Tag: Face 1st

1782. St Werburghs tunnel (44)

So back we go now to St Werburghs tunnel where we find another Face 1st piece, this time it is just the face and hair which has a leaf-like appearance. I think the hair might spell Face, as in other works by the artist, but I fear I am losing my grasp a little and see writing in things where there is none.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2018
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2018

I think that Face 1st tends to do a couple of these at a time when there is a paint jam in the tunnel, because there always seems to be something by him in there at any one time. This piece features his commonly used purples and pinks which often dominate his colour palettes.

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1779. St Werburghs tunnel (43)

I really hope you don’t get bored with seeing pieces by Face 1st. If you do, then just skip over this one and the next one in about four posts time and so on. You see, I like his work a lot and he manages to hit the streets a lot, which means his work will feature here a lot.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2018
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2018

This is an absolute blinder from Face 1st in St Werburghs tunnel and I had to do quite a lot of colour management on my photo editor to bring out the true colours that were swamped with orange light in my originals. Because of this manipulation these pictures can never be a true representation of the piece, so things like this really need to be seen in the flesh. Two faces and lots of adornment…each of the tear-drop things decorated differently, but each given that 3D feel. Lovely piece.

1727. M32 roundabout J3 (93)

Face 1st (F1st) is the master of getting his work squeezed into just about every corner of Bristol. At any one time, the M32 roundabout must play host to four or five of his pieces, which is pretty impressive really. I would hate to see his monthly spend on spray cans.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2018
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2018

This is a return to his more ‘traditional’ style of a pretty face incorporated into some beautifully decorated letters which usually spell out FACE, but in this instance I’m not sure about that. It is always great to see work by one of my absolute favourite Bristol artists.

1650. The Bearpit (157)

Wowzer…(not a word I use often), what a fabulous piece in The Bearpit from Face 1st. I have to say that I am just loving his development to full body pieces, and that hair…it’s just brilliant.

Face 1st, The Bearpit, Bristol, August 2018
Face 1st, The Bearpit, Bristol, August 2018

Now I happened to get really lucky a few days back and met Face 1st, Soap and Tasha Bee all at once all for the first time while they were collaborating at the M32 roundabout – more about that in another post. It was such a pleasure to meet Face 1st at last, after three years of posting, and it was rather gratifying and humbling that he had read this blog and even shared some posts with his mother. Watching these guys at work simply inspires me to get out there and start spraying – I would love to be able to do what they do as well as they do it. I guess I need to practice…a lot.

I love, love this piece, and have noticed that he is doing more of these and going big – so much to look forward to.

As an aside – this post is scheduled to publish while I am on an aeroplane bound for Italy…the wonders of modern technology.

1597. St Werburghs tunnel (30)

Members of the PWA (Pirate Wall Art) crew have been rather active of late, none more so than Face 1st. In this collaboration he is joined by his friend soap and this piece is opposite some writing, featured in an earlier post by Sikoh.

Soap and Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2018
Soap and Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2018

When Soap and Face 1st get together, they quite often create one of these vertical collaborations, with the distinctive mouths of Soap on the top and beautiful face underneath by Face 1st.

There are a couple of nice touches on the work. The hair of the girl is made up of wiriting that spells out Face, and forms the lower jaw of Soap’s mouths. There is a little slogan ‘peacefully writin’ art‘, picking up on the crew name. I am always delighted to find work by these two.

1592. The Bearpit (151)

A quick one in The Bearpit from Face 1st going back a little. The main reason that I have posted this is because I remember at the time being incenced by the aggressive graffiti cross in the middle of the face with its far right connotations. When I see this kind of disruption, my immediate thought is ‘what kind of idiot would do this?’. I guess I still find myself constantly challenged by this mindless behaviour. I know that pretty much all artists expect this on the street, but it doesn’t necessarily make it right.

Face 1st, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2018
Face 1st, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2018

I don’t think I will ever tire of Face 1st’s work, and I get real pleasure out of each and every piece of his that I find.

1574. Moon Street (47)

When I saw this piece on Face 1st’s Instagram feed, I knew I had to get down to Moon Street straight away to find it. Find it I did, and I think it is probably in my top 3 all time Face 1st pieces.

Face 1st, Moon Street, Bristol, June 2018
Face 1st, Moon Street, Bristol, June 2018

There is so much to like – rarely, if ever, have I seen more than a face in any of his characters…and here we have the full body complete with frilly pink knickers. The soft colours and tones contrast wildly with the bold graffiti aurrounding the piece, making it stand out from the crowd – it is nicely framed in the doorway.

Face 1st, Moon Street, Bristol, June 2018
Face 1st, Moon Street, Bristol, June 2018

Face 1st has always a productive artist, but recently he appears to have gone into overdrive, and he seems to be collaborating a lot too. I’m not sure where this new lease of life has come from, but whatever the reason I love it.