Tag: Cat

5321. Upfest 2022 (79)

Elvs and Smak, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Elvs and Smak, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

I don’t think that I would have predicted that Smak and Elvs would have teamed up to paint an  Upfest collaboration, and yet that is exactly what they did. What I really like about the piece is that it is an integrated collaboration, with elements from each artist woven into the whole.

Elvs and Smak, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Elvs and Smak, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

I had a little chat with Elvs, just as he was finishing packing up, and rather irritatingly (for him) I pointed out a little mistake, which he then felt obliged to correct. It was only a small thing, but once seen, it couldn’t be unseen. In the picture above, the mistake is that the yellow body of the character didn’t quite align behind the blue triangle. The image below shows Elvs making the necessary alteration.

Elvs and Smak, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Elvs and Smak, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

The whole piece is brilliantly painted, with some fine blue and pink letters (the perfect colour combo) by Smak and a dog/cat character playing around behind the writing. This is a fun piece that really captured the atmosphere and vibe of the festival.

5283. Purdown (56)

Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, May 2023
Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, May 2023

A little bit about the mechanics of Natural Adventures, which might explain why there is a bit of a time-lag between a piece being painted and that piece being posted on the blog. I would guess that on a typical day I will come across 5–10 pieces of street/graffiti art that are new to me, and all of these go into a monthly folder. I then select from the folder pieces I’d like to feature on the blog and upload them in batches, so that I usually have at least a week’s worth of images ready to go, which gives me time to write the post in the morning before work, or the evening before.

So anything appearing on Natural Adventures will be at least a week old, and often considerably more. In exceptional cases I might fast track something special to the front of the queue, but that is rare. So if you are looking for ‘breaking news’ blog posts here, you are in the wrong place.

Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, May 2023
Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, May 2023

This is an interesting piece from Daz Cat in a spot that he likes to frequent. The blue cat character, with the yellow top, appears to be casting away an abominable creature with rabbit ears, horns, cat-like claws and a dragon tail – what is that thing? There is lots of movement in the piece, aided by the cream flashes, but its meaning is a little lost on me.

Looking at it again, the creature looks like it is by GYS? And the style is rather different from Daz Cat’s. There is nothing on Instagram that would help me work this out, though.

5247. Greenbank (81)

Kool Hand and Daz Cat, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2023
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2023

I can’t believe we’re almost at the end of May, but it is true and with each day that passes more and more pieces of graffiti writing, and street art adorn our city walls. It can be a struggle at times to keep up, but a pleasurable struggle, if there is such a thing.

The light wasn’t particularly helpful on the day that I photographed this collaboration between Kool Hand and Daz Cat, but I might have just got away with it.

Kool Hand and Daz Cat, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2023
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2023

To the left, a Kool crocodile chills up against a colourful palm tree, looking almost like a piece of quilt work (watch out Louis Masai!). On the right is a Daz Cat cat floating and mixing music. What is interesting about the collaboration is that Kool Hand’s work is quite flat, and Daz Cat’s has depth and perspective, bringing different aspects and styles to the piece. It is always good to see these two painting together.

5221. Cumberland Basin

Lee Roy, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Lee Roy, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

The quickest of quick ones this morning. It is my wife’s sixtieth birthday today, and there is much celebrations to do, and guests to prepare for.

Lee Roy, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Lee Roy, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

Sunny days and a dazzlingly bright piece from Lee Roy, who has been painting a lot lately. He has jazzes this piece up a little with the inclusion of a rather scary cat. Great work, marred only by the sight of a shadow-selfie… it happens sometimes.

5218. Lighthouse Community Garden, London (5)

Roo, Lighthouse Community Garden, London, April 2023
Roo, Lighthouse Community Garden, London, April 2023

This whole-block hoarding is the gift that keeps on giving. Having stumbled upon this spot completely by accident, I have been revelling in its treasures. This piece by Roo is in her home town. Most of her work that I have featured in Natural Adventures is from Bristol, so it is always great to see some of her work in her own back-yard.

Roo, Lighthouse Community Garden, London, April 2023
Roo, Lighthouse Community Garden, London, April 2023

This beautifully painted cat, who is settled down for an evening of screen entertainment, is full of character and charm. Although Roo’s character work appears to be quite simple, with solid fills, strong outlines etc, don’t be fooled. These are carefully crafted and brilliantly designed pieces with a lot of attention to detail, especially with the highlights and shadows, for example the yellow strip on the left-hand edges, suggesting a reflection from a light source. This piece gave me a warm feeling of familiarity inside. Now all I had to do was find a piece by SkyHigh.

5102. St Werburghs tunnel (361)

Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023
Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023

Daz Cat is no stranger to painting this exact spot on the flat section of wall at the entrance to the tunnel. I like to think that the characters he paints are guardians of the tunnel, protecting the pieces within. Just a little fantasy of mine.

Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023
Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023

Indeed, Daz Cat reinforces my imaginative interpretation with this ‘Gandalf’ cat and the famous words “you shall not pass”. Daz Cat has come on such a long way over the years and his cats (and dogs) are part of the furniture, with many cat face ‘super tags’ to be found all over the city. A quick squint at this Daz Cat gallery presents, in reverse chronological order, his journey over the last five years.

5085. Cumberland Basin

Roo, Cumberland Bain, Bristol, March 2023
Roo, Cumberland Bain, Bristol, March 2023

Naturally, whenever SkyHigh comes to town, Roo will be with him, as they are partners as well as painting partners. This ensures that we receive a double hit of great artwork from two wonderfully talented artists, each time they come to Bristol.

Sky and Roo 0007 5 March 2023_edited
Sky and Roo 0007 5 March 2023_edited

This is a beautifully executed and framed piece from Roo, featuring a dog with a spray can. What I love about Roo’s work is that everything is perfectly finished. There are no rough or blurry edges, no see-through fills, and the composition is always first-class. The cartoon style is perfect for her animal characters, and there is always a sense of fun in her work.

Roo, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2023
Roo, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2023

On this occasion, Roo left behind some extras, one of them a few yards away from this piece, another in Dean Lane and a small cat piece in the middle of the M32 roundabout. She and her other half can come back any time they like!

Roo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2023
Roo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2023

5069. Montpelier

Alex Lucas, Montpelier, Bristol, February 2023
Alex Lucas, Montpelier, Bristol, February 2023

Finding my way home through the depths of Montpelier, I came across this stunning front door painted by Alex Lucas. Of course, such a feature shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise in this area, as Alex Lucas is the ‘Queen of Montpelier’, which is the epicentre of her work.

Alex Lucas, Montpelier, Bristol, February 2023
Alex Lucas, Montpelier, Bristol, February 2023

In this piece, two cats are interacting with one another, one above the other, cleverly following the portrait aspect of the door. The space around the cats is occupied with decorative ribbons and flowers. Who wouldn’t want a stunning personalised front door like this? The door and the artwork is so very ‘Montpelier’ if you get my drift. Brilliant.

5041. Cheltenham Road

Rowdy, Cheltenham Road, Bristol, February 2023
Rowdy, Cheltenham Road, Bristol, February 2023

Rowdy doesn’t paint all that often, so it is always a huge pleasure to see his work when he does. This shop is literally around the corner from where I live, and has recently had a facelift, painted by Rowdy. It had already had the Rowdy treatment before, but this is a serious upgrade.

Rowdy, Cheltenham Road, Bristol, February 2023
Rowdy, Cheltenham Road, Bristol, February 2023

Of course, we have Rowdy’s famous crocodile design, not just one, but a float of them (correct collective noun – a bask, if they are on land). It is the reclining cat, however, on the top panel that steals the show for me, a cat that has appeared sveral times elsewhere in Bristol, which makes me think that I ought to publish a Rowdy gallery sometime soon.

4969. Brunel Way (189)

Cobo, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2023
Cobo, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2023

One of the artefacts of the way I plan my blog posts is that I am always running a few weeks behind the time that the pieces were painted. So here we are on Sunday 21 January and I am posting a Christmas piece by Cobo.

Cobo, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2023
Cobo, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2023

This is an absolute chrome beauty by New Zealand artist Cobo, whose writing is out of the top drawer. In this piece, his wonderfully stylised letters are accompanied by a cat and a sign saying merry Christmas. I love a street art cat, and must, one day, get my act sorted out and d a gallery of street art cats. It will happen. In the mean time you’ll just have to enjoy this lovely fella.