Tag: Face

3669. M32 Cycle path (124)

Another flurry of activity from Face 1st and Soap, whom are really making my life very difficult at the moment with their productivity and quality of work. If their stuff was rubbish, then I could easily ignore it and move on, but it is not and I feel compelled to post it whenever possible.

Face 1st, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2021
Face 1st, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2021

This pair of PWA artists have collaborated in this spot quite a few times over the years and their friendship appears to be as strong as ever. The collaboration is a Kill the Bill piece, which will meet with a lot of sympathy in Bristol. Another cheerful expression on this happy girl from Face 1st with a subtle FACE written into her hair.

Soap, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2021
Soap, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2021

Soap has reverted to a standard form of his iconic skull/mouths design, and the character is holding up a protest banner. The fill is very nicely blended with some nice decorations. The whole collaboration is set on a pinky cloudy kind of backdrop and ticks a lot of boxes for me. Nice work.

Face 1st and Soap, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2021
Face 1st and Soap, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2021

3667. St Werburghs tunnel (239)

Striking and definitely photogenic is this lovely recent portrait piece from Zake, who has been rather quiet of late. It is kind of comforting when artists who have been lying low, for whatever reason, come back and hit a wall with such gusto.

Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2021
Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2021

Zake is an artist who pretty much specialises in portraits and gives them loads of depth with his trademark shading around the features. This face feels like it should belong to a comic book, perhaps it is a representation from one. He has labelled the piece with DLH 21. DLH in my book is Dean Lane Hardcore, but I am not too sure what it means in this context. A decent and long-awaited return.

3665. St Werburghs tunnel (238)

At the entrance to St Werburghs tunnel, Face 1st left this beautiful trademark piece a little while back. It would seem that Face 1st has been experimenting of late with some angular block lettering which I have seen two or three times now.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2021
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2021

As ever, there is an enormous amount of expression in the piece, something that Face 1st manages to achieve with the minimum of fuss, not dissimilar to the way Stik conveys emotion with his simple figures. I have lots of Face 1st pieces to catch up on… aargh, the backlog!

3636. Moon Street (88)

Here he is again, the beating heart, the drum-beat of Bristol graffiti art reassuring us that all’s well. Face 1st has painted this doorway in Moon Street many times in the past, but his visits to this holy place for graffiti, along with visits of other artists, have declined in frequency since the area started undergoing some major gentrification. Soon Moon Street and the nearby hotspots for street art and graffiti will be mere memories, embedded in photographic archives and digital spaces. The Bristol scene will continue to thrive though, I am sure, just in different places.

Face 1st, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2021
Face 1st, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2021

This piece is similar to one that Face 1st painter on the M32 roundabout a couple of weeks back, with a lot of pink bubblegum kind of stuff going on with the character’s hair. I think that Face 1st must have had a job lot of pink and needed to use it up. Always good and always present. Fun from this PWA perennial.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2021
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2021

3623. M32 roundabout J3 (309)

A classic piece of Face 1stery going on here on the M32 roundabout. In times of turbulence and disruption there are rocks, sturdy landmarks, that remind us that actually everything is ok. Face 1st is one of those rocks. His pieces are painted regularly and when I see them I feel comforted and grounded.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2021
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2021

This is a lovely example of his work with the customarily cheerful girl whose hair is composed of the letters FACE. This time there is a pink goo highlighting the letters, looking a little bit like bubblegum, which in my experience is best kept well away from hair.

I remember once back in the 1970s I was in a smoke-filled cinema in Muswell Hill (incredible to think that smoking at the cinema was the norm). Half way through the film a discarded piece of bubblegum that had been lobbed from the circle seats landed and lodged in my 1970s hair. Disgusting. My mum had to cut it out with scissors when I got home. I felt violated and humiliated. If I ever catch the perpetrator I’ll…

3616. Cumberland Basin

Here we have a classic Face 1st piece. A wall tucked away from general view and a chuckling girl’s face splashed on it. It is pieces like this, dotted all over the city that add to the overall fabric of Bristol. Sub-consciously, many thousands of people in Bristol will have seen one of these faces, they might not have registered them, but they will have seen them, and they will process them simply as being part of the furniture of the city.

Face 1st, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2021
Face 1st, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, April 2021

Somehow, Face 1st injects a sense of fun and mischief into his work that comes across so well. These cheeky girls probably play slightly into the hands of subversive minds (it is graffiti after all), but are entirely accessible for all to enjoy and feel free. This one is a particularly lovely ecxample.

3615. Dean Lane skate park (406)

More fabulous Pekoe work… this artist has been going paint crazy over the last few weeks and keeps turning out beautiful portraits. Painting this one would have involved climbing over an iron railing (rather her than me) to access this swimming pool wall.

Pekoe, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2021
Pekoe, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2021

This face-on portrait in blue with bright yellow hair certainly grabs attention. The subjects cheeks are emphasised with circles in which sit Pekoe’s trademark tears. I feel sad when I see the tears as it makes me think that the artist herself is sad and expresses her sadness in this way. Of course, it might simply be a thing that has no deeper meaning at all. This is another fine Pekoe portrait, yet another one in a superb series.

3610. M32 roundabout J3 (305)

The incredibly busy and talented Pekoe painted this piece a short while ago along with several of her RBF friends on a section of wall that was long overdue for a refresh. The wall at this particular point is in a narrow stretch of cycle path and very difficult to photograph without being totally over-faced by it.

Pekoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Pekoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

Pekoe has been producing so many top drawer pieces of late and this is another one to add to her catalogue, although there is something about it that I am a little uncomfortable with, I’m not sure what, but I think it could be the mouth. The feature image gives you an insight into the length of this wall, and the size of the collaborative paint session (all the yellow-background pieces). Still more to come from Pekoe’s purple patch.

Slakarts

A gallery of outstanding faces from Bristol artist Slakarts.

Instagram: @slakarts

All photographs by Scooj

Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2025
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2025
Slakarts, Lawrence Hill, Bristol, April 2024
Slakarts, Lawrence Hill, Bristol, April 2024
Slakarts, Purdown, Bristol, March 2024
Slakarts, Purdown, Bristol, March 2024
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol February 2024
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol February 2024
Slakarts, Greenbank, Bristol, February 2024
Slakarts, Greenbank, Bristol, February 2024
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, February 2024
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, February 2024
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, November 2023
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, November 2023
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2023
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2023
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2023
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2023
Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2023
Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2023
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, February 2023
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, February 2023
Slakarts, Purdown, Bristol, January 2023
Slakarts, Purdown, Bristol, January 2023
Slakarts, Elton Street, Bristol, September 2022
Slakarts, Elton Street, Bristol, September 2022
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2022
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2022
Slakarts, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2022
Slakarts, Mina Road, Bristol, February 2022
Slakarts, Peel Street Green, Bristol, February 2022
Slakarts, Peel Street Green, Bristol, February 2022
Slakarts,M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2022
Slakarts,M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2022
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2021
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2021
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, December 2021
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, December 2021
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, November 2021
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, November 2021
Slakarts, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, September 2021
Slakarts, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, September 2021
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2021
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2021
Nugmoose and Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2021
Nugmoose and Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2021
Slakarts, Frome side, Bristol, June 2021
Slakarts, Frome side, Bristol, June 2021
Slakarts, St Werburghs Tunnel, Bristol, June 2021
Slakarts, St Werburghs Tunnel, Bristol, June 2021
Sage and Slakarts, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2021
Sage and Slakarts, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2021
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2021
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2021
Slakarts, Purdown, Bristol, March 2021
Slakarts, Purdown, Bristol, March 2021
Slakarts, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2021
Slakarts, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2021
Slakarts, Lawrence Hill, Bristol, February 2021
Slakarts, Lawrence Hill, Bristol, February 2021
Slakarts, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2020
Slakarts, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2020
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2020
Slakarts, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2020
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2020
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2020
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2020
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2020
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2020
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2020
Slakarts, Cumberland Basin, Bristtol, October 2020
Slakarts, Cumberland Basin, Bristtol, October 2020
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2020
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2020
Slakarts, Purdown HAA Battery, Bristol, January 2020
Slakarts, Purdown HAA Battery, Bristol, January 2020
Slakarts, Hepburn Road, Bristol, January 2020
Slakarts, Hepburn Road, Bristol, January 2020
Slakarts, River Avon, Bristol, January 2020
Slakarts, River Avon, Bristol, January 2020
Slakarts, M32 cycle path, Bristol, December 2019
Slakarts, M32 cycle path, Bristol, December 2019
Rezwonk and Slakarts, Albert Park Place, Bristol, November 2019
Rezwonk and Slakarts, Albert Park Place, Bristol, November 2019
Rezwonk and Slakarts, Albert Park Place, Bristol, November 2019
Rezwonk and Slakarts, Albert Park Place, Bristol, November 2019
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2019
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2019
Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2019
Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2019
Slakarts, M32 cycle path, Bristol, November 2019
Slakarts, M32 cycle path, Bristol, November 2019
Slakarts, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2018
Slakarts, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2018
Slakarts, St George, Bristol, September 2019
Slakarts, St George, Bristol, September 2019
Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2019
Slakarts, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2019

3597. St Werburghs tunnel (232)

Slakarts has been ever so busy in recent months and I have enjoyed meeting him a couple of times lately. I think it says so much about my age that street artists, like doctors and teachers, seem to be so very young. In my mind’s eye I expect them to be so much older and am always surprised when I meet them. DFC1848 is a rare exception to this perception.

Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2021
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2021

In this piece in the tunnel, Slakarts has reverted to his front face projection rather than three-quarter profile that he has been painting a lot lately. This character has crazy hair, maybe he is waiting for the barber’s to reopen, and rather dodgy teeth. Not the most attractive, but nicely done.