5342. Cumberland Basin

Mind 49, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Mind 49, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

Formerly painting under the name Mind Control, Mind 49 (his current moniker) appears to have matured and mellowed a little. His raw talent used to focus on passionate causes, such as animal rights, however recently, he has brought some other themes and elements into his portfolio which is seeing him grow as an artist.

Mind 49, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Mind 49, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

This portrait piece on the long wall at Cumberland Basin features a singer, with baseball cap and brilliantly painted glasses. As if to prove that he is not a one-trick pony, Mind 49 has sprayed a little bubble throw up to the left of the piece with the number ’49’. Since painting this great piece, Mind 49 has returned to Bristol with another superb work – to come.

5333. Cumberland Basin

Daz Cat, Werm and Kool Hand, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Daz Cat, Werm and Kool Hand, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

I am very pressed for time this morning, so this is a bit of a quick one. There were actually four pieces in this collaborative wall, but these three were more familiar to me and formed part of a set, with the fourth having a slightly different feel to it. The three artists, well known to regular readers are Daz Cat, Werm and Kool Hand.

Daz Cat, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Daz Cat, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

To the left of the three is a rather cool rabbit character, or long-eared cat, sitting cross-legged and striking something approaching a yoga pose. What you don’t get from this picture is the scale of the piece which is probably 9ft tall, I know this because I painted something immediately to the left, which was dwarfed by it.

Werm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Werm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

In the middle is another stunner from Werm, who is getting his style sorted with his small letters and expanding decorative extensions. He has consistently been one of the most productive artists on the streets for quite some time , and rarely disappoints.

Kool Hand, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Kool Hand, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

On the right, Kool Hand has painted one of his customary character/writing combinations in his soft curvy style. The toothy dog is leaning on the letters, and both elements are nicely highlighted with white dots which offer depth to the piece. Altogether a nicely colour coordinated triptych from the trio.

5312. Cumberland Basin

Andy Council, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Andy Council, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

I have a feeling that this piece was painted some time ago by Andy Council, but I have only just recently had the opportunity to photograph it. If I am honest, I consider it to be a slightly odd piece, and although it has all the hallmarks of an Andy Council style, the subject matter is lost on me a little.

Andy Council, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Andy Council, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

The ball of what appears to be connected air conditioning units is interspersed with toadstools. Something odd is going on and I don’t know what it is. I can’t find out much about it on Instagram, but Andy Council painted something similar on a Belfast utility box, so it must mean something to him. Something a little different.

5296. Cumberland Basin

Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

Just when I think I have seen it all from Kid Krishna, he comes up with this delicious piece in Cumberland Basin. Normally his letters, albeit cryptic, spell out CRIE, but I am not sure whether that is the case here – it might be a KRIE variant. Although the writing is a bit busy, it is calmer and cleaner than some of his more recent pieces.

Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

Thee star of this piece, in my view, is the Mickey Mouse character standing to the left. It isn’t enough for Kid Krishna to paint a conventional flat Mickey Mouse, no, he has painted a deliberately blurred three-dimensional character wearing a cap and with half a skull across Mickey’s face. There is something weird going on with the shorts, with what looks like holes and a fiery furnace behind. Brilliant stuff from the artist who simply doesn’t stop.

5281. Cumberland Basin

Mote, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Mote, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

After a short pause, Mote has been hitting the streets hard and with larger and ever more complex pieces. This delightful monster, part of as series of ‘birds’, is tucked away in the passageway on the long curved wall at Cumberland Basin.

Mote, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Mote, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

Mote doesn’t need to sign his work, as it is so distinctive and original, but he tends to do so with a little upturned crown – here in green at the bottom of the piece. The bird monster is in three main colour blocks, which complement each other nicely. Mote rarely uses prime colours, tending to stick with softer pastel shades, creating a more modest offering than some of the artwork in Bristol. Improving with every new piece, Mote is firmly establishing himself on the Bristol street art scene.

5250. Cumberland Basin

Ceus, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Ceus, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

This is the third in a series of Ceus pieces that appear to be in a revised or reinvented style, largely around a colour scheme, and large bold and obvious letters. There are small references to some of his work from last year in the shape of a wing tip to the left of the letter C.

Ceus, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Ceus, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

The bright blue writing set on a white background has a heavenly look and feel to it an looks very fresh – so easy on the eye. There are some lovely colour fades in the fills and the orange outline/shadow with bubbles sets the whole piece off nicely – a quality work from Ceus.

5243. Cumberland Basin

Kosc, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Kosc, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

Kosc has been smashing it for a long while now, both with his arty pieces and with his writing, and this is another fabulous example of his greyscale graffiti. I managed to catch up with Kosc last week as he was painting a new piece on the M32 roundabout, unfortunately I never saw the completed piece, as the entire wall was bombed by DBK before I returned a day or two later.

Kosc, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Kosc, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

With clever use of light and dark shades and a midline ridge running through each of the letters, Kosc has managed to get the letters to pop out from the wall, creating a wonderful 3D effect. I would like to see Kosc experiment with anamorphic writing, because I think he would be excellent at it, and we don’t seem to have any anamorphic writers in Bristol at the moment, other than Zase. Another fine piece from Kosc.

5239. Cumberland Basin

Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

There is no stopping Kid Krishna these days, and it seems that I rarely go out taking pictures without bumping in to him. We usually chat for a while, which I enjoy, and each time we meet I get to know him a little better. Because he doesn’t really use social media, it can be quite difficult to know where all his pieces are, so often you get to discover them rather than hunt them down, and that is always most gratifying.

Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Kid Krishna, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

Nothing seems to phase Kid Krishna, for example a return on a wall… simply paint round it. This black white and yellow piece is fairly typical of his unusual writing, and he has included a character in the middle, which reminds me of a king in a pack of playing cards. There is no doubting Kid Krishna’s talent and his genuine enthusiasm for art, and I think we’ll continue to see much more from him this year.

5235. Cumberland Basin

Tack Jucker, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Tack Jucker, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

Tack Jucker is an artist whose work I have enjoyed from the very first piece I saw back in October 2021. Animals are his speciality, but he has also painted several hand studies too and this is one of them. I have been aware of this piece for about a year, but recently re-photographed it, because I couldn’t find it in my archives.

Tack Jucker, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Tack Jucker, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

There is a lot of symbolism in this piece, with an all seeing eye in the palm of the hand and tears cascading down to form a river. The perspective in the hand is superbly worked and the light and shadow provides depth and contrast. This is a really nice piece from Tack Jucker, whose occasional pieces are always a welcome contribution to the Bristol scene.

5231. Cumberland Basin

Laic217, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Laic217, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

Laic217 is on fire at the moment, and painting fairly regularly, which is great to see. This portrait piece takes us back to a theme that Laic217 particularly enjoys, which is the distortion and disintegration of the face.

Laic217, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
Laic217, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023

Set on a red background, the skin is melting away to reveal the skull underneath. Of course, a baseball cap with an ‘L’ on it is a required accessory and shows off the artist’s skill with recreating the illusion of fabric and materials. A great example of Laic217’s work, with more to come on Natural Adventures soon.