A gallery of wonderful street art cats and more from Bristol’s Daz Cat.
Instagram: @dazcatgraff
All photographs by Scooj
Daz Cat
Tag: Daz Cat
2955. M32 Cycle path (59)
I can definitely say that is has been a joy to start finding new pieces dotted around Bristol, and I expect a surge of street/graffiti art over the coming weeks as artists come out of full lock down. Some will inevitable end up in my archive for another day, but I will try to post as many as I am able.
This is a super-quick one from Daz Cat in bright and cheerful colours. I really rather like it, and although it is definitely a little bit rough around the edges, it is a striking piece (and one I can use for a future Thurdsay doors post).
2934. M32 Spot (68)
Yes, I’m still working through my archives, unearthing some of the nice pieces that got left behind, which is inevitable when I can only post two new works a day. This is a rather nice column piece from Daz Cat back in July 2018.
Yesterday’s second post was by Kool Hand, and given that these two like to paint together, this might have been sprayed during the same session. Daz Kat usually, but not always, paints cat faces each of which has its own character and colours. The text reads ‘scum triumphant’ – I’m not too sure what it means but it is a good graffiti message. I like the work of Daz Cat, it has a gritty and slightly edgy feel to it, which is what this is all about.
2716. Purdown HAA Battery (2)
Back to the battery, and this time a piece by Daz Cat painted back in August last year. This is a rather touching and gentle piece with the cat holding a little bird on its hand. I rather hope that this is a kind gesture rather than a hungry cat one.
The shadow on the piece fortunately doesn’t iterfere too much. Daz Cat’s work has really grown on me over the last couple of years, and I love the way he constructs the cat’s faces, this one in semi-profile, so the eyes are quite different. I love the signature mark above the nose that appears on all Daz Cats’ cats. More from this spot to come.
2681. St Werburghs tunnel (129)
This is Daz Cat’s first piece of 2020 and what a humdinger it is too. On his Instagram feed he talks about the new letter style, which I think works pretty well although I’m not sure it matches the style of the ‘lynx’ – it is almost as if this were a collaboration of two artists.
The lynx is rather special both in design and in colour selection and naturally carries the signature polygon on its forehead – a tell tale sign that this is a Daz Cat piece. All in all a great start to the decade from an artist I’ve yet to meet… it is only a matter of time.
2668. M32 roundabout J3 (185)
Daz Cat has been relatively quiet over the last couple of months, so it was good to find this cat piece which has been sprayed over a chrome cat he painted in the same spot a few months back.
Many of his pieces tend to be pretty quick and dirty, that is to say they are really good, but are not as crisp as some of the more designed pieces about the place. I am guessing that his cat began life as an elaborate tag that has become something of a trademark for the artist. Maybe it is because I like cats, but I really enjoy finding work from Daz Cat when I’m out and about.
2442. St Werburghs tunnel (98)
Not long ago, this rather fun collaboration appeared at the farm end of St Werburghs tunnel. It is painted by Daz Cat on the left and CD on the right and while I am familiar with the former, I have never come across CD before this and another collaboration between the two. Perhaps he was just visiting Bristol.
I am used to seeing cats and dogs by Daz Cat, but even though I know he has done giraffes before, this is the first one I have seen and whaty a nice tidy piece it is too. There is an interesting ‘fairy tale’ type character in the centre of the piece nestling in the curled neck of the giraffe. A curious image, but rather compelling.
On the right hand side is a rather tight piece of a grimacing face having a smoke, with excess smoke wafting around the whole wall. The colour pallette is nicely balanced and it is amazing how well light blue and pink work together – I used to have a light blue fleece with pink trim that I bought in Jasper, British Colombia and it was my favourite item of clothing for many years. I can’t put my finger on it, but there is something about this work that I really like – maybe it is the rather surreal nature of the piece, I don’t know. A nice introduction to CD’s work.
2424. Dean Lane skate park (245)
What a lovely surprise, two of my favourite artists collaborating on one of my favourite walls, and look at all that orange. This collaboration went up on the wall where the Inkie piece had been for quite some while and which had become a bit tagged, so it is nice to refresh the wall.
On the left Face 1st has painted one of his faces with hair that spells out FACE. I have noticed that several of his recent pieces have taken this portrait format with this rather more obvious writing in the hair, and it is something the artist is obviously playing with at the moment.The colours and fill patterns are wonderful but that winking girl is irresistable.
On the right, is a stunning gold cat from the prolific Daz Cat. I wonder if he is continuing the theme from his piece at the M32 roundabout of gold v chrome, the colours of this piece might suggest that. The writing ‘a cat’ is suitably chrome. Different styles, but together this girl and cat make a lovely pair. More please.
2410. M32 roundabout J3 (160)
I might have said it recently, but I’ll say it again just in case, Daz Cat has been really productive lately and he is stretching his repetoire of work through original ideas and collaborations and it is a pleasure to watch.
Rather kindly, Bristol City Council have buffed a few walls on the M32 roundabout and one of the first to occupy the new clean space was Daz Cat with this entertaining pair of cats painted on either side of an entrance to one of the pedestrian/bicycle underpasses. On the left is a gold cat speaking the word ‘chrome’.
On the right of the tunnel is a chrome cat saying the word ‘gold’. This appears to be a cat conversation with each calling out the other’s name. It is a lovely idea nicely executed, and what fun Daz Cat must have had painting this blank canvas. With any luck the council will buff a few more walls on this roundabout, enabling a bit of a refresh. I fear that this was not their intention, but hey ho.
2389. M32 Spot (46)
Daz Cat is knocking himself out with some really wonderful and creative work at the moment and this fine lion column piece at the M32 Spot is a prime example. The quote at the bottom would have remained a mystery to me, but luckily Paulh121 wrote up this piece on his instagram feed and had this to say (sorry Paul for borrowing your words, I hope you don’t mind):
‘Ye Are Many They Are Few Ye Are Many’ and so says @dazcatgraff and indeed so did English poet Shelley back in 1819 when the poem ‘The Masque Of Anarchy’ from which this quote has been taken, although it wasn’t published until 1832.
The piece itself is full of movement, emotion and I might say rage, perhaps a commentary about the terrible times we live in, and the catastrophic and selfish Prime Minister who will lead us to misery for the many and prosperity for the few. Even if the piece has nothing to do with that, it at least inspired me to say it.
