This subtle piece is by an artist who has slipped off the radar a little bit, Dog Bless the Band, so it was a pleasure to find it on the southern wall of the M32 roundabout recently. I feel like I have posted many more of his pieces than I actually have, such is the impression they have made on me.
Dog bless the band, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2022
The giveaway element, apart from his modest colour selection, is the distinctive letter ‘M’ at the start of the MOTEL. This time he has animated the ‘O’ with a rather gentle face. There is an organic nature to his work, which has a rather calming effect. Nothing urgent and sparky. As well as having the best name since Stupid, Stupid Meathole, his style is one that I really like.
Like all of us, street/graffiti artists have birthdays, but sometimes they mark them in a way that isn’t possible for mere mortals like me. They have a paint jam and invite artist friends to paint a wall together – the results are nearly always outstanding, bringing different styles into a single place for a day. A recent birthday paint jam was held for Mena in Sparke Evans park and this was Sled One’s contribution.
Sled One, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2022
I don’t know if it is just me, but Sled One’s pieces seem to be getting even more surreal and obscure, if that is at all possible. This outstandingly turned out piece features a skull smoking an outsize cigarette, with smiley tablets for eyes and purple hair. As always with Sled One’s work, it is the little details that augment the piece so well, such as the gorgeous flower in the hair, or the floating eyebrows. This is another masterpiece from Sled One.
It is not all that long ago, through the winter, when Stivs was producing new pieces at will and barely a week went by without one or two new works from him. This spring has been a slightly different story, and it feels like a while since I saw anything new, until I found this one on the River Avon path. Since finding this, he has been out a little more, and there are further new pieces to share with you.
Stivs, River Avon, Bristtol, April 2022
Stivs is one of two brilliant calligraffiti artists in Bristol, that is artists who specialise in calligraphic writing. This is a real beauty in chrome with a blue 3D shadow and mint green border. Lovely regular letters spelling out STIVS. A scattering of mint dots to add a little interest, and hey presto! You have a banging burner.
It is probably about time for another piece from Face 1st, and this one, like so many of his other pieces, is so full of joy and happiness. I think that Face 1st should be employed as a ‘happiness tzar’ for Bristol, and be allowed to spray his happy faces to improve morale in a time when good news is hard to come by.
Face 1st, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
This particular piece in Dean Lane is in one of his preferred forms in which he has written FACE as the hair of a girl’s smiling face. For added effect, he has included a second face as the ‘A’ of FACE. It is always great to see anything by this artist, and the Bristol graffiti/street art scene simply wouldn’t be the same without him.
One of the most endearing characters to appear in Bristol in recent months, in my opinion, is Mr Underbite. This simply conceived character is overflowing with charm and intrigue, and the artist, MrUnderbite is making this area his home, with at least four recent pieces in the vicinity.
Mr Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2022
This small piece on one of the footbridge pillars has been painted with sprays and the black lines drawn with a Posca pen or similar. The overall outcome is clean and tidy, with the two shades of brown working really well to frame Mr Underbite’s face. The crosses for eyes are similar to those used by Asre on one of his characters – a common cartoon style technique. I love this little piece.
This epic collaboration between Conrico, Acer and Zake, an unlikely trio of collaborators, appeared on the Greenbank hoardings about two weeks ago and is truly eye catching in its boldness and presence.
Conrico and Acer, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2022
I know that pairings of these three artists have happened in the past, but I don’t think I can recall that the three have collaborated together before. Starting at the left hand side, Conrico has provided a landscape backdrop, that actually runs to either side of the whole collaboration. Conrico definitely seems to enjoy painting these landscapes, and they have that paintbrush appearance that he achieves, I think by using banana caps. The mountain range and greenery is in stark contrast to the outstanding ACER writing in the prism colouring and superb letter design that Acer is painting with at the moment.
Acer, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2022
It has been fun observing Acer, whose central theme is geometric design, change his ‘look’ several times over the years. This latest rainbow lettering is such a strong statement, and demands to be looked at and enjoyed.
Zake and Conrico, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2022
To the right hand side of the collaboration is the painting of Zake and Conrico, with the latter rounding off his mountainous landscape which incorporates a rather cheesy full moon in a blue sky scape.
Zake, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2022
The Zake portrait is as good as any I have seen from him, and is a reminder of just how far the artist has come over the last two or three years, especially if you look back at his column pieces at the M32 Spot. The features and shadows are outstanding in this face, and there is a movement from Zake’s figurative style towards a more realistic style… watch this space to see what direction his work goes in. What an eclectic and amazing collaboration from these three artists.
Doors 181 – another instalment of street art doors
When I am super-busy, I tend to share doors that I have posted previously on Natural Adventures, under the street art category, and today’s post is one of those. You might have to look quite hard to find the doors in some of these images, but they are there. It is nice to repurpose these pictures and give them a second life. These doors were originally posted in August and September last year:
The Hass and Paul Monsters, Ashton Road, Bristol, August 2021, Upfest 21
Sophie Long, North Street, Bristol, August 2021, Upfest 21
Laic217, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2021
Jay Sharples, North Street, Bristol, August 2021, Upfest 21
Irony, Alexandra Parade, Weston-super-Mare, September 2021
Roo, East Street, Bristol, July 2021, Upfest 21
Silent Hobo, Ruby Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21
Curtis Hylton, Chessel Street, Bristol, August 2021, Upfest 21
So, that’s it for another week. I hope to resume with some doors of Bristol I recently photographed next week.
If you have made it this far, you probably like doors, and you really ought to take a look at the No Facilities blog by Dan Anton who has taken over the hosting of Thursday Doors from Norm 2.0 blog. Links to more doorscursions can be found in the comments section of Dan Anton’s Thursday Doors post.
I do love my walks to the L Dub spot and although it only happens occasionally, both my dog and I love the remoteness of this curious brownfield site, brimming with wildlife, that runs alongside the M5 motorway. These occasional visits are always worthwhile because at the end of the walk is a water treatment pumping station and a pedestrian underpass with plenty of wall space for graffiti/street artists to play with. On my last trip a week or so ago, it would appear that some members of the LRS crew had been having fun.
3F fino, L Dub, Bristol, April 2022
This piece is by 3F fino and creates a scene from Fineas and Ferb, a cartoon TV series that my children used to love, and which features Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirt, the villain of the piece. The bubble fill for the lettering is absolutely outstanding and has a sense of evil chemistry about it, and the character has been faithfully recreated. All in all a fabulous piece from 3F fino, one of his best in my opinion, and worth the long walk alone.
Truly, good things come to those who wait, and what a long wait it has been to see a public piece by Pelmo, but this is one of three very recent pieces that I know about and it is great to see he is out and about painting again.
Pelmo, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
This small piece in Dean Lane skate park features one of his oversized characters flipping a little skateboard. What a joy to find this. I have long been a fan of Pelmo’s unusual work, that tells stories about people of extraordinary proportions doing ordinary things. There is something most endearing and compassionate in the way Pelmo portrays his characters with love and affection. Watch this space for more.
Natural adventures 