A gallery of superb character street art by Bristol artist I am Ian.
Instagram: @iam.ian.m
All photographs by Scooj
I am Ian
Tag: I Am Ian
7747. M32 Cycle path (311)
A recent paint jam alongside the M32 had a rather unusual Central American theme the likes of which we don’t often see in Bristol, perhaps for obvious reasons. This colourful character piece by I am Ian features a gun-toting ‘Mexican’ bandit.
The character, complete with sombrero and poncho, is a little bit stereotyped, which is not surprising as much of our understanding of such things is via the consumption of spaghetti westerns of the late 20th century. There is some great perspective in this piece, and I rather like the desert background including several cacti. More from this adventurous paint jam to come.
6694. Dean Lane skate park (801)
I have a sense that 2025 is going to be a good one for street art in Bristol. Already January, a month that is traditionally rather slow, has been a very active period with loads of artists hitting the ground running. A signal that we could be in for a treat this year is the early appearance of Kid Crayon and I am Ian in Dean Lane.
This skull piece by I am Ian is full of joy and humour. Painted in a mischievous cartoon style, the grinning skull is accompanied by the slogan ‘Here today, gone tomorrow’, which I guess is a brief description of our existence. The character is expertly painted, with some great shading and fine lines to create features and depth. A wonderful way to start the year.
6301. M32 roundabout J3 (617)
You’ve got to grab the opportunities when you can, and that applies equally to artists as it does to me. Kid Crayon and I Am Ian have been out and about a few times this summer, and knowing that they are busy people, it is great to see them painting walls and enjoying themselves.
This recent collaboration on the M32 roundabout wall showcases their artistic skills beautifully. kid Crayon has produced one of his light-hearted writing/character combinations, which I have to say is really good. It is always nice to see the floating crayon, KC’s signature symbol, in front of the character’s mouth. There is a little shout-out to the Gums and Tongue crew on the character’s baseball cap.
I don’t think I have ever seen any writing from I Am Ian, I don’t think it is his thing, but his characters are always interesting and usually humorous. This rather forlorn character at least is able to comment ‘What a beautiful day!!! I Am Ian’s pieces are often accompanied with the words ‘sit up’, although I am not entirely sure of their significance. A wonderful collaboration from these two fabulous artists.
6270. Cumberland Basin
One of the really enjoyable things about this summer has been the re-emergence of Kid Crayon and his painting partner, I Am Ian. They have collaborated several times recently, with their blend of colourful writing and cartoon-style characters. This piece is what I would call a ‘true’ collaboration, where it becomes difficult to determine exactly who painted which bits.
I don’t know I Am Ian to be a writer, so I guess that the letters are by Kid Crayon, as is the character on the left, I think. Although both characters are very similar in style, I think that the one on the right might be by I Am Ian. The whole piece is a fantastical mickey-take of the Cabbage Patch Dolls, turning them into a drug gang, ‘the Cabbage Patch Cartel’. Both mischievous and witty and great fun. More to come soon from these two.
6240. Dean Lane skate park (736)
One of this summer’s pleasures has been the reasonably regular appearances by Kid Crayon and his painting pal, I am Ian. This wacky piece features a large cartoon-style character, with tears flowing from his exaggerated eyes, and the caption ‘Ain’t easy being macho’, which is really funny.
Although it isn’t necessarily intended to be topical or political, this piece and the caption speaks to me about a growing and disturbing phenomenon of disenfranchised white males, often poorly educated and with limited prospects, turning to the far right of politics, encouraged by the untruths and promises of divisive and disingenuous politicians and activists. The perfect example of this was the man in a grey tracksuit at the race riot in Southport this week, who was posturing and puffing out his chest in front of a line of police with their riot gear, only to be hit on the head with a brick and another large item, thrown by other rioters at the police, and then on retreating back to the fold, got struck in the bo**ocks by another missile. ‘Ain’t easy being macho’.
6147. M32 roundabout J3 (588)
The dry, and occasionally hot, weather we have been experiencing during this so-called English summer has seen artists out and about in large numbers, with several recent very well attended paint jams. This beauty, by I am Ian, was painted on the roundabout wall during one of these paint jams.
I get the feeling that I am Ian, who doesn’t paint walls all that often, was coaxed out of his studio to paint next to his friend Kid Crayon. Furthermore, I have never seen an I am Ian piece that isn’t adjacent to or a collaboration with Kid Crayon. The character looks a bit like one of the evil alter-egos spawned from Gizmo in the 1980s ‘horror’ film ‘Gremlins’. The mischievous character, who is spraying the wall with red paint, is nicely presented and definitely brings something fresh and interesting to the paint jam. I am looking forward to seeing more of these events through the summer period.
5162. M32 roundabout J3 (467)
I was really fed up when I missed the last collaboration from these two in Dean Lane a short while ago. I was just too slow, and in this game if you snooze, you lose. So I didn’t hang around this time, making sure I got down to the roundabout as soon as I knew this had been painted. The collaboration is from Kid Crayon and I Am Ian, whose street work I have only ever seen alongside his friend.
Kid crayon has gone for some straightforward writing in pink shades, which is very much a favoured tone he uses. The letters are clean and tidy, with some fun fills adding interest to the two pinks he has used. The lines along the top offer a sense of movement. The words ‘sit up’ segue nicely across to the adjacent I Am Ian piece.
I have seen a lot of designs on I Am Ian’s Instagram account, and he manages to transition them really well to large walls, retaining his bold colours and exaggerated features. In this piece, we see a red-faced character doing sit-ups, building up a sweat and whose eyes are popping. Fun stuff from these two, who really ought to get out more and paint walls together this summer (easy for me to say).
3262. M32 Spot (85)
I have said it before and will repeat myself. I love this modest board underneath the M32. Turnover is quite slow, maybe one new piece a month and the quality of work here is usually pretty good, and that fine tradition continues with this zany collaboration from Kid Crayon and I Am Ian
I can’t begin to know what the story is in this piece and I will not attempt to unravel it, but it is full of fun and colour. On the left is a male head sporting a rather nice paper hat with a blue and white flag. All around the face are swords firmly planted in the blue substrate. The words between the two heads say Cloth Mother – I don’t know wat that is, maybe their crew name.
On the right is a face from I Am Ian, one that has ben severed from its body, presumably by one of the many swords. The character has horns and might be satan, but I’ll not guess any further because I said I wouldn’t try to unravel the collaboration. Instead I will sit back and enjoy it. Crazy people, crazy piece.
3067. M32 roundabout J3 (234)
It seems such a pity when a lovely collaboration like this one from I Am Ian and Kid Crayon only lasts a day or so, but this wall has been in high-demand recently and turnover very fast indeed. I have already missed recent Laic217, Kid Crayon and Mr Draws Pieces right here in the last few days. I spoke with Kid Crayon the day after I took this photograph (he was painting a new piece – to come) and he told me that he and I Am Ian had trained together as graphic designers and remained friends and although they have taken slightly different paths they get together occasionally to paint a wall.
This collaboration is a lot of fun and a time-lapse video from Kid Crayon’s Instagram feed shows how the whole piece came together and is well worth a view. Kid Crayon has woken up and is painting like a mad thing which can only be great news. I am less familiar with I Am Ian’s work, but that is because he rarely hits the streets with his art. Their last collaboration was a fabulous piece in St Werburghs tunnel. There is so much to love about this.
Natural adventures 