6784. Cumberland Basin

Face 1st, Zake and Soap, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2025
Face 1st, Zake and Soap, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2025

It was great to see this PWA collaboration recently, something that is a little less frequent these days now that Face 1st has moved away from Bristol, but true to his word, he does still come back now and again to decorate our streets. Here he is joined by Zake and Soap.

Face 1st, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2025
Face 1st, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2025

Face 1st has been experimenting with his letters recently, and perhaps it is a way of refining his technique and growing himself as an artist. There is a symmetry to the letters which spell out Face First, painted in a deep gold colour which contrasts with the pink background and sets the colour theme for the whole collaboration.

Zake, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2025
Zake, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2025

The centrepiece is a character face painted by Zake, with all the depth we are used to seeing in his work created by the use of light and shade. Zake has cleverly picked up on the gold colour and used it as the bottom-lit element, highlighting his character’s features.

Soap, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2025
Soap, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, February 2025

Rounding off the triptych is a piece of writing from Soap, who also appears to be trying something a little different. His letters look like a halfway house towards calligraffiti, with some order and form to the letters in terms of shape and size, and some interesting details creeping in. A truly wonderful PWA collaboration from three beating hearts of the Bristol street/graffiti art scene.

6715. M32 roundabout J2 (9)

Face 1st, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, January 2025
Face 1st, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, January 2025

I don’t tend to venture to the Junction 2 roundabout on the M32, because there isn’t often much to see there, but my most recent trip was rewarded by finding this nice Face 1st piece in one of the multitude of tunnels. This was more special than usual, because as I have said here before, Face 1st has moved out of town, and his pieces appear less frequently.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, January 2025
Face 1st, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, January 2025

The piece itself is a classic combination from the artist, with a Girl’s face (somewhat mucky around the mouth), and big hair, with the word FACE in glorious gold, wrapped around. The letters are painted in a chunky block style that Face 1st rather likes to paint, and the whole thing is a bit of a blast from the past. It is great to see that Face 1st is living up to his word of returning to Bristol reasonably regularly to paint a little.

6644. M32 roundabout J3 (648)

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2024
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2024

Not much time to talk about this fun piece from Face 1st in one of the short tunnels under the M32 roundabout. So here it is.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2024
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2024

6591. Brunel Way (305)

Face 1st and Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2024
Face 1st and Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2024

True to his word, Face 1st said that despite moving to Herefordshire, he would be back in Bristol to have a paint from time to time, and who better to team up with than his PWA partner in crime Zake, who thrives on collaborations. This is a combination piece, with Face 1st’s writing wrapped around an unusual portrait by Zake.

Face 1st and Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2024
Face 1st and Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2024

Face 1st has enjoyed using the block letters idea, which he has used quite a lot to good effect, and here, they frame a rather sinister portrait from Zake. Seeing Zake’s characters with hair always adds a little bit of weirdness, especially in this piece, where the face is green and the hair purple. Although I photographed this collaboration not long after it was painted, the dampness of the wall has caused some damage on the character’s nose. I am so glad to see Face 1st popping down to see us.

6491. St Werburghs tunnel (454)

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024

I managed to catch up with Face 1st at  Goldie’s Metal Headz paint jam a couple of weeks ago (lots more on that to come). During our conversation he broke the news that he has moved to Herefordshire, and he is really happy with the move with his family. Of course, this means that we won’t be seeing quite so much of his work on the streets of Bristol, which is a real shame, but the reason behind it is great news for Face 1st, and I wish him well.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024

This is a classic combination piece from Face 1st, with a girl’s face and hair fused with the word FACE, this time in 3D block writing. The whole thing has been splattered with pink gunge, a device that Face 1st uses a lot. There is no doubt that I will miss the frequency of his work and I will be keeping my eyes peeled for any visits he makes to his old stomping ground.

To honour his departure to pastures new, here is an updated gallery of his work.

6469. St Werburghs tunnel (454)

Face 1st and Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024
Face 1st and Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024

I have an early start tomorrow to catch the right tide, and so am writing this post late last night, after a long day… forgive any incoherence. This is a wonderful collaboration from Face 1st and Zake in the tunnel, which I think was augmented by Chill, but his piece wasn’t there when I photographed the collaboration.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024

The piece on the left is a happy girl laughing face by Face 1st, a classic from the artist. I learned a short while ago that he has moved to Herefordshire, so I expect we won’t be seeing quite so much of his work in the city as we have been used to , but he reassured me that he is not all that far away and will of course visit. He seemed to be very happy with his move, which is a good thing.

Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024
Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2024

To the right is a fabulous and rather sinister character by Zake, painted in his inimitable style. The light blue shading of the lower surfaces of the face are inspirational, creating an amazing light effect. The pointy nose and large canines point to an evil persona, or at least that is how it comes across. Some great fun from the PWA pair.

6374. Dean Lane skate park (751)

Zake, Face 1st and Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024
Zake, Face 1st and Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024

When the PWA boys get together, you often end up with something quite quirky, and this fine collaboration from last month is an peculiar as they come.  This piece on the bricked up rear of the large ramp in Dean Lane skate park has been decorated by Zake, Face 1st and Chill.

Zake, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024
Zake, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024

Zake has been pushing the boundaries a lot with his cartoon portrait pieces lately, and this crazy character is no exception. Big teeth and wild hair generate a sense of madness in this character, which is further exaggerated by the lack of pupils in the eyes. Adding to this sense of the unhinged, yer man is holding onto a rat by its tail. Weird fun.

Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024
Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024

The centrepiece is beautifully occupied by a classic piece of writing and character combination work from Face 1st. His letters are in a 3D block style, topped with a giggling girl character that we have come to know and love.

Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024
Chill, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024

Rounding off the wall is a cartoon character complete with detailed fine lines and coloursul solid fills. The character is a nicely observed caricature of a young man with a baseball cap, short back and sides and plenty of piercings. A little bird sitting on the forefinger of the character rounds things off nicely. As ever a fine collaboration from this threesome.

6225. Dean Lane skate park (736)

Zake and Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2024
Zake and Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2024

I’ll let you into a small and rather unimportant secret… I wrote this post yesterday because today I am going to visit Cheltenham tomorrow for the Cheltenham Paint Festival, which this year has an extraordinary line up, so expect some rather nice posts in about 2-3 weeks time. I am so pleased for Dice67, AKA Andy Davies, who has been running the festival since its inception, which is just becoming bigger and bigger with each year.

Zake, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2024
Zake, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2024

This is a rather nice collaboration from PWA duo Zake and Face 1st in the narrow bit between a building and a skate ramp, hence the rather odd angle in the top photograph. Zake has painted a character yelling, painted with as much relief and texture as it is possible to get.

Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2024
Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2024

Face 1st has painted his name in rather fetching reds and pinks with some interesting cross-hatching in the ‘c’ and in the hair of the laughing girl. I like the way that Face 1st has been experimenting with his writing a lot lately, although I miss his full body character pieces – I guess you can’t have it all!

6188. M32 roundabout J3 (599)

Face 1st and Zake, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2024
Face 1st and Zake, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2024

It looks like Face 1st and Zake have an insatiable appetite for painting at the moment, and they are teaming up, with or without the rest of PWA friends to get out there and decorate our walls. This time the pair have chosen the M32 roundabout to express themselves.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2024
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2024

Face 1st continues to work on his 3D blocky letters, which in fairness he has been tinkering with for a few years, but seems to be really concentrating on them at the moment. This is a familiar format, where he spells out FACE with the letter ‘A’ being replaced with a laughing girl.

Zake, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2024
Zake, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2024

Zake has been creating some rather zany and at times mildly disturbing cartoon portrait pieces lately, and this one fits that description quite neatly. Whenever I see a heart in street art, I read it as meaning one of two things – love, or heart break. It is possible in this instance that it is neither and might be illustrating the tussle between heart and mind. The character has been cleaved in two, which makes for not the most attractive sight. All in all a nice collaboration from the busy pair.

6179. Coach and Horses.

Soap, Zake, Face 1st and Chill, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024
Soap, Zake, Face 1st and Chill, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024

This production collaboration from the PWA crew was photographed in April this year, and nearly got left behind, had I not carried out one of my occasional archive ‘sweep ups’. Soap, Zake, Face 1st and Chill have combined to create this zany and energetic piece.

Soap, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024
Soap, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024

Starting off with Soap, who has been a little quiet of late, and this writing/character combination. I have spent way too long trying to find out who the character and cat are and what cartoon series they belong to (possibly Adventure Time?). Some beautiful blue letters here spelling SOAP set on a green and pleasant background that Chill has enhanced with his silhouetted plants along the ground.

Zake, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024
Zake, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024

Next up is a very curious character piece by Zake, which unusually has the whole character and not just the head. The character’s body is brilliantly drafted, with some lovely detail around the knuckles, stitching on the trousers and shoes, but then you get to the head… What has happened here. Expressive it might be, but I find it slightly grotesque, but that is the joy of cartoon characters, you can make them do unreal things.

Face 1st, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024
Face 1st, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024

Face 1st gives us a classic laughing girl piece with the letters FACE staked up in her hair. The letters follow the recent interest that Face 1st has shown in creating 3D blocks, and works very well in this piece. It is so good to observe Face 1st pushing his boundaries and expanding his repertoire.

Chill, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024
Chill, Coach and Horses, Bristol, April 2024

Chill, I feel, is an underrated and underrepresented artist on the Bristol scene. I rarely see his pieces shared on social media, and I feel he doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. His characters are always on point, full of fine detail and comic expressions, and he combines his urban ‘geezers’ so well with his beautiful and fragile nature silhouettes that accompany this entire production and others. This is a fine collaboration from the PWA boys.