Tag: Colourful

7257. St Werburghs tunnel (531)

Donz, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2025
Donz, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2025

It is always a rather pleasant surprise to find a Donz piece in town because he tends to enjoy painting in his ‘manor’ of L Dub (Lawrence Weston), to the north of the city. Something you can predict quite safely is that anything by Donz is going to be colourful and bright.

Donz, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2025
Donz, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2025

First up, the white wall works really well with his colourful design, which could get lost without it. His letters DONZ are beautifully framed within a consistent solid black border and some fine black highlights and details. The pastel colours are nicely distributed as fills throughout. All in all, a great piece from Donz.

6992. St Werburghs tunnel (509)

Zinso, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2025
Zinso, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2025

I am enjoying the discovery of Zinso pieces, and this was the second of three that I have come across recently. There is something rather attractive about the letters and the way they are worked, along with two wonderful blue arrows book ending the writing.

Zinso, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2025
Zinso, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2025

The colourful cartoony letters are filled with nicely blended greens, browns and blues with the exception of the ‘i’ which is a bright contrasting orange. The letters are set on a ping background and finished off with a sprinkling of lovely drips. Although Zinso is new to Bristol, the artist is clearly experienced and accomplished.

6144. M32 roundabout J4 (587)

Grimes, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2024
Grimes, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2024

Grimes is a graffiti writer who burst onto the Bristol scene a few months back, and has already had a significant impact. His energetic pieces tend to be full of vibrant colour and movement, this one being a great example. The wall he has chosen at one of the underpass entrances on the M32 roundabout is not the easiest to paint because of the slope, but Grimes has done a good job.

Grimes, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2024
Grimes, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2024

The orange, red and green combination of colours has worked really well and the fills patterns, which are a bit of a trademark, are really on point. The letters, spelling GRIMES are perfectly set on an aquatic blue bubbly backdrop and wispy grey ‘flames’. A really accomplished and enjoyable piece.

6012. Frome Side (34)

Grimes, Frome Side, Bristol, April 2024
Grimes, Frome Side, Bristol, April 2024

I would say that over the last two years or so, the intake of ‘new’ artists in Bristol has far outweighed any losses, and we have a ‘net gain’ of talent. This is great news, although it makes things a little troublesome for me, as there is so much more art to photograph and catalogue than ever before, and it is difficult to give artists the exposure they deserve.

Grimes, Frome Side, Bristol, April 2024
Grimes, Frome Side, Bristol, April 2024

One of the newer artists to Bristol (at least on my radar) is Grimes, whose characteristically colourful and busy pieces have been brightening up spots all over the city. This piece underneath the M32 is typical of his work, full of letters and symbols, beautifully crafted and filled. I have loads of his pieces in my folders and will try to dig them out, as he has added something a little special to the Bristol mix.

5668. M32 Cycle path (237)

Zaenone, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023
Zaenone, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023

From time to time I get to see pieces that I really like and can’t quite explain what it is that sparks my interest. This is one of those pieces. I was mystified originally about the artist, and my first thought was WERM, but I discounted that very quickly on the grounds that the letters weren’t right, and it isn’t quite in his style – it was a plausible guess for about ten seconds. Then I had to do a little digging to establish that it is by Zaenone, an artist I know nothing about.

Zaenone, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023
Zaenone, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2023

The colourful fills fade into one another in vertical strips in quite an unusual way and the letters are open, allowing the bleed of fill through the whole piece. A nice, strong white border contrasts with the fills and the black drop shadow. Two weird faces bookend the letters and create some additional interest. This is a fun and well balanced piece from Zaenone.

2501. Cheltenham 2018 (5)

On my first day in Cheltenham I walked from Cheltenham Spa station along the Honeybourne Line towards the centre of town and after dropping down from the disused railway the first major piece I saw was this sensational eye from My Dog Dighs painted for the 1028 Cheltenham Paint Festival (I think).

My Dog Sighs, Paint Festival 2018, Cheltenham, September 2019
My Dog Sighs, Paint Festival 2018, Cheltenham, September 2019

Good grief, this is a great piece in its overall impact, situated on a rather banal utilitarian building, bringing joy to all who see it. The child-like background of scribbles and doodles plays host to an enormous and dramatic eye.

My Dog Sighs, Paint Festival 2018, Cheltenham, September 2019
My Dog Sighs, Paint Festival 2018, Cheltenham, September 2019

This and all his other recent pieces speak of an artist at the absolute top of his game and whose signature eyes, large or small, each bear their own characteristics. The patterning on the iris is always so well observed and the scenes tell great stories, often of the local environment or people. World class piece.

1606. The Bearpit (153)

Run Z is a Bristol abstract artist that I have not yet had the fortune to run in to yet and one about whom I know very little. His pieces are very distinct, using bright colours and organic patterns that swirl across the wall.

RunZ, The Bearpit, Bristol, July 2018
RunZ, The Bearpit, Bristol, July 2018

We are lucky in Bristol to have several specialists in abstract street art like Run Z and I think it all adds to the overall complexion and variety of the Bristol street art scene. I’m on a mission to hunt down more of his work.