Tag: Column

5714. Brunel Way (250)

Sako, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023
Sako, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023

Although Sako has only painted a handful of pieces in Bristol, they have not gone unnoticed. His colour selection alone gives his work away, often opting for a magenta character, with blues and greens augmenting his work.

Sako, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023
Sako, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023

Originally from the Basque Country, it would seem that Sako has settled in Bristol for the last year or so. His mystical work seems to be centred around storytelling and mythology. In this piece, his female character appears to be bridging the space between the land and the sky. The urban landscape is represented with the blue circle, with a green mountain backdrop completing the scene. Although he painted this piece alone, Sako often paints alongside Zake and other PWA crew members. Great stuff, rather understated and modest. Time to hit a more prominent wall, I think.

5695. Brunel Way (249)

Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023
Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023

As we approach Christmas and the end of the year, I expect my posts to get slightly shorter, possibly a little bit more reflective, and maybe even a little bit rushed. I suffer from ‘ground rush’ before breaking up for a holiday period, when a whole bunch of work needs to be tied up and out of the door in an ever-diminishing time slot. Alright, I get it, I am getting my excuses in early, and that is the way I roll.

Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023
Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2023

Zake has had an extraordinary 2023, where his work has not only been more frequent, but it has blossomed, and he is pushing all of his boundaries to develop his unique portrait style. I first became aware of his work through his column pieces under the M32 in May 2018, and they have been a regular feature ever since, as you can see in this updated gallery of his work. There is lots of depth created by light and shadow in this piece, and a fair amount of expression in those wild staring eyes.

5569. M32 Spot (173)

Mr Crawls, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2023
Mr Crawls, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2023

Mr Crawls returns with a new variation on his theme, which I really hoped he would, this time charming us with a woolly-hatted penguin. There is something very satisfying about the simplicity in Mr Crawls’ work, proving that artwork doesn’t need to be busy and complex to be effective. His character variation work reminds me of the work of Mr Underbite – Simple-clean-effective.

Mr Crawls, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2023
Mr Crawls, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2023

Mr Crawls has just about managed to squeeze his penguin character within the constraints of the rather narrow column. His other birds have been a bit wider and squarer in format, so he has done well to elongate the penguin to fit in here. The expression on the penguin’s face is priceless, slightly dopey and with a sad smile. The hat is simply brilliant.

5563. Brunel Way (238)

Jevoissoul, Brunel Way, Bristol, September 2023
Jevoissoul, Brunel Way, Bristol, September 2023

Today, being a Sunday, I have a little bit more capacity to write a third post, which is rather necessary, given the vastness of my backlog. Let me introduce you to a new artist on the scene, Jevoissoul, who I met at this exact spot a couple of weeks after he painted this interesting column piece. When I first saw the piece, I wondered if an artist called Panskaribas (whose style is similar to this) had returned to Bristol, as there are many shared characteristics between the artists, such as the cartoon Picassoesque style.

Jevoissoul, Brunel Way, Bristol, September 2023
Jevoissoul, Brunel Way, Bristol, September 2023

What is most impressive is that Jevoissoul has jumped straight from sketchbook to walls, using this area under Brunel Way to practice his spray can control and technique. When I spoke with the artist, he told me that this was just the beginning and that he was planning to do a lot of painting, and indeed that is exactly what is happening, his work is popping up all over the place. I think I am going to enjoy watching how Jevoissoul develops as a street artist from this encouraging start.

5562. M32 Spot (173)

Sako, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2023
Sako, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2023

I think that Sako is an occasional visitor to Bristol, or simply doesn’t paint all that often. This is only the second piece I have featured by Sako, and it is absolutely superb in my view, cleverly painted in subtle tints of rose and turquoise. Coincidentally, there is something about the mood and tone of the piece that is similar to my earlier post today by Andrew Burns Colwill.

Sako, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2023
Sako, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2023

Sako has used the limited space and shape of the column to perfection. There is an interesting relationship between the character and the built environment, and although I am not too sure what the story is here, I believe there is one being told. The colours are perfect together, and I would love to see more of this combination (note to self – buy these colours) on the streets. This is a great piece by Sako from back in the summer.

5507. M32 Spot (171)

Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2023
Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2023

When I selected this Zake column piece to post I realised just how far behind I am with the blog these days, and that is entirely due to the huge volume of art dropping on the streets of Bristol. I venture out about four times a week, and each time probably photograph between six and ten new pieces on average, which equates to something like 24-40 new artworks each week every week. I usually post two pieces a day, sometimes three, so we are looking at about 20 posts maximum. You can see the deficit straight away, and this doesn’t include festivals such as Upfest or Cheltenham Paint Festival, where the pieces may reach 200 or so. This is a good problem to have, I guess, and maybe I have a project for my retirement, posting from the archives.

Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2023
Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2023

Zake will always be a column specialist, and many of his earliest pieces in Bristol were painted on columns only a hundred meters or so from here. In this one he has painted three faces stacked on top of one another, each with amazing depth and interesting expressions. Three for the price of one from Zake.

5420. M32 Spot (168)

Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2023
Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2023

It would seem that Slakarts has been busy with real life lately, and his pieces are few and far between and tend to be ‘quick ones’ in contrast to the more sophisticated and designed pieces he was painting throughout 2021, 2022 and at the start of this year.

Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2023
Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2023

In this piece, Slakarts returns to his base character, cunningly fitted onto the column, with a slight stretch. Great fills and superb cutting-in of the black outlines throughout the piece. The selfish part of me wants to see more Slakarts pieces on the street for me to enjoy, but I am also happy that he might be busy with work/family or other distractions keeping him off the streets.

5338. Brunel Way (213)

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

By the time this post is published I will be midway through leading a workshop for a partnership in Lincolnshire. I arrived in Lincoln yesterday evening, and have never been here before. I was pleasantly surprised by the old town, and the cathedral is one of the most impressive I have seen in England. It is a pity I will be here only for a day, and returning home immediately after the workshop. I digress… Maybe wasn’t very impressed with this piece, when he posted it on Instagram, and was minded to go over it, but he hasn’t so far, so maybe he has some affection for it after all.

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

The subtle colours and gentle interlocking shapes make this more of an abstract piece than anything else, and as such does a good job, I think. The green shape has something of the pachyderm about it, and once seen can’t be unseen. I rather like this modest and gentle piece. My kind of thing.

5288. M32 Spot (167)

Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2023
Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2023

I have a feeling that Zake might be slowing down a little, having had an incredible start to the year with an increase in both quality and quantity of his original character pieces. This incredible piece is painted on one of the columns (if not, a different face of the same column) where I first encountered Zake’s work back in July 2018, so it feels like a bit of a full circle, and my goodness, how he has developed over that time.

Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2023
Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2023

The long face (an inevitability on columns) has a double set of eyes, which are thankfully closed, and is spewing fiery water from the mouth. The colour selection works beautifully, and as ever Zake’s work is so full of depth, afforded by clever use of light and shade. This is a really striking piece, noticeable from quite some distance.

Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2018
Zake, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2018

5255. M32 Spot (164)

Skor85, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2023
Skor85, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2023

How truly wonderful to see a Skor85 piece for two big reasons; the first is that I haven’t seen any of her work in an absolute age, and secondly, she is one of the nicest, kindest and most bubbly artists in Bristol. Even better is that this is one of two pieces she painted during this paint jam organised in the M32 Spot by Conrico.

Skor85, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2023
Skor85, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2023

The column piece looks like a mash-up of a portrait with a design idea, and kind of comes in a top and bottom half. The portrait below seems to portray happiness, but is somewhat at odds with the deer design above, which is more stylised and looks ready to go onto the front of a Christmas card. I am puzzled by the rune on the deer’s forehead… is it an expression or is it a tag? I think the former. The whole thing is a welcome return from Skor85.