I would think that even though he only visits Bristol about once a week, Scrapyardspec must be one of the most prolific artists in town. This is a welcome pair of goofy characters on the pathway that leads to the Purdown anti-aircraft battery, painted on a container that seems a little out of place.
Scrapyardspec, Purdown, Bristol, July 2025
The two characters are very much of the archetypal variety, although he includes shoulders here, building on the central face of the characters. Another change is that he is starting to shorten his signature to Scrapy rather than the full Scrapyardspec. I have easily enough pieces to start a gallery, but he might just have to wait his turn.
This container, behind the Watershed, is one of the more curious spots in Bristol. I am not sure who owns the container, nor do I understand quite why the council has given permission for it to be sited here, but here it is and fortunately for us, it has played host to a series of high-end commissions over the years. Inkie replaced the Paul Monsters piece that had been here before a little while back, but I have only recently photographed it.
Inkie, Anchor Road, Bristol, May 2024
There are several Inkie elements that have come together in perfect harmony in this combination piece. The print background runs through the whole piece and sets a regular patterned backdrop. Of course the distinctive writing in very Inkie colours is as good as you’ll see and to the right is one of his beautiful Art Nouveau style characters. The only board of the piece that leaves me scratching my head is the cartoon-style spray can, which doesn’t look like an Inkie piece at all and doesn’t quite fit with the rest of it.
This container on the elevated skate park platform, adjacent to the basketball courts, gets quite a lot of graffiti action – more often than not it plays host to throw ups and tagging, but occasionally it is adorned with something a little more classy, and that is the case with this Smak piece.
Smak, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2023
Smak, like several other writers in Bristol, has been something of a landmark, a heartbeat, of the graffiti writing scene. Ever-present, albeit with some short breaks, and always turning out quality pieces. This is a beautifully conceived and crafted piece. The colours work so well together, everything is on point, even the (deliberately) cloudy bits. Fine work, in a modest setting, from one of Bristol’s best.
It takes talent to paint on the sides of containers or on shutters, because of the uneven surface, but so many artists seem to master the problem with consummate ease, including Logoe with this piece under the M32. This container has been here for years, but I have absolutely no idea why or what it is for, it is has provided a canvass for so many artists.
Logoe, M32 Spot, Bristol, March 2023
This is another in the series of pieces by Logoe from his most recent blitz, and what a fine piece it is too. Unusually there are no oval dots running horizontally through the piece, and so you get to see the raw script writing without any distractions. All good from Logoe.
The third in a rash of Logoe pieces from his recent visit to Bristol, this piece is on the container under the M32 and a surface that Logoe has painted before. I think that, with their corrugated sides, containers must be very difficult to paint, but Logoe has done a fine job of it here.
Logoe, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022
What really seems to help with this piece is the black background, which removes any distractions. As we would expect, the piece consists of Logoe’s own brand of script writing accompanied by an array of different sized dots liberally dispersed horizontally along the piece. I would love to see if Logoe could paint dome different letters and switch things up a bit, only because I know it would look amazing.
This container in Dean Lane seems to have been around forever. I’m really not sure what it contains or why it is there, but it is a surface to paint and that is what matters. The quality of graffiti and street art on this container can be very variable so it is nice when a really good piece like this one from Rusk comes along.
Rusk, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2021
Rusk is an artist/writer whose work I never tire of and who doesn’t paint as much as I’d like him to, although he tends to paint in places that are sometimes out of the way and I don’t get to see those ones. This is a straightforward RUSKI in horizontal graded blues with some nice bubbles in black white and blue. The quality of the lines and fills is of a high standard, which on the uneven face of the container can’t be easy. This is what great graffiti writing looks like.
Well this is the one really, a very very special piece by Andrew Burns Colwill.
In a modest setting behind the Harbourside shops and restaurants stands a container. Painted on the side of the container is one of the best pieces of free street art in Bristol. It is amazing. I have watched as people shuffle past it without looking and then someone will glance at it and recognise what a magnificent work it is. Certainly one of my favourite pieces in Bristol…ever.
Andrew Burns Colwill, Anchor Road, Bristol, January 2017
There is an elaborate story unfolding in this picture. In the middle we have two figures sitting at an hourglass table playing a game of chess. One is a modern/future man, the other on the left looks to be ancient Mayan or something like that clutching a scroll. There are remnants of a bridge behind them one side built of wood the other of stone, representing the eras these two characters come from, maybe.
Andrew Burns Colwill, Anchor Road, Bristol, January 2017
Then if we zoom out a little we see more of their surroundings. Above them, floating in the air lifted by balloons with faces, is an island with a city – what it represents I am not sure, but some similar motifs were portrayed in Colwill’s Upfest piece from last year. To the right, the ruined stone bridge can be seen in its full glory, and a bomb shell is sticking out of the ground. To the left the bridge becomes closer to its environmental beginnings…more organic, and there are flowers in the foreground.
Andrew Burns Colwill, Anchor Road, Bristol, January 2017
Taking another look to the right we observe evidence of civilisation in the form of a stone city on the hill, married with weapons of destruction.
Andrew Burns Colwill, Anchor Road, Bristol, January 2017
Further to the right still, soldiers are emerging from a war torn forest – looking like a scene from the Great War.
Andrew Burns Colwill, Anchor Road, Bristol, January 2017
To the left hand side we can see pyramids through the mist in the distance, so maybe the red-robed character is ancient Egyptian. On this side too, there are more figures, tribesmen wielding spears lurk in the trees.
Andrew Burns Colwill, Anchor Road, Bristol, January 2017
The whole piece would be a fine addition to any art gallery, but here it is for all to see if only they would look. I believe the picture to be about the struggle between the environment and our close connection to it and the consequences of progress. Now I am no expert and I haven’t had the pleasure of talking to Colwill so my description and conclusion are based on what I see. What do you see? Have you looked?
Natural adventures 