Greenbank – Page 7 – Natural adventures

6252. Greenbank (130)

I have mentioned a couple of times in posts recently that Minto has been pretty busy lately, and this is another in a string of graffiti writing pieces. The writing and overall piece is a little more coherent than some of the ‘deconstructed’ pieces of late.

There is lots of colour and movement in this piece, in which the letters MINTO are picked out in pinks and oranges. The piece is a good one for a nice sunny day, for sure. I particularly like the two traces of stars on the sides of the letter ‘M’. good stuff from Minto.

6241. Greenbank (129)

Just when I think that Haka has gone all quiet, he pops up with another piece, and so it was with this one on the long hoarding at Greenbank. The piece is a rather nice writing character combination, where the letters HAKA occupy most of the body space, behind which is a rather cheerful-looking stegosaurus.

I have tried to find out who the dinosaur is, as most of Haka’s characters tend to be from children’s picture books, but there are an awful lot of them and my Google search was fruitless. The whole thing is a really nicely composed conflation of graffiti writing and children’s illustration. Charming really.

6220. Greenbank (128)

It feels like Daz Cat is pushing all sorts of boundaries at the moment and painting with a freedom in both style and content that is a pleasure to witness. There is a lot going on in this free-flowing story-telling piece in Greenbank.

I can see a lady surrounded by purple/lilac cats, but the intriguing part of this piece is the two ‘robot’ arms that rather randomly seem to have landed in amongst them and are smoking from the arm sockets. There is a story which is skilfully illustrated, but it is a story belonging very much to the artist – as viewers we can only concoct our own stories. Great work from Daz Cat.

6212. Greenbank (127)

Conrico has been super-busy lately both painting on the street, and in his studio. He has a fabulous imagination, and much of his art is influenced by the culture of the Far East, in particular Japan. I don’t know what the connection is, but it adds an exotic flavour to many of his pieces.

This is quite an unusual portrait piece, that in contrast to what I have said in the previous paragraph, appears to be of a Central/South American person wearing face paint and with feathers in their hair. Once again, Conrico’s unique can-work gives the impression that the piece has been painted with brushes, and doesn’t have that ‘clinical tight finish that so much street art tends to have. More still to come from Conrico.

6206. Greenbank (126)

In Bristol, there are dozens, literally, of writers bubbling under the surface. Many of these are not as well known as some of the more established graffiti writers, but every once in a while one of them breaks cover and rises up a level or two. This often coincides (unsurprisingly) with their appearance on Natural Adventures. Omie is one of those artists whose work I have noticed and admire.

The refreshing thing about Omie’s work is that every piece is completely different from the last in style and composition, which keeps things very interesting. These heavy block letters spelling out OMIE in dark grey-green tones are given extra weight by a chunky 3D drop-shadow. Some orange decoration around the outside provides plenty of contrast to help the piece stand out. Nice work from Omie.

6198. Greenbank (125)

There is no doubt about it, I am really enjoying the fresh look of Zeks’ pieces combined with the fact that he is painting in Bristol a little more often these days, and long may that last. This is a straightforward piece of graffiti writing, with clearly defined letters and simple design – incorporating a little symmetry with the ‘Z’ and ‘S’.

I can’t put my finger on it, but there is something quite unique about Zeks’ writing. There is a modesty and uncomplicatedness, an authenticity, which really attracts me. Simple solid fills are accompanied by a striped pattern filling the letter gaps. A couple of arrows and some rings accessorise the letters a little, but none of it would work very well without the cream background. This is a great composition.

6159. Greenbank (124)

Esme Lower, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2024

I think that we are approaching the last few months of this wonderful spot with its long hoarding, because the housing development is nearing completion, and when finished the boards will come down and the graffiti spot will become a thing of the past. That is part of my motivation to capture these spots and the art, because it is all so ephemeral. I was lucky enough to meet Esme Lower while she was painting this piece, and she said at the time that she was looking forward to doing more artwork on the streets, because she really enjoys it.

I love this representation of a fight or scrap, because it is representative of so many conflict situations, and painted in a humorous style. It reminds me of the fights that Asterix and Obelix would have with the Romans in the comic book series. There is plenty of action and movement in this fun piece, and I will definitely be keeping my eyes peeled for more from Esme Lower.

6122. Greenbank (123)

I find myself sounding like a stuck record all too often when it comes to posting about Mr Draws’ work, in part because he has been an ever-present on Natural Adventures and continues to paint his unique style of writing and his diverse street art pieces, and I have found myself repeating myself a little, which in no way detracts from his wonderful work.

There is a freedom and joy in Mr Draws’ graffiti writing in which he concentrates on his fills, usually with hard edges between colours rather than blended transitions. He has used his customary deep drop shadow, and the whole thing is bordered with a clean white line. A fine archetypal Mr Draws piece that is a key part of the continuing culture of the whole Bristol street art and graffiti writing scene.

6104. Greenbank (122)

I haven’t yet seen Mind 49’s piece for Upfest yet, but his preparation has been on an ever-upwards trajectory. With each new piece that he paints, he seems to grow, not only in confidence but in comfort with and command of his style. This piece on the hoardings at Greenbank is a great example of his soft photorealism work.

In nearly all of Mind 49’s pieces the eyes of his subject are obscured often with sunglasses, and I wonder if that is a signature kind of thing or whether he struggles with painting eyes. I guess I’ll have to meet him to find out. Mind 49 has a fantastic tone with his artwork, which often looks like it might be painted with brushes rather than spray cans – the mark of a great artist. Now, I must hunt down his Upfest piece, from what I have seen on social media, it looks quite remarkable.

6082. Greenbank (121)

It is a genuine privilege to have a stand out The Hass piece here on the Greenbank hoardings, which feels like it was a warm-up piece for his outstanding Upfest combination wall. This is street art of the highest calibre painted in a graffiti spot, and as such stands out a mile. Anyone passing by, and the cycle path gets a lot of footfall, would surely have to stop and admire such a thing of beauty.

The piece falls into two distinct halves which merge in the middle. The left-hand side features a delightful floral design, so delicate and pretty and to the right The Hass has painted a representation of a stone sculpture head, which is reminiscent of the great pieces by PichiAvo.

As a whole, this combination is a true masterpiece, and we are lucky in Bristol to have artists who turn out extraordinary work like this on a reasonably regular basis. This was one of the best surprises I have had on my ’rounds’ for quite a while.

	hitandrun1964 on 7897. Dean Lane skate park…
	Sheree on 7897. Dean Lane skate park…
	paulh121 on 7892. Purdown (105)
	scooj on 7771. Exeter Road – Upfe…
	scooj on 7892. Purdown (105)

	hitandrun1964 on 7897. Dean Lane skate park…
	Sheree on 7897. Dean Lane skate park…
	paulh121 on 7892. Purdown (105)
	scooj on 7771. Exeter Road – Upfe…
	scooj on 7892. Purdown (105)

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