A gallery of fabulous expressive faces from Bristol-based street artist Zake
Instagram: @zake_two
All photographs by Scooj
Zake
Tag: Face
3288. Cumberland Basin
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 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.
3282. Cumberland Basin
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.
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.
3269. St Werburghs Tunnel (201)
Not a month goes by without a cheerful (and sometimes not so cheerful) piece from Face 1st. Today, I am going to treat you to two pieces by this prolific artist of which this is the first. Deep in St Werberghs tunnel, where there is limited natural daylight is this classic Face 1st Face.
The laughing girl whose hair is made up of the letters FACE, is a fine chrome piece that works quite well in the twighlight of the tunnel. It looks to me like Daz Cat has added in a little speech bubble with DAZ C in it. I think that is a bit of tagging fun which is allowed betwen artists. A standard Face 1st piece for all to enjoy.
3264. Dean Lane skate park (357)
It is truly great to see that Dibz and Shade One seem to be collaborating rather a lot at the moment, and they have absolutely knocked it out of the (skate) park with this recent piece in Dean Lane.
The face is by Shade One and to me represents a great example of a crossover of old school/new school, and what I mean by that is that there are some lines, for example the eyebrows that are quite angular and remind me of old New York style graffiti characters, but the blue frame, bubbles and decoration are much more contemporary in style.
As ever the graffiti writing from Dibz is outstanding, and the sharp clean lines with a complex colour scheme so expertly done demonstrate clearly why Dibz is simply one of the best graffiti writers around. The red object to the right of the piece I believe is a butt plug (although I might be mistaken) and was not part of the original collaboration, unfortunately it doesn’t add much to the piece in my opinion, and is ever so slightly annoying.
3263. M32 Spot (86)
Woah there, steady… A column piece under the M32, who can it possibly be by? Zake of course, but unlike any Zake piece I have seen before. This piece feels like the artist has stepped up a level, having a depth and texture unlike any of his previous pieces, although there have been signs of continuous improvement.
The face (of course a face) is quite scary with bright teeth and a disturbing expression and the whole column certainly stands out. What I like most is that the piece is full of texture and folds, with light and dark and I think that Zake has really nailed it. I am totally annoyed though by the sticker over one of the eyes… I guess these things happen. Looking forward to more from Zake.
3246. Brunel Way bridge (62)
This is the second piece I have posted by Mudra, but it was the first that I photographed, and as with any first discovery I am rather fond of this modest piece. Bold and yet subtle colours have been used to create this funny looking portrait of a moustached man.
There is something aboout the simplicity of the piece that makes it all rather interesting. In particular, I can’t keep my eyes off the dark pink nose. Like the last piece I posted, this one also has a little @ with a hat, which I am assuming is Mudra’s tag. Lovely stuff from the Bristol newcomer.
3238. Brunel Way bridge (61)
It is always a pleasure meeting an artist for the first time and I was lucky enough to catch Mudra, just as he had finished this unusual and striking piece. This young artist has recently moved to Bristol from Bournemouth (I think that is what he said) and lives locally, hence choosing this spot. This is one of two recent pieces by Mudra and I will be posting the other one soon.
Most interestingly it seems that Mudra and Slakarts have been in contact with each other, and if they get together we could be in for some mouthwatering collaborations… I’m keeping my fingers crossed. This style of portrait falls into the Slakarts/Lobe arena which is really rather exciting.
I like the bold colours and solid fills, and I haven’t seen so much pink in a piece since Stupid Stupid Meathole was active a year or two ago. Particularly interest.ing is the little icon, a bit like an @ with a hat. I am guessing that this is like a signature for the artist. It is always great to report on artists breaking through into the Bristol scene. Look out for more from Mudra.
3208. William Street (1)
It always, always pays to switch things up a little bit and alter the routes taken to reach regular spots. I decided to drive down the City Road a week or two back, something I rarely do, but was most excited to catch sight of this bright red vision to my left. I parked up and went to investigate.
Deep joy. The red flash was this magnificent collaboration from Face 1st and Soap and by the look of it was rather recent – certainly I hadn’t had any tip offs on social media. Sometimes you just get lucky.
The left hand side is by Face 1st and depicts two happy girls mucking about with spray paints and their combined big hair spelling out FACE. This is a joyful and fun piece, which this artist is so good at creating, spreading a little happiness.
To the righ is the Soap half of the collaboration where he uses the same righ red colours to spell out SOAP with the most elaborate fills and highlights, so full of detail. Of course there is his trademark mouth, although it looks a little different in style to his usual one. A lovely collaboration surprise.
3201. Turbo Island
With so much amazing work being produced in Cheltenham and around Bristol at the moment, it can be easy to overlook the constant churn of what I would call typical Bristol pieces being added to our walls day in, day out. One of the most prolific of these Bristol artists is Face 1st and this is a superb piece from him down at Turbo Island.
This piece has been on the ‘Island’ for quite a while now and is a cheery delight for anyone driving along the Cheltenham Road into the centre of Bristol. Unfortunately my photography skills are not quite so cheery and this shot is a bit blurred. I am having a few problems with my camera at the moment which I really need to sort out. Anyhow, don’t let the poor quality of photograph detract from the uplifting piece from Face 1st.
Natural adventures 