5102. St Werburghs tunnel (361)

Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023
Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023

Daz Cat is no stranger to painting this exact spot on the flat section of wall at the entrance to the tunnel. I like to think that the characters he paints are guardians of the tunnel, protecting the pieces within. Just a little fantasy of mine.

Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023
Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023

Indeed, Daz Cat reinforces my imaginative interpretation with this ‘Gandalf’ cat and the famous words “you shall not pass”. Daz Cat has come on such a long way over the years and his cats (and dogs) are part of the furniture, with many cat face ‘super tags’ to be found all over the city. A quick squint at this Daz Cat gallery presents, in reverse chronological order, his journey over the last five years.

4892. M32 roundabout J3 (438)

Daz Cat, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2022
Daz Cat, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2022

Quick ones this morning – a bit of Christmas ‘ground rush’ with way too much to do in a short weekend. This is a lively piece from Daz Cat in one of the tunnels under the M32 roundabout, which have had rather a low turnover in recent months.

Daz Cat, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2022
Daz Cat, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2022

Daz Cat’s work has grown over the last year or two and each piece adds a new layer of sophistication to his central cat characters. He has also created pieces which tells stories, and I wonder if this one is about heartbreak and sadness. Great colours and some real passion and emotion in this one. Poor cat.

4747. M32 Spot (147)

Daz Cat, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022
Daz Cat, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022

It would seem that after a rather dormant spell over the summer, Daz Cat is becoming a little more active again, and his pieces are definitely moving more in the direction of narratives than straightforward portraits of cats and dogs.

Daz Cat, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022
Daz Cat, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2022

In this column piece, under the M32, a cat, with a fox curled up on its head is holding a little dog and is standing next to a chicken with a frog on its head. Don’t ask what the story here is, I wouldn’t know where to begin. I prefer to enjoy the spectacle and the elements that make it up. Another fabulous us piece from Daz Cat.

4707. St Werburghs tunnel (309)

Kool Hand and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2022
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2022

I really enjoy these occasional collaborations from Daz Cat and Kool Hand, who have been teaming up for several years now. Their creations are steadily becoming more sophisticated and intricate as each of the artists improves and develops.

Kool Hand and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2022
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2022

Both artists have created characters on hoverboards, cruising through a deep red, starlit sky. Kool Hand has a crocodile on a ‘Silver Surfer’ kind of board and Daz Cat has painted an elaborate Ms cat with loads of detail in the face and clothing. The whole thing is an effective and atmospheric work, creating an exciting and dynamic scene.

4646. Dean Lane skate park (520)

Zake, Conrico and Daz Cat, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2022
Zake, Conrico and Daz Cat, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2022

I have not missed my routine tours around Bristol photographing street art, while I have been away, it is good to have a break from routines, but it is one of the things that will soften the blow of returning home.

Zake, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2022
Zake, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2022

Shortly before leaving Bristol I managed to photograph the curved wall in Dean Lane, with this fine collaboration between Zake, Conrico and Daz Cat. The Zake portrait is a fine 3/4 profile of a woman with fine blonde hair. Very nicely done.

Conrico and Daz Cat, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2022
Conrico and Daz Cat, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2022

The main part of the wall is slightly crazy and brilliant all at the same time. The dragon hatching from an egg in front of a mountain and desert scene is by Conrico, and the cats, but Daz Cat, although I am not sure if the larger orange cat is a cat. A refreshingly different kind of collaboration from these three.

4614. Purdown (45)

Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, July 2022
Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, July 2022

I am missing my regular dose of Daz Cat pieces this year… he definitely seems to be on a bit of a go slow as far as work on the streets is concerned. It was a nice surprise, therefore, to find this new piece up at Purdown recently. The battery area has been closed for a period, while the council constructed a tarmac pathway through the site, which I must say is a huge improvement, because it is prone to get extremely muddy in the winter.

Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, July 2022
Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, July 2022

This piece, counter-intuitively, is of two dogs, and the portraits are rather sophisticated, taking in different view points of the dog’s faces. This is an absolutely lovely piece and seems a little bit more earnest than some of his comic or satirical work. I like it a lot, especially as the green one could easily be a portrait of my very own canine.

4529. St Werburghs tunnel (298)

It feels like an age since I last saw a collaborative piece by Daz Cat and CDTC, probably because it has been an age. Neither artist has been out and about much this year, certainly nowhere near as much as during the lock down periods.

CDTC and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2022
CDTC and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2022

This is rather a nice piece, working to both artist’s strengths. To the left is an exploding head with a comic book orange ‘KAPOW’ burst across the character’s eyes by CDTC, painted with nice clean lines and interesting feature shading in the face. To the right, a rather sullen-looking cat wearing a fetching blue hoodie looks to be prepping a wall with a long roller. Again, care and attention have gone into this piece which is very nicely finished. This was a pleasant surprise to stumble across in the tunnel.

4357. Brunel Way (150)

Although Daz Cat has been a little quiet of late, apart from a smattering of quickie cat faces, when he does have time he creates something magnificent, like this recent cat down by the river under Brunel Way.

Daz Cat, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2022
Daz Cat, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2022

This piece is a dreamy look forward to the summer and days of warmth, shorts and ice lollies. The cat is one of Daz Cat’s full length versions and tells a story, rather than just a static piece. I’m not too sure what the pink lines on the shorts are, but some idiot has ‘augmented’ the piece, which is a pity. All in all rather wonderful stuff.

4238. Dean Lane skate park (461)

At the back end of 2021 Daz Cat went through something of a purple patch, producing some of his best work to date, in my opinion. What is comforting to see is that he continues to paint his ‘bread and butter’ smaller cats all over the place of which this is a great example.

Daz Cat, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2022
Daz Cat, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2022

Nicely done in chrome on an existing red background, this throw-up cat brightens up the end of this ramp, and puts his stamp out there loud and clear. Plenty more smaller pieces from Daz Cat in the pipeline.

4195. Purdown AA Battery (40)

Although Daz Cat has been steadily active over the last few weeks, I haven’t been able to find space to post any of his work, such is the volume of new pieces being produced like a relentless incoming tide, one which I welcome of course. I have a few in my folders that I need to share. I keep telling myself that I’ll be able to share them during a quiet period, but I don’t think such a thing exists.

Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, December 2021
Daz Cat, Purdown, Bristol, December 2021

This cat piece has been sprayed on one of the square concrete slabs which appear to have been built to protect the store areas around each gun emplacement, and which make splendid canvasses. Featuring a Daz Cat cat, it would seem that the artist has joined the ranks of street art philosophers with the written phrase “Never enough, show me new pathways. More than enough, put me in my place”, which on doing a quick Interweb search looks like it is an original thought. The cat itself in 3/4 aspect is superbly well painted and looks to have taken longer to paint than some of his throw up cats.