Tag: Cumberland Basin

3916. Cumberland Basin

It feels like I took this photograph an age ago, and in fact it was painted at the back end of July and photographed in early August. Where has this year gone? My life seems to have been travelling at light speed this year… probably a feature of getting older and trying to squeeze more into less time.

This wonderful piece by MoS was painted during Eman’s birthday paint jam at which so many good pieces were painted. It was an inspirational day.

MoS, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021
MoS, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021

I believe that MoS typically paints hands or portraits, so this ‘weird’ (his own words) piece is rather unusual even for the artist. I’m not entirely sure what it all means, but it is certainly very striking and the light tan glow around the piece gives it an interesting aura. Nice work from yet another new artist to Natural Adventures.

3911. Cumberland Basin

One of the genuine delights of having an interest in street and graffiti art is watching newcomers develop. And so meeting Oma while she was painting this fabulous Bristol fox, one of only a handful of street pieces she has painted, was an immense pleasure. The fox was painted as part of the birthday paint jam for Eman at the back end of July.

Oma, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021
Oma, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021

The work in progress shot is particularly interesting in that you can see that Oma has drawn several outlines before settling on one and building the piece from there. I love the colour combinations she uses, they are quite unusual and make her work stand out.

Oma, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021
Oma, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021

Foxes appear so much in Bristol street art, and I am minded to do a gallery of them… perhaps when I have some time. I love this piece a lot, and although there is much to learn (I speak as one who has even more to learn), she has incorporated some wonderful elements and technique (shading, colour combinations, textures) into the subject. I am so looking forward to seeing more from Oma. I have one or two pieces in archive that I will try to dig out.

3891. Cumberland Basin

This extraordinary piece from Nightwayss is really pushing boundaries for the artist and is notable for its absence of monkeys. I believe that the piece might be based on a self portrait, and there seems to be some agonising soul-searching going on here.

Nightwayss, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021
Nightwayss, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021

The piece was painted as part of Eman’s birthday paint jam, so I had a chance to catch up with Nightwayss. Unfortunately his effervescence slightly freaked out my long-suffering dog, who is dragged around Bristol’s graffiti spots, and who decided to bark a lot every time Nightwayss tried to stroke him, rendering conversation a little tricky.

Nightwayss, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021
Nightwayss, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021

There is no doubt that Nightwayss is a very skilled artist, and he has pulled off this concept very well, with the face and skull beautifully finished. An unusual and compelling piece.

3888. Cumberland Basin

I have enjoyed the work of Mr Draws over the years and enjoy his company too so it was mighty fine to see him joining in with Eman’s birthday paint jam down in Cumberland Basin at the end of July.

Mr Draws, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021
Mr Draws, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021

Mr Draws has taken a slight departure from his customary ‘DRAWS’ letters to create this rather nice ‘My happy place’ piece. The letter style and fill are very ‘Mr Draws’ if that makes sense, particularly the pink camouflage patterned fills. A happy piece for a happy day.

3881. Cumberland Basin

As a long-time admirer of Flava136’s work, it was a real treat to meet the artist for the first time during a paint jam on the long wall at Cumberland Basin. As is so often the case when meeting these folk, he was an awful lot younger than I had expected, but isn’t that what old people say about everyone?

Flava136, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021
Flava136, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021

Watching Flava136 bring this piece together was an education, and his skill and technique shone through in his ability to keep such clean lines throughout. The design and colour selections of this one are quite exceptional, and I think this might be my favourite of his yet.

Flava136, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021
Flava136, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021

Featuring a kind of mash-up of a monster and some abstract artwork, Flava136’s work is always instantly recognisable and definitely a crowd-pleaser. Although he doesn’t live in Bristol, he manages to visit reasonably regularly which can only be a good thing. Excellent piece.

3879. Cumberland Basin

More often than not, I try to avoid posting pictures with shadows on them, because they can obscure the artwork or distract the eye. In this instance though I think the shadows add to the overall drama of the piece by 3F fino.

3F Fino, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021
3F Fino, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021

The piece, from a little while back, shares a theme that 3F fino has painted before of a portrait of a masked figure. Set in an urban landscape at sunset (or sunrise, it is always difficult to know which) the piece is incorporated into the brickwork of the wall, something I always like. A nice eye-catching piece.

3876. Cumberland Basin

Watching Zake apply the light and dark shading to this fabulous piece during Eman’s birthday paint jam was a real pleasure. He has become something of a specialist at refining the effects of light and dark on his faces with the light source in this case coming from the left hand side. This clever shading exaggerates the features and created more of a 3D effect.

Zake, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021
Zake, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021

Although his English isn’t great, it was nice to be able to talk with him for a while about his technique. Like all the artists around him on the day, he really seems to enjoy what he does. My only regret from the day is that when I returned the next day to take photographs of the finished pieces, three of them, including Eman’s, had been painted over.

3871. Cumberland Basin

It was really great to catch up with DFC1848 when he was painting this piece during a paint jam for Eman’s birthday at the beginning of August. The sun was out, there was a fabulous turnout of artists and all was good with the world.

DFC1848, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021
DFC1848, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021

DFC1848 has painted a few of these ‘double’ characters and in this one continues to add in title flashes and decorations, always looking to add complexity to his designs. One of the things I really like about this is how he has ‘stitched’ the two halves together with a bit of cord, rather like Andy Councils recent pieces.

DFC1848, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021
DFC1848, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2021

A nice clean piece and a fun character, DFC1848 is going from strength to strength. During our chat he kept on telling me to get out and paint. I really do need to do something about this state of affairs having talked about it for the last couple of years.

3827. Cumberland Basin

Sometimes it is the originality and impact of a piece that draws attention, and this dragon’s eye by Wilter Worm, a Bristol artist who also goes by a more familiar name – Eman. I am not sure why he paints under different names, it is something some artists do, but I will ask him when I next see him.

Wilter Worm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021
Wilter Worm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2021

This close-up detailed piece is so compelling and the scales, horns and eye really nicely done. A labour of love which I expect took a little while to complete. I am a big fan of this kind of work, and once again it shows off the versatility of the artist.

3819. Cumberland Basin

One of many great things about summer is that is gets people outdoors more often and in particular, artists who might be more familiar with their studios get a chance to express themselves by painting a few walls. This piece by Yoliws was created during a paint jam organised by the Bristol Womxn Mural Collective a few weeks back.

Yoliws, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2021
Yoliws, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2021

Although Yoliws doesn’t paint walls too often, her style is highly memorable and always rather fun and joyful. The figures she paints are wobbly and stylised, the sorts of things that would work really well on cards or illustrating the pages of children’s books. Simple and beautiful.