Cheo, Dibz and Ulow, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2025
Lots to see and admire in this wonderful triptych from Cheo, Dibz and Ulow, painted during a ‘high end’ paint jam celebrating the latter’s birthday. The whole wall, (see last photograph) was sheer class.
Cheo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2025
First up in this little sequence of three is a brilliant B Boy character by Cheo, with his second piece of the paint jam. A perfect cartoon-style, with so much detail to enjoy, and of course the trademark bee.
Dibz, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2025
In the middle of this triptych is an outstanding piece of graffiti writing by Dibz which appropriately spells out ULOW. Beautifully designed letters and fills have to give way a little to some amazing exploding pink bubbles. A nicely balanced piece.
Ulow, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2025
Finally, all eyes are on the amazing character by the birthday boy himself. Ulow has painted an extraordinary comic-style full portrait of a young woman dancing, or so it appears. Ulow has created enormous depth with his perspective, and accentuated the muscle-tone incredibly skilfully. Truly stunning work from all three artists.
Minto, Cheo, Hypo, Ulow, Dibz, Soker, Rusk, Shade One and Turoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2025
This wall has hosted some utterly outstanding pieces over the years, and this combination collaboration from Dibz and Cheo is right up there with the very best of them. The first thing to notice about this wonderful piece is just how neatly it has been executed and how well it stands out on the black background.
Cheo and Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2025
The comic character, painted by Cheo is holding up a small board on which Dibz has written his name – it is a brilliantly clever way to present a character and graffiti writing together in a contextual storytelling scenario. There are so many details in the collaboration to enjoy, such as the signature bee, the laminate wooden board peeling and drips from the letters, and my favourite bit, the plaster on the character’s nose. Pure genius from Dibz and Cheo.
Fade, Jody, Dibz, Cheo and Acid Face with a Brace, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025
In Bristol, we are really lucky and get to see a lot of collaborations and paint jams about the place, bringing together local artists who are often joined by visitors, invited or passing through. We get to see all sorts of different styles and levels, and then occasionally a top drawer special production like this one from Fade, Jody, Dibz, Cheo and Acid Face with a Brace.
Fade, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025
Photographing this production in its entirety was something of a challenge due to its sheer length and some difficult light conditions, with so much open sky above the wall. To start us off on this wall we have a semi-submerged piece by Fade, with the water level cleverly portrayed using different shades of colour above and below the water line, a theme continued by each artist through the production. Some dramatic skies round off Fade’s section nicely.
Jody, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025
Next up is a portrait piece by Jody featuring a warrior with a deep fur collar and long sword, so I am imagining a Viking theme going on, although I can’t help feeling that the hairdo doesn’t quite match the machismo of the character.
Dibz, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025
In the centre and holding the whole production together is a piece of typically brilliant writing from Dibz, again, with the water line running through it and incorporating a wonky long sword. The dramatic skies also continue through this story.
Cheo, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025
Cheo brings a whole different style to the piece, while faithfully following the Viking idea. His cartoon warrior, wading through the water, is festooned with long blonde hair tied up with red bands. His snarling face is made rather comical with the tilt of his helmet. Of course, a trademark bee, also with a helmet, is in attendance.
Acid Face with a Brace, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2025
Rounding off the production is some more writing from Acid Face with a Brace, whose collaboration with Dibz and Fade in Dean Lane from earlier in the summer is still very much intact. The theme is beautifully embraced by Acid Face with a Brace, and he has included a wave breaking over his letters, mirroring the Fade piece at the other end. Awesomeness all round.
Hypo, Cheo and Hemper, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Birthday paint jams have definitely become more of a thing since I started writing about street art (about ten years now). This was a well attended birthday celebration for Hypo, which turned out some superb pieces. This is a triptych from the birthday boy, Cheo and Hemper.
Hypo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
I’ve pretty much said all there is to say about Hypo’s work in so many posts over the last couple of years, and this is another fine example of his wildstyle writing, perhaps more cryptic than some of his pieces. What an accolade that so many great artists came out to celebrate with him.
Cheo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Cheo is one of the ‘godfathers’ of character work in Bristol, and this is a superb cartoon-style piece featuring an artist (is it Hypo?) pondering whether he should be using red or yellow paint. The animation is so full of humour and movement, it almost feels like watching a film clip. Of course, a signature bee is in attendance.
Hemper, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2025
Hemper always, always turns out outstanding pieces. This one is as creative as ever, and spells out Hems in blue and white dappled letters set on a red splash. Everything in on point, and it is easy to see that this is the work of a graffiti writing genius. Three great pieces coming together in this birthday collaboration.
My inclination is not to say to much about this outstanding character piece by Cheo for fear of spoiling it. Cheo has been a mainstay of character pieces in Bristol forever and although he has been relatively quiet in recent years, he can still turn it on when he wants to. This is a beauty.
Cheo, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2024
The character is painted completely in green scale colours apart from the goggles and gold chain – even the bee is green. A small masterpiece from Cheo.
This wall on the side of the Veeez shop is becoming something of an advertising hoarding for the shop’s wares and events, and offers an opportunity for artists to paint a legal wall. It comes at the cost of painting an advert, and regular readers will know that that doesn’t sit all that comfortably with me.
Cheo, North Street, Bristol, July 2024
I am a hypocrite if nothing else, and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to share this advertisement by Cheo, mainly because it is by Cheo. Everything about Cheo’s work is pretty close to perfection. His compositions are always on point, and his artwork execution exceptional. He is at the very top of his game, and seems to be painting a little more often lately.
Well, well, well, this outstanding dragon character piece came a little bit out of the blue. It is by Cheo, one of the godfathers of Bristol street art, whose frequency of painting has declined a little in recent years, but whose work is always to be celebrated.
Cheo, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2024
In this game, if you snooze you lose, and I arrived a littler too late to photograph the piece before it had been dogged. The blue cock and balls (one of the most ancient forms of graffiti), probably sprayed by kids, slightly ruins the flow of the piece, but takes nothing away from the enormous talent of Cheo. Every little detail is perfectly worked, such as the folds in the clothing, the dragon’s face, and the crispness of the flame sprite. The signature bee rounds the scene off nicely. So good to see, albeit a little late.
Cheo, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2024
I went back to Dean Lane a few days later and the blue tags had been removed, although another one appeared to the right of the piece.
Sometimes you just can’t see the wood for the trees. I don’t understand how I missed this wonderful piece by Cheo, both on social media and in situ. I am guessing that it is a Halloween piece, or at least it looks that way (Fact check: it was painted around mid-October for Halloween), and got lucky, because it was painted over a few days after I took these pictures. Even though I think I have my eyes open, I still manage to miss things.
Cheo, North Street, Bristol, January 2023
There is some real depth to this piece, which looks more like a painting than a piece of street art. I think it was painted at ground level and then placed in this elevated spot outside The North Street Standard with the help of Upfest. All the ingredients for a Halloween piece are there, a cat, a pumpkin, a cauldron, some wispy ghosts, a witch and a skull and bones, all given the special Cheo treatment. A lovely piece.
One of the most pleasurable things about going on my rounds to photograph street/graffiti art in Bristol is that I am frequently surprised by pieces that I didn’t know about and that stand out from the crowd. Frankly, pretty much anything that Cheo paints stands out, and due to a significant drop-off in his street activity in recent years, their rarity makes them even more exciting.
Cheo, North Street, Bristol, December 2023
Painted on 1 December, this piece almost feels like the opening window of an advent calendar (which has just given me a brilliant idea to pitch with Upfest). The rather likeable mischievous character is peering through a wall, and an arrow points off to the right. This might have been some kind of promotional commission, but I prefer to think of it as a joyful artwork. Only three more sleeps until Christmas.
What an absolute belter from Cheo, an artist who has lost none of his touch during his absence, and if anything has come back to painting on the streets with renewed vigour and creativity. It took me several attempts to get a clean shot of this piece in Dean Lane, because developers, who are working on the old Salvation Army building behind, had fenced off half of this wall, much to everyone’s irritation.
Cheo, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2023
I understand, thank you Paul H for the insight, that the piece was influenced by the Rayman video games, something I would not and could not have ever known. The beast is so brilliantly painted, and has such depth and detail that few artists would be able to recreate. Just an awesome piece from an awesome artist.
Natural adventures 