Face – Natural adventures

6000. Cumberland Basin

Zake, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2024

It feels quite satisfying to reach another landmark on Natural Adventures. This is the 6,000th post featuring graffiti/street art, and that is a lot of art and a lot of words too. The first piece I wrote about was on 16 July 2015 on Park Street by an unknown artist, and was a temporary installation rather than a painted wall, little did I know then that I would still be posting street art nine years later. Today’s landmark piece comes courtesy of Zake.

The face piece is unmistakably by Zake, and although I don’t think it is one of his best pieces in terms of artwork, it is nonetheless striking and demands more than a cursory glance. A face appears to be emerging from a mask which is split down the middle, but the proportions of the mask don’t quite work for me. As ever, the skill with using light and shadow to create depth and texture is Zake’s forte, and the central brown face in particular is wonderfully crafted. Onward to the next 6,000!

5958. Dean Lane skate park (708)

Awkward tends to drop his pieces in twos and threes, which is something he can easily do because his mega-tag characters are generally quite small. On this occasion he painted one on the door at the bottom right-hand end of Dean Lane and the other on the wall of the swimming pool, about 50 meters apart.

This door is a candidate for the One Wall, Many Faces series of posts which I will get on to when I have a bit of spare time (thumbs diary, that’ll be 2029 then). Awkward has created a vision in yellow, with vibrant blue eyes and speech bubble set on a gorgeous black and red background. The characters he paints are a little bit on the eccentric, some might say, weird side, but they are distinctive and compelling.

The character on the swimming pool wall uses the same three colours which are rotated, so the face is blue, the eyes and background yellow and the speech bubbles red. The writing in the speech bubbles is usually a signature, AWK WARD split over two lines, and in this piece he has included a year date ’24’. It is always a great bonus to find his work.

5951. Purdown (69)

Scrapyardspec, Purdown, Bristol, March 2024

In recent months, a travelling artist has visited Bristol on a few occasions and left his very distinctive mark. The artist in question is Scrapyardspec, and his original face mega-tags are perfect for small spots such as columns and these square concrete walls up at the Purdown gun emplacement.

There were three of his pieces up there the last time I visited, each similar in form but painted in different base colours. There characterful faces can be found all over the city as Scrapyardspec moves from spot to spot, filling gaps and finding small walls to decorate. I believe he calls London home, and paints in a few favoured spots there.

His Instagram feed is worth a quick look as he posts short videos of how he goes about his work. I expect to see more from Scrapyardspec this year, as he seems rather fond of the opportunities Bristol offers.

5943. Purdown (68)

Set on the windy hilltop of Purdown, overlooking North Bristol, we find a glorious piece by Slakarts at his simple best. His regular stylised character has been given something of a facelift (literally) with both colour fills and patterns. The oranges and reds contrast beautifully with the background blues, rounding the piece off really nicely.

It has been an absolute age since I last met Slakarts (the last time was in St Werburghs tunnel during a lockdown) and now that he appears to be painting a little more frequently, there is a chance I might bump into him soon, which would be nice, because he is a really sound bloke. I am definitely enjoying his spring renaissance.

5897. M32 roundabout J3 (599)

Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol February 2024

I think it’s safe to say he’s back. Slakarts has been knocking out a few pieces lately, perhaps making up for lost time over the last couple of years, during which he has been reasonably quiet. With this quick one, he is maintaining his ‘mega-tag’ presence, reminding us that he is out and about.

Slakarts hasn’t buffed the wall for this piece, and ordinarily that might lead to it being a little bit lost, but his colour selection and precise spray can work are strong enough to help it stand out over the mess. More to come from the resurgent Slakarts soon.

5851. Dean Lane

Zake is something of a phenomenon. His output rate and the quality of his work are quite exceptional, and he is always coming up with original ideas based around his central character style. Even though I big him up frequently on Natural Adventures, I think his modesty lends itself to him being a bit of an unsung hero. Well, I am singing!

This face is perhaps a little smoother than some of his recent intricate works, but still presents his mastery of light and shade to create depth. It is sometimes difficult with his work to remember that it is painted on a flat wall, such is the 3D effect he creates. They just keep on coming, with no sign of letting up. Great work from the PWA man.

5850. Brunel Way (256)

Mr Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2024

It is always great fun to come across the hapless Mr Underbite, looking as confused and ever so slightly miserable as usual. This is not the first time Mr Underbiter has appeared on this particular wall, which seems so very well suited to the proportions of the face.

The letters MUB refer to the artist and the character’s name. I suspect that this was a quick one, as the underlying piece (by Ryder, from recollection) is still partially visible, and it is a simple two-tone affair. I very much hope that we het to see plenty more of this fine character work as things warm up in 2024.

Just in case you miss the piece, a nearby slap (sticker) reminds us that Mr Underbite comes in many sizes and forms on our streets.

5835. M32 Cycle path (251)

Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, February 2024

This is not the first time that Slakarts has painted this flaky board, and I suspect it won’t be the last time either. I think it would be fair to say that Slakarts is now a rather occasional painter of Bristol’s walls compared with a couple of years ago, and this is a bit of a pity. I guess that it means he has less time to paint, which implies that he is busy with other things, which is probably a good thing.

The stylised cartoon face that Slakarts has painted is rather more colourful than some of his earlier versions, but the same basic design remains, which is comforting in a way, perhaps more so knowing that he is capable of painting other things too. The flaky nature of the board makes pieces painted on it look rather old, but in actual fact this was quite freshly painted. I’ll be hoping for more from Slakarts as the year unfolds.

5778. M32 Cycle path (249)

Face 1st, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, January 2024

Just a reminder that Face 1st remains one of my favourite Bristol artists. He and his PWA friends provide the rhythm and bass upon which the Bristol street and graffiti art scene thrive. This piece, I think a solo effort, takes us back to a simpler version of Face 1st’s work.

This laughing girl piece with the letters FACE making up her hair is a theme that Face 1st has used to great effect for many years, and here, he is reminding us that he is happy to keep revisiting the idea, in his unstoppable way. What is a little different to similar pieces from the past is that the letters are made to look chunky and deep some good 3D work. Keep ’em coming.

5775. Dean Lane skate park (678)

My rummage through my graffiti archives continues with this beauty from Lupa, painted last February. I have said before that I am attracted to her slightly crude style, which is definitely not to detract from it, but to distinguish it from some of the other writers who paint with knife-edge precision. There is room for all styles on the walls of Bristol.

Lupa’s letters are large and chunky, giving plenty of scope for creating interesting fills. In this case, she has used some lovely shades of purple and lilac which are carefully blended in several different ways, overlayed with some symbol decorations. Her trademark face in the ‘U’ is looking a little sad, and is joined with a simple smiley on top of the ‘A’. An attractive piece from a graffiti writer whose work definitely appeals to me.

	paulh121 on 6011. Sparke Evans Park (…
	paulh121 on 6008. Dean Lane skate park…
	Teresa on Thursday doors – 9 May 2…
	scooj on Northern lights
	paulh121 on 6006. Greenbank (115)

	paulh121 on 6011. Sparke Evans Park (…
	paulh121 on 6008. Dean Lane skate park…
	Teresa on Thursday doors – 9 May 2…
	scooj on Northern lights
	paulh121 on 6006. Greenbank (115)

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