Tag: Design

4669. Sparke Evans Park (53)

Rusk, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, August 2022
Rusk, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, August 2022

After what seems like a very long absence, Upfest apart, Rusk has been hitting Bristol pretty hard lately, perhaps encouraged by his pal Zesk, who has been visiting and with whom he has painted a couple of collaborative walls. Anything that gets Rusk out painting has to be good.

Rusk, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, August 2022
Rusk, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, August 2022

This is an unusual and really rather beautifully designed piece from the writer. Spelling our RUSK in ‘ribbon’ letters and augmented with an abstract pink accent line, there is a great sense of proportion, colour tones and overall freshness that makes this piece an absolute classic. Not edgy, not rough and ready, but intelligent, well-thought-out and artistic. This is a next-level piece from Rusk (in my view).

4618. Cumberland Basin

Pl8o, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2022
Pl8o, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2022

If you take a look at Pl8o’s work over the last few years, it is clear to see that he has made significant progress, added characters to his work and great sophistication in his letters, which are becoming more and more elaborately disguised.

Pl8o, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2022
Pl8o, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2022

This recent offering from Pl8o Is beautifully designed and carefully painted with some interesting colour transitions vertically and horizontally. It is the letter designs that steal the show though, he really seems to be putting a lot more thought into these designs. A nice piece from Pl8o.

4415. Greenbank (42)

This piece is not bad for a tattoo artist, not bad at all, in fact it is blooming marvellous, and Etza has absolutely smashed it with this enormous floral piece, painted alongside his collaboration pal Chill. The piece is something really quite different and most arresting.

Etza, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2022
Etza, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2022

Etza has created a clean and sharp flower in rich red, yellow and black colours that has all the hallmarks of a sumptuous wallpaper design. There is a strong field of floral artist in the UK, including our own Alex Lucas, and Philth, who I think works out of London. This piece would sit proudly alongside those others, and proudly so. Finding this was a surprise and a pleasure.

3896. Upfest 2021 75×75 (48)

I first came across the work of Elaine Carr (Instagram – Cuicasolo) when I saw her iconic ‘Bristol’ piece in Dean Lane, painted across someone’s garden fence and gates. It was obvious even then that she is a talented artist and designer. Elaine Carr has a career in model making and set design, amongst other things, and has had little time for painting street walls, but from the small number of pieces I have seen, they are first class.

Cuicasolo, Greville Road, Bristol, August 2021, Upfest 21
Cuicasolo, Greville Road, Bristol, August 2021, Upfest 21

Although a little tricky to access, this is a beautiful and very stylish mural by Elaine Carr in the little outdoor seating area of the Hen and Chicken on North Street. The architectural design has all sorts of false perspectives and 3D tricks, not unlike the work of Escher. The subtle tones and colours are sublime and the including of a little bit of green landscape is very clever. I love this piece, which amply demonstrates the range and variety of walls painted at this year’s Upfest 75×75 event.

3894. Upfest 2021 75×75 (47)

For the first time during Upfest’s 75 walls in 75 days summer event I find myself a little baffled. This piece by Jay Sharples, an Upfest veteran, leaves me a little cold. It is technically beautifully painted and has a very strong design element which works well in the space, but it just doesn’t do it for me, which is a pity, because I like Jay Sharples’ work very much. I guess I can’t like everything.

Jay Sharples, North Street, Bristol, August 2021, Upfest 21
Jay Sharples Street, Bristol, August 2021, Upfest 21

The black and pink stripes are very striking and the contrast is very eye-catching. I am guessing that there was a lot of masking tape involved in the painting of this piece. I have a feeling that Jay Sharples may have left us a little present elsewhere in Bristol, rather more akin to his usual work. I thought I’d just include a previous Upfest piece from the artist below for comparison.

Jay Sharples, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Jay Sharples, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

3810. Upfest 2021 75×75 (17)

Although we might not have seen as many international artists joining in with Upfest’s 75 walls in 75 days event as we might have expected in a non-COVID year we have seen a lot of artists from all over the UK come to Bristol and brighten up our walls with their extraordinary talent. Fem Sorcell is a Cumbrian artist based in Sheffield whose arrival on the street art scene has come via textile design, illustration, art directing, prosthetics and makeup for film.

Fem Sorcell, North Street Standard, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 21
Fem Sorcell, North Street Standard, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 21

This unusual piece is beautifully designed and crafted to fit the space perfectly and contains some great colours and details that demand more than a cursory glance. There are one or two elements that remind me a little of our own Bex Glover, particularly the red, yellow and white petals.

Sadly this was one of the dozen or so Upfest pieces that was vandalised earlier this week by some absolute idiot. There really are no words.

3746. Upfest 2021 75×75 (2)

Adding to the challenge of keeping up with the turnover of street art in Bristol has been the recent unveiling of Upfest’s 75 new walls painted in 75 days. Not only is this a huge undertaking by Upfest, in what has been a very disrupted two years, but is a major challenge for me to keep up with. At the time of writing I have seen about eight or nine new pieces with several more on the go.

Mr Penfold, Church Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 2021
Mr Penfold, Church Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 2021

Any regular readers will probably recognise this massive mural as being by Bristol artist and designer Mr Penfold. In this piece he has gone large, but that rather suits his style of big bold designs and colours.

Mr Penfold, Church Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 2021
Mr Penfold, Church Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 2021

This particular wall is one that has hosted some amazing pieces and this is yet another one in that series. I have to say that this one went under my radar and I didn’t know that Mr Penfold had painted it until he posted it on Instagram, hence no WIP shots.

Mr Penfold, Church Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 2021
Mr Penfold, Church Road, Bristol, June 2021, Upfest 2021

Although a stunning feature wall for Upfest, it is one of the trickier ones to photograph, especially in summer when the tree is in full leaf. It is always great to see new Mr Penfold pieces and this one is a real beauty.

3701. Anchor Road (4)

The slowness with which I have photographed and posted some pieces this year is an artefact of the lockdown as there are some parts of town that I simply don’t go to any more since I stopped going into the office. Anchor Road is one of those places. This piece by Paul Monsters was painted quite some time ago, but I only photographed it last weekend.

Paul Monsters, Anchor Road, Bristol, May 2021
Paul Monsters, Anchor Road, Bristol, May 2021

This container has had some memorable pieces on it, notably from Andrew Burns Colwill and SPZero76, so it is fitting to have an eye catching geometric design from Paul Monsters here too. Using his customary colour shades and shapes Paul has turned a drab surface into a vibrant living 3D piece of art for the citizens of Bristol to enjoy, and keeps up the fine tradition associated with this otherwise rather ugly storage unit. Excellent work.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Anchor Road, Bristol, January 2017
Andrew Burns Colwill, Anchor Road, Bristol, January 2017

SPZero76, Anchor Road, Bristol, October 2017
SPZero76, Anchor Road, Bristol, October 2017

3680. Bedminster Parade

It has taken me a while to get round to posting this wonderful facade piece from Paul Monsters which in its short lifetime has become a bit of a landmark on Bedminster Parade. What a fabulous boost murals can give to an area, and this is a prime example, I am only surprised that it doesn’t happen an awful lot more than it does.

Paul Monsters, Bedminster Parade, Bristol, April 2021
Paul Monsters, Bedminster Parade, Bristol, April 2021

Paul Monsters’ designs are instantly recognisable and combining his shades of colours with geometric patterns lift the work creating a clever 3D effect. Definitely eye catching even for those with their heads buried in their mobile devices. Let’s get the whole city brightened up! More like this please Paul.

3526. Temple Way (3)

In have held on to this piece in my archive for way too long, and spurred on by the surge of recent pieces by Acer One, I wanted to share this geometric piece that is quite different from his more recent stuff, but still carries that heavily designed feel to it.

Acer One, Temple Way, Bristol, September 2020
Acer One, Temple Way, Bristol, September 2020

The hoardings on Temple Way around a huge development will in time be removed, but at least the developers had the foresight to commission some pieces which have not only brightened up this very dull bit of road, but have also gone a long way to keeping taggers at bay. This design is not only beautiful but has been meticulously painted by Acer One. I am becoming a very big fan.