I had to have two goes to get photographs of this piece because it was raining the first time and when I got home to check the images, they were obscured by a rather annoying water drop on the camera lens – it happens from time to time.
Mes One, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2020
On the left of this collaboration is a rather tidy piece of graffiti writing spelling out MES from Mes One. I’m not sure if I have posted anything by the artist before, but he seems to do the odd piece occasionally, and he has collaborated with Slakarts on more than one occasion. I love the red dots at the base of the letters, a very nice touch.
Slakarts, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2020
On the right, Slakarts gives us another of his three-quarter character portraits that he seems to be so fond of at the moment. Together these two fill this particular space at the entrance to the tunnel really well. Looking forward to more collaborations from these two.
Angry Face is so definitely back on the scene and that is great news. For me he represents the rather more edgy side of Bristol street/graffiti art, and his mega-tag comes in both rough tag and finessed forms.
Angry Face, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2020
This column piece under Brunel Way is nicely done, and the characteristic face with spiky and cracked teeth is nicely decorated with little white bubbles on the two shades of blue face. It is always nice to find new pieces by Angry Face, especially when you know they are out there from the social media postings of others.
Resembling one of the giant stone head statues of Easter Island is this rather nice and low-key piece by Zace. This is only the second piece I have posted by Zace, and it illustrates the diversity of artists in Bristol at the moment and the rate at which new ones are joining the already sizeable cohort.
Zace, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2020
There is something about this piece that I really like, maybe its modesty or the simplicity. The expression is difficult to read – an enigmatic smile perhaps? There is a lot to like and enjoy in a piece like this one and I really look forward to finding more work from Zace.
One of the most recognisable ‘mega-tags’ in Bristol is that of Angry Face. What you see is what you get, and he rarely disappoints. One of the advantages of a ‘brand’ like this is that you can spend time doing a nice one, or spend ten minutes with a single-colour throw up, but they all conform to the stock format and identity.
Angry Face, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2020
I mentioned last time that after a long spell away, Angry Face seems to be hitting the walls pretty regularly these days, including with this recent one in St Werburghs tunnel. I’m not sure if the tags either side of the face belong to the artist or not, but the central face is more than enough for me. Good to see.
It has been a good year for Zake in my view. His faces have developed well and in the second half of the year in particular his ideas and his execution have moved onto a new level. In addition to these improvements he appears to have been out and about more often.
Zake, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, November 2020
This is a fine Halloween piece (his second of the year) which was painted on the long wall at Sparke Evans Park during an all-Spanish paint jam. One of the things that Zake has really mastered is creating shadows on the darker side of the face with varying degrees of tone and the same with brightness on the lit side of the face. Clever and accomplished work.
Following hot on the heels of the brand new artist gallery featuring Zake that I published yesterday is this Halloween piece that he painted during Face 1st’s birthday paint jam recently.
Zake, Brunel Way, Bristol, November 2020
This might be the largest piece by Zake that I have seen and it is an absolute belter. The complementary colours and shadows in purple create a fantastic atmosphere with amazing expressions on each of the faces. I love his round faces with arms hanging off them, something of a speciality from Zake.
Sometimes artists tend to come into view with increasing frequency. Now I don’t know whether that is because I am noticing them more but that they have always been there or whether they are actually painting walls more often. Whatever the reason, I am definitely seeing work from CD.TC these days and that is a good thing.
CD.TC, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2020
This column piece at the M32 Spot is very nicely done and it has to be said that his portrait orientation style suits columns very well, a bit like Zake. The monster face contains many of the elements that we see in CD.TC’s work including great big teeth and swirly eyes. The monster appears to be consuming city buildings and smoking a cigarette. So much going on in this fun piece.
It took me a little while to solve the mystery of these faces that started to appear all over Bristol from about September time. Of course the answer was staring me in the face (almost literally) all the time, but I simply didn’t make the connection. It wasn’t until I saw an Instagram post by the artist that the penny dropped. It is of course by Slakarts.
Slakarts, Cumberland Basin, Bristtol, October 2020
Slakarts is another artist who has been fairly quiet for most of the year, but suddenly a rash of pieces very similar to this one started appearinng a few weeks ago. It is strange that an artist who is known for using a certain style changes the basic shape of his pieces and then repeats them all over the place in the form of a mega-tag, but that is what Slakarts has done. I like this piece with strong lines and fills, and it certainly catches the eye. Look out for more on Natural Adventures before too long.
With this modest piece hidden away in Cumberland Basin I bring you another artist new to Natural Adventures… drum roll… 3F fino. The wall is in a little tunnel that can easily be missed while admiring the main long wall of this spot, and 3F fino has used the space really well.
3F Fino, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2020
There is a North African Feel to this piece but I might be making some unconscious bias assumptions based on the headgear and could be quite wrong. What I particularly like about this wall is the background. The white wash has been applied in a way that has left the brick mortar lines, the result being what looks like a ceramic tile wall. An interesting debut to this blog.
Natural adventures 