Tag: Graffiti

2199. Windmill Hill (2)

How fortunate we are in Bristol to have had the unbelievable collaboration by My Dog Sighs and Curtis Hylton on Windmill Hill. As if that wasn’t enough, My Dog Sighs also left a couple of smaller pieces on a wall around the corner of the main piece and this is one of them.

My Dog Sighs, Windmill Hill, Bristol, April 2019
My Dog Sighs, Windmill Hill, Bristol, April 2019

There is something absolutely magical about this piece and the face has similarities in style to the tin can faces that are one of his trademarks. I yearn to own one of his tin cans, but I guess I just have to be in the right place at the right time. Serene, even beautiful the character on the left is simply drawn and has four eyes, all of which contain a silhouette scene. To the right is harlequin clown, dare I say it with a feel of Picasso there somewhere. I don’t use the word adorable, but if I did, I might use it to describe this piece.

My Dog Sighs, Windmill Hill, Bristol, April 2019
My Dog Sighs, Windmill Hill, Bristol, April 2019

The blue crown is rather special and casts a thin glow of light on the character’s head and antlers. I cannot tell you how much I love this work. It is so unusual and so very classy. As I said at the beginning, we are very lucky in Bristol.

2198. Wilder Street (30)

It is unusual to see incomplete pieces, that are unlikely to be completed at any time in the future, if fact they are such a rare thing that I can only think of three or four examples in the four years I have been doing this. Rarer still is an incomplete Sled One piece, but here is one on the side wall of the garage in Wilder Street.

Sled One, Wilder Street, Bristol, April 2019
Sled One, Wilder Street, Bristol, April 2019

My understanding is that he got asked to move on, although I am not sure whether that was by the garage owner or somebody else. What it gives you though is a little insight into how a sketched wall turns into something quite remarkable. The zebra on the left is almost complete, but the horse on the right seems to be only half done. What a pity he never got to complete it, because from what we see here, it is a real cracker.

2197. North Street

This is one of a few new pieces organised by Upfest who are curating some hoardings around a tower block on North Street. It is of course by the magnificent Silent Hobo who expertly, through his observations, chronicles contemporary youth culture in Bristol.

Silent Hobo, North Street, Bristol, May 2019
Silent Hobo, North Street, Bristol, May 2019

Silent Hobo has created an urban scene that looks a lot like the DIY skate park under the M32, although it is fairly generic and could portray any urban flyover. He has captured mood and movement in this piece and is beating the drum for this great city. It was a difficult piece to photograph because it is behind a fence, and I was on my toes, arms at full extension, which would explain why the edges are a little cut-off. Such a fine piece.

2196. St Werburghs tunnel (78)

I’ve not posted anything by T-Rex for a little while now, but was lucky enough to come across this wonderful piece in St Werburghs tunnel recently. It was painted during quite a large paint jam a week or so ago alongside work by other RAW artists.

T-Rex, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2019
T-Rex, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2019

Having just bought some spray paint and tried out a little in my garden, I can’t begin to explain how difficult this is and what exceptional talent and experience is needed to produce a piece like this one. The shapes of the letters, the incredible fill patterns and sharp lines, not to mention the expressive dinosaur, are so well worked. I don’t really understand how these guys do it. T-Rex, I doff my cap. The sooner I pack away my paint the better.

2195. M32 Cycle path (25)

The street art posts I bring you here on Natural Adventures are only a fraction of the total that appear on the streets of Bristol every day. My archives swell under the sheer volume of photographs and our computer barely functions due, in part, to disc space issues (time for a new one?). This means that I have to be reasonably selective about what I post, and this piece on my first trawl was marginal, because I have so many Soap pieces.

Soap, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2019
Soap, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2019

On a further inspection though it made the cut. I think that it is a wonderful piece, but the colours somehow send the whole thing into the background and if you weren’t on the ball you could easily miss this piece and walk straight on by. A lovely crown and halo, and ‘hair made of Soap tags. Glad I pulled this one out of the folder and posted it.

2194. Mina Road (4)

Mina Road, (pronounced my na) rather conveniently runs between the M32 roundabout in St Agnes and St Werburghs, and is a cut-through I use sometimes when I’m out grabbing shots of street/graffiti art. New hoardings are often a magnet for spray-can artists and this spanking new one has landed this splendid Epok piece.

Epok, Mina Road, Bristol, May 2019
Epok, Mina Road, Bristol, May 2019

Spelling our EPOK, this is a classic work from the artist, incorporating a complex selection of colours and that wonderful combination of curves and straight lines and angles that he excels at. A really great piece of writing, and how much nicer than the dull woodchip wall.

2193. St Werburghs tunnel (77)

Another artist I will never tire of is Laic217 and this piece in St Werburghs tunnel is so typical of his great work. Another weed-smoking bucket-hatted skull, which he simply gets better and better at crafting.

Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2019
Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2019

I feel a real closeness with Laic217’s work because since I started doing this recording  Bristol street art thing in 2015 I have watched his work closely and seen his style develop significantly, and although his subjects are often similar, the depth and complexity of his pieces constantly grows. Love this one.

2192. North Street

On North Street some hoardings have recently been erected around a tower block, which is either due to be renovated or demolished, I am not too sure which. Anyhow the hoardings look like they will be staying for a while, and Upfest are curating them, which means that they will probably remain in reasonably good condition and be reserved for selected artists.

Sepr, North Street, Bristol, May 2019
Sepr, North Street, Bristol, May 2019

This piece is by the fabulous Sepr and features a lady with a cat and some mischievous looking mice. The grayscale piece is punctuated with a little pink on the cat and the woman’s mouth… I have no idea what is going on with the pink but it looks good. I admire greatly Sepr’s clean retro style and never tire of the humorous scenes he creates.

2191. Dean Lane skate park (210)

Just to prove that he is not a one-trick-pony (which he absolutely isn’t) here is a non-rabbit piece by Nevergiveup in Dean Lane. This is a nicely thought out piece with great colours and elements in it and it is so very easy on the eye. The first thought I get is that it looks a bit brand-like and would work very nicely on a beer mat (do they still exist?).

Nevergiveup, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2019
Nevergiveup, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2019

The letters ZBOK I think are a crew or something similar that Nevergiveup and some other Polish artists use. It translates as pervert or deviant… not an entirely unexpected word for an art form that is edgy and rebellious. I guess there is something a little paradoxical about such a nice design for the word zbok. Great piece by Nevergiveup, just a shame I didn’t get there when it was clean.

2190. Matchbox Gallery

The Matchbox Gallery is a small shop in Stokes Croft that is run by DNT and hosts occasional exhibitions, although I’ve never quite made it into the shop to see one. If you plotted DNT’s street art on a map, the Matchbox Gallery would be at the centre and concentric  circles or art density would radiate outwards from it. This collaboration above the Matchbox Gallery with Hazard would be the pin on the map.

Hazard and DNT, Matchbox Gallery, Bristol, April 2019
Hazard and DNT, Matchbox Gallery, Bristol, April 2019

The two artists have created what I would call a true collaboration where their work is woven together and a shared style dominates. The mural depicts a tree and foliage which is emblazoned above the shopfront and a littlwe on the side too. I rather like the face in the window of the shop too. I believe there are plans afoot to move the Matchbox Gallery, but am not certain. Great mural for this part of Stokes Croft.