Tag: Graffiti

1826. The Bearpit (166)

I absolutely love this old one by Face 1st in The Bearpit, with its copper tones and trademark hair spelling out FACE. I guess that fairly soon I will need to do a gallery of his work because I have quite a large collection from the last three years.

Face 1st, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2018
Face 1st, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2018

What I really like about this artist is that he is relentless in pursuing his passion and will find any wall in Bristol that he can find and give it a face lift (see what I did there?). Always one of my favourites in Bristol and this particular one is a cracker.

1825. North Street

I can’t think for the life of me why it has taken me so long to post this piece. Not only is it a really great piece, it is also signed by the artist so no excuses. It is by 3rdeye, a Bristol based artist whose Upfest 2018 piece I recently posted.

3rdeye, North Street, Bristol, January 2016
3rdeye, North Street, Bristol, January 2016

This is a different take on his monsters than I am used to, being quite structured and symmetrical, where normally they are quite organic. I think the symmetry works perfectly on this set of doors. A lovely old one (January 2016) sees the light of day.

1824. The Bearpit (165)

Another archive piece, this time by the lovely Jee See in The Bearpit featuring his ‘seismic’ writing and a character with jagged stripe under the eye. I love the words Brizz Graff making an appearance – a love for the City and for graffiti. Like minds.

Jee See, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2018
Jee See, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2018

I met Jee See last week and although I had met him once before it was really nice to consolidate the friendship. He is a real gentleman and interesting guy. I am working on persuading him to take me out spraying some time (when I have practised a bit) – I know he reads my posts, so there is no escaping me. Loads more of his work in archive.

1822. The Bearpit (164)

I have left out quite a few rabbits by NEVERGIVEUP, not deliberately but just because there are so many of them everywhere. This is one from back in January in The Bearpit, at a time when artists were still coming down here and creating great art. Council interventions have been driving the good ‘legal’ artists away and now it is only taggers that tend to spray down here.

NEVERGIVEUP, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2018
NEVERGIVEUP, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2018

NEVERGIVEUP is very fond of his rabbits and has in fact recently set up a new Instagram account under the name @followmyrabbits in which he posts his work from around Bristol and far beyond. This is a nice gold one that lasted a long while.

1821. Raleigh Road (6)

OK, so I am going to take you on a bit of journey over the next few posts back to earlier in the year. Somehow these pieces got left behind (and there are many more where they came from), but now is as good a time to share them as any.

3Dom, Raleigh Road, Bristol, January 2018
3Dom, Raleigh Road, Bristol, January 2018

This is a van with a 3Dom piece on it, which I didn’t recognise at first as one of his until I saw the signature. It is always nice to see street art on vehicles, because the chance of seeing it is so much more remote than on static walls. I normally associate 3Dom with his surreal characters, but his writing is equally masterful and this is a great bit of mobile work.

1820. Upfest 2018 (80)

An enormous doodle with plenty of detail for you to feast your eyes on by artist Daub. This is an artist who likes detail and is prepared to spend time working it up. I am guessing that this is a Posca pen piece, but if I am honest, I am a real novice when it comes to artist’s materials.

Daub, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Daub, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

The whole piece resembles something aquatic or coralline interspersed with human features such as the eyes and the hand on the right hand side. I don’t know what it is about, if indeed it is about anything, but I rather like it, and the whole thing plays with your eyes a bit.

Daub, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Daub, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

This was yet another piece that was finished by the time I got to it, so I never had the pleasure of meeting the artist…maybe next year.

1819. Upfest 2018 (79)

This portrait is a highly memorable and unusual piece by Mazcan. The artist is from Brighton and she is known for painting portraits of women about the place. She is perhaps equally well-known for her crochet work, which she appears to enjoy very much judging from her Facebook feed.

Mazcan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Mazcan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

There is a lot of mystery in this piece, and it seems to be as much about what you can’t see as what you can. Certainly, this was a piece that I couldn’t take my eyes off. I’m not sure I like it as much as some of the pieces on her Facebook pages, but it is a great introduction to her work.

1818. Upfest 2018 (78)

I have no idea who this little piece was by, but when I passed it, it was attracting rather large crowds – unusual for such a tiny piece, but maybe it was the humour and subject matter that made it appealing.

Unknown, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Unknown, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

I have seen an awful lot of Trump street art, and not a single one, a single one (…as Trump would say, because he loves to repeat his sage-like words softly) is in any complimentary. I think this little piece speaks for most of us. Interestingly a short time later it had gone – a street art hunter’s trophy.

1817. Upfest 2018 (77)

I love this striking stencil work by Paintily. The concept of a mask hiding another mask beneath it is a good one, and the ancient look adds to the mystery of the piece. The whole thing is worked really beautifully with great care and attention being paid to the shadows cast by the outer mask on the inner one.

Paintily, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Paintily, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

This piece is all the more remarkable for being a stencil, which must have taken an eternity to prepare. The standard of stencils at Upfest 2018 has really been quite staggering and we are lucky to have seen so many over the course of the festival. Below is a little reminder of Paintily’s piece from last year.

Paintily, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Paintily, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

1816. Upfest 2018 (76)

Oh my oh my. This utterly outstanding piece by Elafil was the biggest head turner of the festival. I had to revisit it several times, just to enjoy the bold brash colours and expression knock me over. I seriously rate this piece as a brilliant piece of street art. The bottle green and copper tones work so well together and create something that assault your eyes – ‘hey look at me’ the piece is saying.

Elafil, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Elafil, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

Another thing about this particular piece is that it is unquestionably photogenic, which is great for someone like me who likes to present great pictures of street art in my posts. The only downside is that when I got to see it, the artist had already finished and fled the scene. Next time!

Elafil, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Elafil, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

Elafil is from Spain although I’m not sure which part. He clearly has ambition to join the international circuit and on this evidence shouldn’t have any problem at all. He has a website which showcases some of his great work, but alas no ‘about me’ tab.