Tag: Graffiti

1950. Upfest 2018 (114)

I love this kind of illustration street work…something that could appear in a children’s book, but is on a huge scale. The detail and interest that Dima Kashtalyan has managed to capture in this piece is inspiring.

Dima Kashtalyan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Dima Kashtalyan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

I know little of the artist other than that he is an illustrator/artist from Minsk in Belarus. He uses a pointillism style and likes to pose questions and burning issues in his work. Here he asks the question ‘to draw or not to draw?’ probably a crowd-pleasing slogan at an art festival.

Dima Kashtalyan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Dima Kashtalyan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

There is something very comforting and familiar about this piece and I would gladly have it hanging on a wall at home. Really great stuff.

 

1949. Upfest 2018 (123)

There is so much going on in this magnificent piece by Andrew Burns Colwill, but it is not busy…on the contrary it is calm and peaceful which is somewhat at odds with a fragmenting world it represents.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

I like Andrew Burns Colwill very much, both as an artist and as an acquaintance, and I managed to catch up with him a couple of times during the festival. He had started early, so by the time I first found him on the Friday, his work was already well underway.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

The piece combines several ideas and themes, but the obvious one is a representation of the biggest issue of our time (other than climate change), Brexit. The world is represented by an apple, and we hold it in our (multicultural) hands.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

A bite has been taken from the apple and is seen sinking in the water below. A closer look at the lost piece of apple shows the UK cut-off and drifting away all alone. One can read in so many metaphors into this work – brotherhood, loss, a gift, urbanisation and so on, but for me it is the isolation of the UK that stands out.

Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andrew Burns Colwill, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

A most brilliant piece, and one of the highlights of the 2018 festival.

1948. Upfest 2018 (122)

About Ponny left us a few of his poignant wheatpastes about the place during Upfest, of which this is the third I have posted. All of them have featured subjects who have hit upon hard times. The beautiful stencils in dark tones highlighted with copper have a sad but gentle feel to them and they are full of pathos.

About Ponny, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
About Ponny, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

I am full of admiration for the work of this Italian artist, and how, in a quiet and subtle way, he reflects the troubles of our age of austerity and economic struggles. No fuss, no ranting, simply an honest portrayal.

1947. Upfest 2018 (121)

Here we see yet another great new wall for Upfest 2018… the organisers really pulled out all the stops for the tenth anniversary festival. Slightly off the beaten track, but well worth the walk is this enormous piece by Andy Council on a Wessex Water building.

Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

This is a really wonderful piece that features a couple of Otters, characteristically for this artist composed of architectural landmarks from Bristol. Andy Council needed extensive scaffolding to get the piece completed safely, which remained in place beyond the end of the festival, so many visitors might not have seen the completed piece.

Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

He seemed to be enjoying himself up there, but was well away from the bustle of activity in the main painting areas.

Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

Three landmarks clearly visible on the otter on the right are the Clifton Suspension Bridge, the Create Centre and the Tobacco Factory. This is yet another outstanding piece from Andy Council and one that I hope remains for a long while.

Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Andy Council, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

 

 

1946. Shoreditch, London (18)

Ok, ok I hear you, I should have posted this last year, but I didn’t right? so I am doing it now. Continuing on the theme of trawling through archives, I found this piece by Bonzai from a trip to Shoreditch back in February 2018, but hadn’t made the connection to the piece I posted by Bonzai from my more recent visit in November.

Bonzai, Shoreditch, London, February 2018
Bonzai, Shoreditch, London, February 2018

These pictures are a bit rubbish for two reasons. I had dropped and broken my camera about five minutes earlier and so had to use my iPhone and the road was rather busy, and I couldn’t get out far enough (without risk of death) to catch the whole piece. Maybe this is why I never posted it first time round. It is a great piece though…that melting chrome look is stunning.

1945. Dean Lane skate park (184)

Aaah, familiar stuff from Mr Draws and one that had been inadvertently omitted earlier in the year, which is surprising really, because it is so very good.

Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2018
Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2018

There is always something very cheery about his work that works for me. In this piece, the filler is absolutely beautiful, the two colour palettes above and below the yellow line are brilliantly complementary and the bubble effect imperious. I really love the simple idea and lovely execution of this one. Can’t believe it has taken almost a year to post it!

1944. Thomas Street (3)

I really like trawling back through old pictures because when I revisit them I almost invariably look at them through new eyes. This is a piece by DNT going back to January last year which contains several elements of interest. His name appears in the middle of the piece and on the left is a yellow face with something of a pained expression and on the right is some cool dude with a sharp flat top haircut.

DNT, Thomas Street, Bristol, February 2018
DNT, Thomas Street, Bristol, February 2018

The letters MBG stand for Matchbox Gallery, which is a gallery a few doors up the street owned and managed (I think) by DNT himself. Note to self…I really need to pop in there and say hello. A nice quick one from this artist who frequently paints in this area of Stokes Croft.

1943. M32 roundabout J3 (114)

One problem with prolific artists is that it is easy to let good pieces remain in archive, because time and tide wait for no man, blah blah blah. This beauty from Face 1st is from January last year, but is well worth the wait.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2018
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2018

Tucked into one of the pedestrian tunnels, a favoured spot for Face 1st, is this striking face…striking because of its strongly contrasting colours. For every piece by this artist that I post, there is probably one still in archive.

1942. Raleigh Road, Vector (26)

Over the Christmas break I decided to spend a bit of time trawling through my archives of 2018, to see if I might have missed some pieces that deserve a post. This piece by Khoi had been overlooked, probably because I am not familiar with the artist, and rarely see his/her work.

Khoi, Raleigh Road, Bristol, January 2018
Khoi, Raleigh Road, Bristol, January 2018

I am guessing that Khoi is an occasional visitor to Bristol, because the artist’s pieces are few and far between, or maybe they are just an occasional writer. This piece was created in January last year and was part of a paint jam with Sled One and Corupt. There is something unusual and rather compelling about the piece, and while perhaps not to everyone’s taste it does have a charm to it.

1941. Greville Street

Damn that parking space!

This is a piece that passed me by in many ways. I hadn’t been aware of it on social media and only found it on a recent mission to seek out the Muckrock piece at the far end of North Street. In fact I had walked straight past it, and only saw it on my return. What a treat.

SPZero76, Greville Street, Bristol, December 2018
SPZero76, Greville Street, Bristol, December 2018

This is a large commission by SPZero76 at Beaver Electrical on North Street and is a scene that conflates all sorts of ideas, with a robot, a Samurai warrior, A tiger/robot and some ladies and in the centre of it all a paddle boat/junk sort of thing.

SPZero76, Greville Street, Bristol, December 2018
SPZero76, Greville Street, Bristol, December 2018

I am sure there is a wonderful story to all of this, but I expect it resides in SPZero’s mind and we can just sit back and admire the whole thing. To round it all off and as a little nod to the owners of the store, SPZero76 has added some beavers at the bottom right corner of the work.

SPZero76, Greville Street, Bristol, December 2018
SPZero76, Greville Street, Bristol, December 2018

All in all this is a magnificent piece with so much to look at. A real treat for anyone strolling through this part of Bedminster – just remember to look behind you in case you walk past it.