment.
Initially, a small number of activists were arrested at the scene, with further arrests made later through coordinated police raids, bringing the total to 24. Police used counter-terrorism powers during the investigation and detention phase, although the protesters have not been charged with terrorism offences; instead, they face charges such as aggravated burglary, criminal damage, and violent disorder. All have been remanded in custody, many for unusually long periods before trial, which has sparked controversy and criticism from civil liberties groups. Supporters argue the prolonged pre-trial detention and use of terrorism-related powers represent an excessive response to protest activity, while authorities point to the seriousness and planning involved in the action.
Rowdy has added one of his fabulous cats, as if to add some humanity to the words, which on their own are not as potent. I love it that street art and graffiti is a way that voices can be heard, whether you agree with them or not. There is something authentic and visceral about it.
Doors 338 – Doors of Marrakesh and some bonus cats, January 2025 (Part XVIII)
When I went on holiday to Marrakesh with my wife and daughter last January for a little bit of winter sun, not in my wildest dreams did I think that one of the legacies would be 18 posts of Thursday Doors. I have really enjoyed sharing this series of doors, all the while reliving moments and experiences from our trip.
This final selection is a sweep-up of the last remaining doors and, as promised in an earlier post, some cool cats of Marrakesh.
There is a large population of feral cats in Marrakesh, that although they don’t appear to belong to anyone in particular, seem to benefit from a collective responsibility of citizens to offer them food and shelter. For cat lovers, it is a joy to see these streetwise characters around every corner, in shops, markets, derelict buildings and so on, and the people of the city demonstrate a tenderness and affection in the curation of them. I hope you enjoy this final selection from Marrakesh, and thank you for sticking with it:
Souvenir doors outside a shop (it is not only us that appreciate doors!), Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Balcony with door, Derb Zaouia Lahdar, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Archways outside the Madrassa Ben Youssef, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Four doors and bollards, Rue Riad Zitoun el Jedid, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Stunning carved wooden door, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Front door to Riad Nesma, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
And now some cats:
Fluffy cat on a motorbike cover, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Two cats chilling, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Cat on the move, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Cats play hide and seek, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Sun cat, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Cats pretending not to be having a stand-off, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Perfectly framed cat, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Nonchalant cat, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025Cat and mannequin, Marrakesh, Morocco, January 2025
And that, my friends, really is it from Marrakesh… I promise. I now have the wonderful challenge of deciding which doors to share next time. Have a great Thursday and 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 weekly Thursday Doors post and his Sunday recap.
Scrapy and Daz Cat, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2026
I have said before on Natural Adventures that there are several different kinds of collaborations, ranging from light-touch painting together to hardcore total assimilation of two or more artists into a single piece. This collaboration by Scrapyardspec (who prefers to be referred to as Scrapy) and Daz Cat sits somewhere in the middle of the spectrum. Their styles are distinct, but the colour scheme is common, and the outcome is a single piece.
Scrapy and Daz Cat, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2026
The fusion, has a Scrapy character with googly eyes nestled atop a Daz Cat cat. Although the styles are so different, the collaboration works well, and from a viewers perspective it is always great to see artists adapting and working together. By the time I got to the piece, some idiot had tried to slap a poster or two over it, but these had been ripped off, leaving a bit of a mess in the middle. Nice combination.
It has been an age since I last posted anything from Turbo Island, and how nice that it should be this wonderful twin cat piece by Daz Cat. I guess that these cats are conjoined twins or in old language Siamese twins, which works quite well with the feline subjects.
Daz Cat, Turbo Island, Bristol, December 2025
This piece reminds me of another one by the artist that I posted a while back from a wall up by the Narroways nature reserve. It is obviously a theme that Daz Cat enjoys painting, and he does a pretty good job of it. One for the cat lovers.
Having seen an Instagram post by Conrico, I knew that there was some new work in the BB Gallery a week or two back, so I immediately hot-footed it over there to take a look. I was doubly rewarded, not only to find the Conrico piece (coming soon) but also to find this superb character cat by Daz Cat.
Daz Cat, BB Gallery, Bristol, December 2025
The bright cat person is wonderfully illustrated with lots of colour and detail, I particularly like the peace sign made with her right hand. There is an optimism and joy about the piece which I hope is a signal for a great year to come for Daz Cat and for us all.
Natural adventures 