I reckon that for every piece by Phour that I include in Natural Adventures, there are probably two or three that remain in my archives. This is unfortunate, because I like his work very much, there is something about the letter form that works very well for me. The strong ‘P’ is a great way to start the word.
Phour, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2023
In this piece, Phour has gone for chrome letters with a black 3D drop shadow and yellow border, simple and effective. To add a bit of interest and lift the letters a little, Phour has added a marble effect and some cracks that mimic a stone surface. The fill bleeds from letter to letter, creating a large slab of writing. A lovely piece well finished.
Cumberland Basin is a bit of a generic area name that I use to describe quite a large space north of the bridge over the River Avon. This particular piece from Mote is on the Eastern edge of the Cumberland Basin area, adjacent to one of the very large warehouses that fringe this part of the river.
Mote, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2023
The large piece is another bird-monster character, this time double-ended and with a fluffy thing in the middle. I am not too sure the middle section works too well, as it interrupts the flow through the creature. Mote might have added it in to fill the space, but more conventional patterns and colours might have done the job. It is clear that the middle section is by Mote, but it looks like it could have been a creative addition by a different artist altogether. Still an immensely enjoyable piece though.
Susannah Peacock, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Susannah Peacock is a Bristol artist and illustrator, who, I understand from our conversations, has designed some very successful greetings cards and is also responsible for ‘decorating’ one of the Bristol Unicorns currently on display in the city. Her work is especially appealing to children, having that picture book illustration style.
Susannah Peacock, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
The mermaid mural was painted over two or three days of the Bristol Mural Collective’s paint jam a few weeks back. The work in progress shot demonstrated how much work went into the piece. There is no doubt that the BMC paint jams introduce a whole new aspect to the street art scene and gives studio artists the opportunity to express themselves on large outdoor, public ‘canvasses’.
Susannah Peacock, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
We live in a crazy world. Technically speaking there are no legal walls in Bristol, and yet it is one of the most decorated cities in the UK. Everyone who paints walls in Bristol without permission is at risk of being arrested. Although a ‘blind-eye’ approach tends to prevail, it doesn’t mean that enforcement doesn’t happen. It would make so much sense to introduce some curated legal walls for so many talented artists to make use of. Maybe one day…
Although this is his debut piece, Scooj needs no introduction on Natural Adventures. He finally got the courage to paint his first wall during a Bristol Mural Collective paint jam a few weeks ago on a warm and very windy afternoon.
Scooj, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
To be brutally honest his work probably doesn’t match up to his ambition, but the abstract piece is certainly a little different from most of the work seen in the city. There might be a very good reason for that. Some bright colours distract a little from the overall untidy finishing, but for a first effort the piece is passable.
Scooj, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Scooj is not an artist, and so it will be vital to practice his spray skills and hand control, and come up with designs he can execute. This piece is a little muddled, and the ‘holes’ cut through the yellow might be perceived as moons. My advice to Scooj would be don’t give up just yet, keep practising and hit a few more walls. Hats off to the Bristol Mural Collective for creating a gateway for new artists to have a go at painting in a fun and safe environment.
The first time I saw this piece from Acer One, I was puzzled by it, because it was a simple black piece of writing, and if I am perfectly honest I was slightly underwhelmed. I was also being incredibly thick, because it was a work in progress, and a few days later he returned to complete it. It turns out that the black was the shadow, and I should have known that. It also provides a little insight into how Acer One layers his work.
Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2023
The writing says ‘it’s all love’, which I think most people could probably rally behind. The letters adopt Acer One’s favoured colour palettes of the moment, showing the light spectrum sequence of colours. Appropriate too, perhaps, as we mark Pride Month, which I am guessing this piece might have been a precursor to.
Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
It is always great to see Acer One’s work, and he has made this particular spot his own. I thought I’d include this shot of my dog’s rear end for good measure.
One of the refreshing things about the Bristol Mural Collective paint jams is that most of the pieces created are murals predominantly painted with materials other than spray cans, which brings a whole other dimension to the spectrum of styles and techniques used to paint our walls. This is a moody mother earth piece from Urban Fay.
Urban Fay, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
I am always likely to enjoy environmental pieces, and this one hits the spot. A reclining figure melds into the hillside while a red sun sets on the horizon with telegraph poles hugging the crest of the hill. There are some words to the right of the piece which say. “Suffering a sea change, we rearrange into entirely new shapes”. The female figure’s tears join the river that meanders down the contours of her face to the sea.
Urban Fay, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Zooming in, there is detail so small on the figure’s face in the form of tiny little fir trees. This is an unusual piece, which we would be unlikely to see without the great organising skills of Nina Raines and the Bristol Mural Collective.
The Bristol Mural Collective, formerly the Bristol Womxn Mural Collective, is a loose aggregation of artists in Bristol, organised by women and with a focus on creating a safe space for women and others to paint on the streets of Bristol. Through their paint jams, they provide an access point for artists to transfer their studio skills to a street scenario, and also for wannabe street artists to gain confidence with expressing themselves and getting a toe hold in the slightly intimidating scene.
The most recent paint jam was held on the 25/26 June 2023 and took up half the long wall at Cumberland Basin, involving some 9 or 10 artists, one of whom was the lovely Esme Lower.
Esme Lower, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Esme Lower’s highly stylised figures are in a yoga pose and have exaggerated hands and feet, and tiny little heads, a theme/concept that Esme told me she enjoys painting. When I watched her roughly half way through painting this superb mural, I wasn’t quite sure how it would all come together, but she absolutely smashed it in my view. The design is one that I could easily see gracing the front of a greetings card or as a wall poster. There is definitely a Matisse influence in there somewhere.
The paint jam was enjoyable if not a little windy, but with superb views of the Clifton Suspension Bridge and the River Avon, it must be one of the best spots for artists in the city.
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
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.
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
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
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
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.
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
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.
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