3705. Brunel Way (106)

As I said in a recent post, barely a week goes by without posting a new piece by Pekoe, and as if to prove my point here is another one. This column piece is difficult to photograph and do it justice because of the way it is wrapped around the circular column.

Pekoe, Brunel Way, Bristol, May 2021
Pekoe, Brunel Way, Bristol, May 2021

This yellow-faced beauty carries all the hallmarks of a Pekoe portrait, with big hair decorated with stars and shapes, rosy cheeks with dotted outlines and tears. No need for the artist to sign the piece at all. Always great to find another Pekoe portrait.

3698. Brunel Way (105)

This is a very special post showcasing the work of an artist who has only recently hit the scene with almost all of his work appearing on the columns under Brunel Way. The artist is Maybe, and his small acrylic/marker pen works have been improving from week to week. This is a wonderful example of the depth and breadth of street art in Bristol and shows that there is room for everyone here.

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021

I have collected several pieces into this one post to give you a flavour of his style and subject material that tends to focus on faces and interlocking images.

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2021
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2021

Even since April the quality of the line drawings and the materials he uses have improved considerably and in future posts you will see how quickly the artist is getting used to working on concrete canvasses and gaining in confidence.

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021

For people like me (and Paul H) it is always very exciting when new artists emerge on to the scene and establish their intent. The egg face piece above is one of my favourites.

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021

Even running from top to bottom in this series you can see how the lines have become sharper and the creativity of ideas expanded. There is so much to look forward to from this artist. All that remains is for me to get lucky enough to meet him while painting one of these creations.

3427. M32 roundabout (276)

I have only met Hemper on one occasion and that was last summer. My first impressions were that he is an unassuming and modest fellow who has put in the effort and has a gift for graffiti writing and does it extraordinarily well.

Hemper, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2020
Hemper, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2020

Hemper is a freestyle writer, which means that he doesn’t paint from a sketch in a black book but rather from his imagination. Combine that natural creativity with the fine motor skills that he has developed over the years, and you get outstanding pieces like this one. A little beauty.

3342. St Werburghs tunnel (210)

Resembling one of the giant stone head statues of Easter Island is this rather nice and low-key piece by Zace. This is only the second piece I have posted by Zace, and it illustrates the diversity of artists in Bristol at the moment and the rate at which new ones are joining the already sizeable cohort.

Zace, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2020
Zace, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2020

There is something about this piece that I really like, maybe its modesty or the simplicity. The expression is difficult to read – an enigmatic smile perhaps? There is a lot to like and enjoy in a piece like this one and I really look forward to finding more work from Zace.

3311. Jamaica Street (24)

The People’s Republic of Stokes Croft outdoor gallery is a great ‘showcase’ wall that is properly curated and well respected. Rarely is this wall tagged or despoiled in any way. One of the key carers of this wall is Object… so it is great when he gets to put a piece of his own work up, and in this case as part of a collaboration with Msale.

Object... and Msale, Jamaica Street, Bristol, May 2020
Object… and Msale, Jamaica Street, Bristol, May 2020

The collaboration breaks down into three panels and picks up on the coronavirus pandemic theme. On the left we see two people hugging the planet earth which is wearing a face mask, the emblem of 2020.

Object... and Msale, Jamaica Street, Bristol, May 2020
Object… and Msale, Jamaica Street, Bristol, May 2020

The middle panel is a ring and circle of text in a calligraphy style. The outer ring says “apart; together; stay safe”. The inner circle is in a script I can’t read and might be Arabic or something like that.

Object... and Msale, Jamaica Street, Bristol, May 2020
Object… and Msale, Jamaica Street, Bristol, May 2020

On the right is a masked portrait with the word ‘hope’ underneath it and to the right are the words ‘Baki salama’ which means stay safe.

Overall this is a contemporary and uplifting piece from two fine artists.

Object... and Msale, Jamaica Street, Bristol, May 2020
Object… and Msale, Jamaica Street, Bristol, May 2020

Kool Hand

A gallery of street art containing quite a lot of orangutans from Bristol artist Kool Hand.

Instagram: @koolhand_briz

All photographs by Scooj

Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2023
Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2023
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023
Kool Hand, Purdown, Bristol, January 2023
Kool Hand, Purdown, Bristol, January 2023
Kool Hand, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2022
Kool Hand, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2022
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2022
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2022
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2022
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, Brunel Way, Bristol, October 2022
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2022
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2022
Ryder, T-Rex, Conrico and Kool hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2022
Ryder, T-Rex, Conrico and Kool hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2022
Kool Hand, M32 cycle path Bristol, August 2022
Kool Hand, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2022
Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2022
Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, June 2022
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2022
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2022
Kool Hand, Greenbank, Bristol, February 2022
Kool Hand, Greenbank, Bristol, February 2022
Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2021
Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2021
Daz Cat and Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2021
Daz Cat and Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2021
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Kool Hand, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2021
Kool Hand, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2021
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol January 2021
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol January 2021
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2020
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2020

 

CD.TC, Daz Cat and Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2020
CD.TC, Daz Cat and Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2020

 

Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2020
Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2020

 

Kool Hand, Purdown Battery, Bristol, July 2020
Kool Hand, Purdown Battery, Bristol, July 2020

 

Kool Hand, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2020
Kool Hand, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2020

 

Kool Hand, M32 cycle path, Bristol, June 2020
Kool Hand, M32 cycle path, Bristol, June 2020

 

Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol. June 2020
Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol. June 2020

 

Kool Hand, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2018
Kool Hand, M32 Spot, Bristol, July 2018

 

Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2020
Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2020

 

Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2020
Kool Hand, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2020

 

Kool Hand, M32 cycle path, Bristol, December 2019
Kool Hand, M32 cycle path, Bristol, December 2019

 

Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2019
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2019

 

Kool Hand and Daz Cat, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2019
Kool Hand and Daz Cat, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2019

 

Kool Hand, M32 Roundabout, Bristol, July 2019
Kool Hand, M32 Roundabout, Bristol, July 2019

 

Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2019
Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2019

 

Kool Hand, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2018
Kool Hand, M32 Spot, Bristol, May 2018

 

Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2018
Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2018

 

Kool Hand, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2018
Kool Hand, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2018

 

Kool Hand, St Werburghs tunnel, Bristol, May 2018
Kool Hand, St Werburghs tunnel, Bristol, May 2018

 

Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2018
Kool Hand, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2018

 

3258. M32 roundabout J(3) (258)

A beguiling and very clever collaboration brings together the complementary skills of Paul Monsters and Soker in a piece that has a little secret that isn’t at first inspection very obvious. It is a secret I’ll let you in to. The writing by Soker spells the word TRUE, but upside down it spells FALSE. Very clever stuff and very much in the domain of Graffiti writers who love this kind of letter-play.

Paul Monsters and Soker, M32 roundabout, Bristol September 2020
Paul Monsters and Soker, M32 roundabout, Bristol September 2020

Of course the writing is top notch, but that is what we expect from Soker. The background design is unmistakably the work of Paul Monsters whose distinctive geometric designs and colour selections adorn walls all over Brisol. Note to self – time for a Paul Monsters gallery?. This is an outstanding collaboration from two great artists and fine fellows.

3228. M32 Spot (83)

There is little new that I can say about Smak. I have used pretty much run out of superlatives to describe his work. So I will go easy, and you can take it as read that this is yet another stunner from this Bristol-based graffiti writer.

Smak, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2020
Smak, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2020

The colour combinations were similar to those chosen by Soker, Inkie and Sled One all of whom painted alongside Smak on this wall a little while back. When I see top quality writing like this, I wonder where the artist can go next, but they have such talent that they can keep on painting outstandinng pieces. I particularly like the hole and drip on the bottom edge of the right hand leg of the ‘M’. Top work.

2784. Dean Lane skate park (285)

Regular readers will know that I really don’t like posting pieces by ‘unknown’ artists, but sometimes I’ll see something that is just too good to consign to the depths of my archive and this is one such piece. Rather simple, yet appealing to me at least, is this slightly geeky looking character on one of the walls at Dean Lane.

Unknown artist, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2020
Unknown artist, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2020

The cartoon style and subject matter appeal to me, and while it might not be the best piece of art in town, I actually like it a lot. I can’t work out the letters just to the left, it could be GTIFF or STIFF ot STTFF or some other combination, but Google searches have yielded nothing so far, so if anyone out there knows who the artist might be please shout.

1130. Stanton Street, New York (1)

I was so glad to have found this piece because I have seen it so many times on digital social media. As it turns out, it was about a one minute walk from our hotel, but because of its orientation I only saw it on the last day of our trip.

Gumshoe, Stanton Street, New York, October 2017
Gumshoe, Stanton Street, New York, October 2017

Somewhat iconic, Gumshoe’s (Angela China) art is so very eyecatching and original. The piece of course has some chewing gum sticking to footwear, in this instance a high-heeled boot. Her art is overtly erotic, which makes it intereting to be so exposed on the street. A piece like this in the UK would probably be dogged or sabotaged by those who might be offended. We rarely see work like this in Bristol, which in my view is a pity.

Gumshoe, Stanton Street, New York, October 2017
Gumshoe, Stanton Street, New York, October 2017

A superb piece and one I will remember from the trip.