Tag: Character

4428. St Werburghs tunnel (291)

Last Saturday was one of those very special red-letter days for me. I took the dog for a walk, that ended up being a bit of a marathon, during which I visited four spots and met nine or ten artists, several of them for the first time. Among the artists, it was an enormous pleasure to meet Asre, or Runaway Joey as he is known, for the first time, and very touching to find out that he knew who I was and had been keen to meet me and had even read some of my posts… my work here is done.

Asre, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2022
Asre, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2022

This is one of a multitude of variations on a theme by Asre, with the stylised cartoon face that we are becoming accustomed to seeing all over the place. This poor fellow looks like he has come a poor second in a boxing bout, with a severe black eye. Once again, the strong clean lines and solid fills are nicely worked, and the boxing glove provides additional interest – I like the way Asre has highlighted the glove with pink and white, giving it a cool 3D effect. There is so much more to come from this prolific artist and all round great bloke.

4423. Brunel Way (155)

To my shame, I didn’t spot this piece the first time I passed by. At that time I was busy marvelling over a new column piece by Pekoe… it was only when I was uploading the photographs of Pekoe’s work that I spotted this small Mr Underbite piece on a wall behind the column. Of course, I had to go back to find and photograph it.

Mr Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2022
Mr Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2022

I don’t know why, but I have taken a real shine to Mr Underbite and his character Mr Underbite. There is a simplicity and a charm to these pieces that strikes a chord with me. Perhaps I feel sorry for Mr Underbite, I don’t know, but there is a clever connection there that the artist has achieved. There is more to come from Mr Underbite, which is really good news.

Pekoe, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2022
Pekoe, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2022

Pekoe piece with Mr Underbite in the background.

4398. Dean Lane skate park (484)

In recent months, tattooist and street artist, Chill, has firmly established himself as a great cartoon character artist almost out of nowhere. His pieces have always been great to look at, but it is the frequency with which he has been painting them that has become so noticeable.

Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022

This fine piece in Dean Lane is typical of his distinctive work. Chill typically paints black and white characters that look like they have been lifted from a cartoonist’s sketchbook, set on a red or orange background, creating great contrast which helps the characters to stand out. Chill has stretched his usual modus operandi by including some green foliage and some decorative dotty spheres, that look like dandelion heads. Plenty of fun and action in this piece and cartoon-style eyes to die for.

4391. L Dub (34)

DJ Perks has to be one of the most modest artists in Bristol, as well as one who takes a great interest in other people’s work about the city. I think I have only met him once while actually painting, all of my other encounters have been while both of us have been photographing in the popular spots.

D J Perks, L Dub, Bristol, April 2022
D J Perks, L Dub, Bristol, April 2022

DJ Perks has made this spot in Lawrence Weston (L Dub) his own, and he has smashed it with this Bugs Bunny piece on the wall of the pumping station. Combining the beautifully neat writing with a very sharp and clean Bugs Bunny (with outstanding shadow, cleverly done), DJ Perks has promoted himself into the top division of street artists in Bristol.

D J Perks, L Dub, Bristol, April 2022
D J Perks, L Dub, Bristol, April 2022

His work improves with every outing, and he is always exploring new ways to stretch himself. The more he practices, the better he will get, and I am very excited about just how far he will get. A notable piece.

4384. Brunel Way (152)

One of the most endearing characters to appear in Bristol in recent months, in my opinion, is Mr Underbite. This simply conceived character is overflowing with charm and intrigue, and the artist, MrUnderbite is making this area his home, with at least four recent pieces in the vicinity.

Mr Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2022
Mr Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2022

This small piece on one of the footbridge pillars has been painted with sprays and the black lines drawn with a Posca pen or similar. The overall outcome is clean and tidy, with the two shades of brown working really well to frame Mr Underbite’s face. The crosses for eyes are similar to those used by Asre on one of his characters – a common cartoon style technique. I love this little piece.

4381. Dean Lane skate park (481)

Truly, good things come to those who wait, and what a long wait it has been to see a public piece by Pelmo, but this is one of three very recent pieces that I know about and it is great to see he is out and about painting again.

Pelmo, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
Pelmo, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022

This small piece in Dean Lane skate park features one of his oversized characters flipping a little skateboard. What a joy to find this. I have long been a fan of Pelmo’s unusual work, that tells stories about people of extraordinary proportions doing ordinary things. There is something most endearing and compassionate in the way Pelmo portrays his characters with love and affection. Watch this space for more.

4380. Cumberland Basin

Mote certainly finds some secluded spots to practice his art and this one is tucked away in Cumberland Basin, which I only found because I decided to extend my usual circuit of the area a little. I’m not too sure how long this piece has been here, but it looks reasonably fresh.

Mote, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2022
Mote, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2022

The monsters that Mote creates are nicely thought out and designed, and his crisp, sharp lines and solid fills give away the identity of the artist in his unsigned pieces. Another common theme in Mote’s work is the use of strong colours, especially green, yellow and red all featuring in this piece. His monsters are all rather loveable and have added to the wonderful free art gallery that is available to all on the streets of Bristol.

4379. River Avon (30)

So far on Natural Adventures, we have seen a few pieces from this artist under the name Asre, but they were all the same character, this is another one from his portfolio, a rather cheeky comic strip kind of character. The artist’s Instagram handle is @runaway_joey, and somehow this character seems to fit that moniker rather well – he looks like a Joey.

Asre, River Avon, Bristol, April 2022
Asre, River Avon, Bristol, April 2022

There are several of these around Bristol, but this one on the River Avon wall has lasted really well. Full of character and very nicely sprayed with some nice thick clean lines – Asre is no one trick pony, that’s for sure.

4353. Purdown AA Battery (42)

There are some artists that paint so much, that the only way to showcase them here on Natural Adventures is to save up several and post them all at the same time. When I went up to Purdown a week or two back, I was confronted with several pieces by VZA (Veeez) on the concrete walls, and here they are.

VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022
VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022

VZA has three or four strong forms that he likes to paint, one of which is a simple character with big white eyes. The saying ‘less is more’ is probably appropriate with his work, like the famous London street artist Stik. I would like to think that the colour selection in this piece is in support of Ukraine

VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022
VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022

Another piece in a similar form, and again sporting the colours of the Ukranian flag, is this time presented in a landscape format.

VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022
VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022

Sticking with the two large eyes, the introduction of an arrow and an exclamation mark in red and white, is as good as any signature. Although the form is again simple, there is a lot of texture and character in the piece.

VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022
VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022

A similar piece only a matter of yards away indicates, through the similar colours used, that it was most likely painted during the same session, along with the final piece posted below.

VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022
VZA, Purdown, Bristol, March 2022

By placing all these VZA pieces together in one post, you can get a real sense of his style and his work rate. I have another whole pile of his work to share and will soon do another of these compilations.

4348. Brunel Way (149)

I passed this spot yesterday, and unfortunately this Ukraine piece from Mr Underbite has already been overpainted, which is a pity. Mr Underbite is another new artist to Bristol, and is following in the footsteps of artists like Enn Kay, Mote, Asre and Bogat, all of whom have been spraying like mad in the last few months, and all who have made recent debuts on the pages of Natural Adventures.

Mr. Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2022
Mr. Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2022

Mr Underbite paints this rather lovable character with an underbite, in a comic cartoon style. In this particular piece, painted in the familiar colours of the Ukrainian flag, Mr Underbite offers a simple message ‘pray for Ukraine’. Sobering and appropriate in these troubling times. More to come from this artist soon.