Tag: Face 1st

2269. M32 roundabout J3 (147)

Back to one of my trusty favourites with this beautiful piece at the M32 roundabout by Face 1st. Here he returns to his winning format of a sweet face covered with sumptuously decorated hair which spells out FACE if you look carefully.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2019
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2019

I like the way that Face 1st has diversified over the last few months, but kept these great face pieces in his locker. I hope to come across Face 1st again this summer and tell him that he has inspired me to give it a go myself. I tried copying one of his simple faces, but it didn’t work out too well. More to come from this Bristol stalwart.

2218. Moon Street (68)

Aah… Moon Street, one of the last remaining strongholds for street/graffiti art in the Stokes Croft area. Gentrification has arrived and is accelerating and it won’t be too long before most of these walls are gone and replaced with yet more student accommodations. The entire city is being overrun with these, surely the bubble has to burst at some point.

Anyhow, here we have quite an unusual and rather lovely little piece by Face 1st in one of his favoured spots.

Face 1st, Moon Street, Bristol, May 2019
Face 1st, Moon Street, Bristol, May 2019

I think that this might have been a bit of a practice, because since he painted this apple in Moon Street, I have seen it (on Instagram) as part of a collaboration elsewhere in Bristol… I must hunt it down, one of many that I haven’t yet found. Face 1st’s characteristic girl’s face is incorporated as part of an apple which appears to have been sliced and has ‘stuff’ brains maybe falling out. A slightly macabre scene and unusual for Face 1st who normally paints such charming faces. Nice to see him pushing the boundaries.

2157. M32 Spot (40)

I spotted this one a couple of days ago while searching out some of my favourite spots. I almost drove straight past without seeing it because it is a thin bit of one way road with double yellow lines that is difficult to be observant and drive properly.  I just caught it out of the corner of my vision and parked up further on.

Face 1st, M32 Spot, Bristol, April 2019
Face 1st, M32 Spot, Bristol, April 2019

Ah what joy, Face 1st at his best with my favourite beautiful character. This is a large piece on a great wall which allows Face 1st to show us what he can do. The striking thing for me is the flowing pink hair that has been filled with pretty intricate patterns that give it something special. This kind of filling is a technique used by a few other Bristol artists such as Tasha Bee.

Face 1st, M32 Spot, Bristol, April 2019
Face 1st, M32 Spot, Bristol, April 2019

The other obvious feature of the piece is the skull being held by the woman. I have seen this before in Face 1st’s work and must remember to ask him what it symbolises next time I see him. I love this piece and am so glad I managed to see it in such good condition.

2093. Lawrence Hill roundabout (6)

It seems that I have been a bit of a latecomer to the Lawrence Hill roundabout tunnels… well you can’t be everywhere can you? Although most of the graffiti in the tunnels is nothing to write home about, there are a few decent pieces, including this wonderful collaboration between Tasha Bee and Face 1st.

Tasha Bee and Face 1st, Lawrence Hill, Bristol, February 2019
Tasha Bee and Face 1st, Lawrence Hill, Bristol, February 2019

I like it when these two collaborate as their preferred soft-tone colour pallets and line drawings match so very well – there seems to be a good fusion of styles, which can’t be said for all collaborations. Peace and love.

2058. Dean Lane skate park (196)

Recently Face 1st has been teaming up with an artist I have not been aware of before who likes to paint elephants, Junk. I don’t yet know much about the artist, but I like his simple style which goes so well with a very similar style used by Face 1st.

Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2019
Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2019

I have actually posted a collaboration by these two before fairly recently, but thought that the whole thing was by Face 1st and that he had branched out into doing elephants…he corrected me via Instagram.

Junk, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2019
Junk, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2019

I hope to see more of this pairing…there is something rather calming and meditative about this collaboration… maybe it is an elephant thing.

Face 1st, M32 roundsbout, Bristol, January 2019
Face 1st, M32 roundsbout, Bristol, January 2019

2026. Mina Road (3)

OK, so I’m cheating a little bit. Some of you might have seen this piece in my Thursday Doors post last week, but it is deserving of a mention in my street art section too. A ‘belt and braces’ approach to sharing this one.

Face 1st and Soap, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2019
Face 1st and Soap, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2019

It is, of course, a collaboration between PWA members Soap and Face 1st and has such a charming quality to it. Add to that the location on some kind of municipal building behind a secured gate and you have all the makings of great urban street art.

Face 1st and Soap, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2019
Face 1st and Soap, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2019

I can’t quite figure it out, but there is something about the balance of the piece and the space it occupies that makes this a real winner for me.

 

 

Thursday doors

Doors 60

I am being a little bit lazy this week and have selected some doors that cross over into my street art posts. I make no apologies…I am a busy man and some weeks I just don’t have the wherewithal to take door pictures.

I would say however that the first door (which was originally going to be the only door for this week) is one of my all time favourite doors, so it deserves a special post really. I will soon be posting it again as part of my street art thread.

The other doors have been lurking in my Thursday doors folder for far too long and need to come up for air. Incidentally Coming up for Air by George Orwell is one of my top ten novels…well worth a go if you’ve not read it.

Face 1st and Soap, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2019
Face 1st and Soap, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2019
Face 1st and Soap, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2019
Face 1st and Soap, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2019
Thursday Doors, Bedminster, Bristol, January 2018
Thursday Doors, Bedminster, Bristol, January 2018
Stewy, Thursday Doors, Bedminster, Bristol, July 2016
Stewy, Thursday Doors, Bedminster, Bristol, July 2016

The bear by Stewy might trigger some memories of the squirrel I posted a few weeks back by the same artist.

Well that’s it for this week. I hope I can get out and find some new doors next week TTFN.

Access to more fabulous doors at: Thursday Doors – Norm 2.0, just follow the frog.

by Scooj

1973. M32 roundabout J3 (120)

Readers will be in no doubt that Face 1st is one of my favourite and most featured artists in Natural Adventures. This beautiful work at the M32 roundabout features his trademark faces and some incredibly sweet elephants…without ears.

Face 1st, M32 roundsbout, Bristol, January 2019
Face 1st, M32 roundsbout, Bristol, January 2019

It would appear that Face 1st is not to everyone’s taste and just to the right of the piece is a throw up saying ‘Face Junk’. Well, on the upside, at least they didn’t deface (literally) his work, and the quality of the ‘protest’ simply isn’t up to much, emphasising how much better the Face 1st piece actually is. You certainly have to develop a thick skin to be in this game, but I guess you wouldn’t do it if you were too sensitive. Another work from this gentleman that I can cherish.

1960. Ashfield Place

One of my favourite pieces of 2018 was this lovely collaboration by Soap and Face 1st. It is one of those collaborations that is more of a proximity of work, rather than a true collaborative merger.

Soap, Ashfield Place, Bristol, January 2018
Soap, Ashfield Place, Bristol, January 2018

I must have driven past it hundreds of times thinking that I really must stop and take a picture, but it is close to a road junction and there are very limited parking opportunities. The left hand side is by Soap and is one of his most regularly used designs in a nice metallic silver. The tongues are particularly nice with the purple tinge.

Face 1st, Ashfield Place, Bristol, January 2018
Face 1st, Ashfield Place, Bristol, January 2018

It is the Face 1st piece though that is in my view outstanding. I do so much like his full figurine, and every time I see her, she seems just that bit more special. In this piece it is her hair that is so captivating, and the blue spotted bow. Her eye lashes too are extraordinary. When I spoke with Face 1st not long after he had painted this lady, he told me it was one of his favourites too.

Face 1st, Ashfield Place, Bristol, January 2018
Face 1st, Ashfield Place, Bristol, January 2018

A beautiful lady.

1943. M32 roundabout J3 (114)

One problem with prolific artists is that it is easy to let good pieces remain in archive, because time and tide wait for no man, blah blah blah. This beauty from Face 1st is from January last year, but is well worth the wait.

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

Tucked into one of the pedestrian tunnels, a favoured spot for Face 1st, is this striking face…striking because of its strongly contrasting colours. For every piece by this artist that I post, there is probably one still in archive.