This is one of the best walls in Moon Street (Stokes Croat even). It stands out, is a great size, and allows only for one piece at a time, giving the artist space to frame the piece nicely. Mr Klue is, I would suggest, the best abstract street artist in Bristol – instantly recognisable and very easy on the eye.
Tucked over to one side of the Bearpit, near the Premier Inn Hotel, I found this rather nice collaboration between Jee See and Mr Klue. In this piece we see the typical styles of each of these street artists. Mr Klue treats us to his swirling patterns in rich purples and lilacs, while Jee See offers a stencil of a girl with a revolutionary Castro look about her – a stencil I have seen repeatedly about Bristol.
This really is an astonishing wall by Kleiner Shames. It is outstanding not only in its sheer scale, but also in the colours and designs incorporated. The mural seems to be telling several stories.I love Kleiner Shames’ work, indeed I have some of it hanging on my walls at home. Rather than string out a laboured description of each photograph I will simply show them below as a series of pictures, taken from left to right of the mural. Simply superb work.
Deep in the heart of Montpelier (Alex Lucas land) there is a recent, and rather small, addition to the street art landscape. A hare and a purple baloon, which might be a reference to her work with the Ribena Colouring Cafe in Covent Garden.
Every now and then I begin to think I know quite a lot about street art in Bristol. I write about it every day, and feature dozens of different artists in this blog. And then…I visit one of my favourite sites and see this, and realise I have so much more to learn.
It is always exciting coming across a new artist, but also a little threatening…how could I have missed them? Who are they? Are they local? Many doubts begin to challenge your knowledge and credibility. Then I have the light-bulb moment…I am doing this for fun, not to be judged. This is not work, it is a passion, and learning and discovery are my companions on this journey. I didn’t know anything about Mr Penfold (Tim Gresham), before I saw this, maybe I should have done but I have never seen his work before. This piece is so different and eye-catching, I had to find out more and write about it.
Mr Penfold (thirty-something) is originally from Cambridge, now based in Bristol, and works using various media and surfaces. Clearly a disciplined designer, he applies his talents to graphics, advertising, painting and street art. His work is very distinctive, and appears to draw on what I consider to be quite an ’80s and ’90s look. On reading his Facebook page I see that he has done another recent piece near where I work, so watch this space for more Mr Penfold.
Sorry about the water on the lens!
Well there’s a story to tell here. For such a long time I thought this Bristol-based street artist was called Fois, after all, most of his pieces contained the word, and many of the Bristol writers use their names, or corruptions of them and paint under those names…Deamze, Sled One, Epok, Soker, Inkie, and so on. Well not this artist.
The last time I featured him on this blog, I had established that he was actually called Kleiner Shames, Jimmy Kleiner Shames. Once again it was Instagram that came to my rescue. Then it gets a whole lot better. Kleiner Shames recently cleared out his studio because he is moving to London (booo!) and was offering some studio paintings for sale. I ended up buying two from him – he is an exceptional talent and I love his work. He is such a decent bloke, he even offered to deliver the pictures in person.
The piece he did for Upfest contains everything you would expect; architectural features, diagonal lines, hands, pastel colours and a wonderful retro feel. I wish him well with his move to London and hope he’ll be back in Bristol to brighten up our walls. We’ll miss him…Fois forever.
This is a curious piece…a cat with a fish tail. It was created on the same day as this work by ObjectØØØ and posted as a short film on her Instagram account. Her work is really beautiful, and in addition to her designs, she takes to the streets every so often. I think Dean Lane is a place she enjoys working…I think I have seen two or three of her pieces there.
This particular work, I guess, was done fairly quickly, but I know she has done some rather more substantial pieces recently. Her Instagram account is a busy place, and she can usually be found sticking out her tongue at every possible opportunity. A breath of fresh air.
Another winning bird, this time a Blue Jay – not a native of Britain – by Aspire. I have run out of things to say about Aspire’s work. It is simply fabulous, and I am lucky to have such a talented artist in the neighbourhood.
Accompanying him on this occasion is the unmistakable work of Mr Klue. The swirling pattern working off the right hand side of the bird. Two great local artists keeping things fresh.
It has been a little while since I last posted anything by Alex Lucas. This wonderful piece has decorated the Little Shop for a few years now and sits right on the cusp of Cheltenham Road and Stokes Croft – both street names appear in the featured image.
In this commissioned mural Lucas does what she does so very well. Rabbits. Wonderful line drawings of rabbits interspersed with what appear to be pineapples. This junction with Ashley Road is really at the heart of Bohemian Bristol and there is barely a building without some kind of street art decorating it. I have the pleasure of walking this way to work every day (in the Summer at least) and never tire of this Lucas work.
The left hand side of the building is part of the 123 Space – a gallery which is linked to the People’s Republic of Stokes Croft (PRSC) next door. The 123 Space is a place for the local art community to create, connect, dream and build together. The Facebook page is here.
This has been a mystery for far too long, but yesterday I cracked it. This fantastic piece, and genuinely one of my absolute favourites, is a collaboration by Tom Deams (Deamze) – more about him in his rather excellent website – and Georgina Anton, a Bristol-based artist with early roots in graffiti. Her biography can be found here.
There is something so clean and soothing about this burner. The proportions are fantastic, the lettering wonderful, the word ‘utopia’ just seems to work and the design filling the letters is beautiful. It was unsigned, and so it has been very hard to identify. It was only yesterday that I caught a glimpse of the piece in Deamze’s portfolio that I was able to find out more. The piece has long since gone, but at least I can now sleep easy at night.
