This is the third piece from the PRSC outdoor gallery that featured Boogie and Voyder, and is by the organiser of the ‘Boogie Down Bristol’ event and all round godfather of Bristol graffiti, Inkie.
This is a really wonderful piece from Inkie, and I think he was pulling out all the stops on this one to show Boogie what he was made of. The colour selections are great, and match those used by Boogie on the far left of the three. Voyder was clearly on his own agenda.
Sometimes you get lucky and see pieces by great artists that come and go in the twinkling of an eye. This was a quick one sprayed by Inkie to celebrate the opening of the ‘Graffiti Nation’ exhibition at Upfest back on 28 April 2017.
Inkie told me that he had sprayed it quickly that day and had also worked on his contribution for the exhibition an the day as well. A busy man. This is a wonderful work, simple in its colour selection but with such beautiful writing and lines.
When I look at something like this, it appears to have an effortlessness about it, the work of someone completely in command of his craft. It was painted over fairly swiftly.
Well it seems that lightening does strike twice after all. Inkie has returned to exactly the same wall he sprayed a couple of weeks back, leaving another one of his trademark pieces.
This time the base colours are green pink and black. You can just about see the outline of his previous piece underneath this one. He really is a master of his craft.
This was a rather nice surprise left by one of Bristol’s master graffiti artists at the Deaner recently. Inkie has been back in town, and it is great when he leaves something like this behind. This is a beautiful piece of writing, typical of his style, and the colour selection is just brilliant.
I know how busy Inkie is, with commissions all over the place, so a piece like this…back to his roots…somehow seems so very valuable and meaningful. Enjoy this, from one of the longest lasting and very best there is.
Another large wall, this time a little out of the way on Dean Lane. This is one of the most awkward walls to photograph, let alone spray, but Inkie has done a commanding job of this one.
The large piece is on the side of the South Bank Club and features a trademark Inkie portrait. The whole thing is a Bristol as Bristol can be, with a rather nice reference to the Clifton Suspension Bridge on the left hand side.
I think the character at the top of the piece is a fairly effeminate looking Isambard Kindom Brunel.
The character at the bottom of the piece might be a self portrait, but I am not sure really. The whole thing is really impressive, and I was fortunate enough to catch up with Inkie while he was just finishing off the job. Inkie and Bristol are utterly interlinked, and we are lucky to have him around.
The observant will notice an Angus piece just to the bottom left of the picture.
UPDATE: Inkie informs me via Twitter that this piece is going nowhere and will remain in place after Upfest, which is great news.
This wonderful Inkie is enjoying the last days of the Raj. It was created for Upfest 2015, and will in all likelihood give way to another piece at the 2016 festival in July.
‘Best thing since sliced bread’ is a wonderful piece by Inkie, incorporating his large block writing, and the styalised girl with flowing hair. Interestingly the girl is in three quarter profile, rather than the silhouetted profile that is more common in his works.
On the wall of a bakery, this uplifting work fits so perfectly in this quiet street, immediately off North Street. I wonder what will replace it.
When I first arrived in Bristol, some 26 years ago, I was a young man with energy and an appetite for clubs and boozing. The Thekla was one of my favourite haunts and I regularly drank more than was good for me on this fine vessel. Many ships and boats on Bristol’s floating harbour have been converted into clubs, cafes and restaurants, and they add to the maritime tradition here.
This beautiful Inkie piece is not the first to be sprayed on the side of the Thekla. Some years ago, Banksy sprayed the Grim Reaper in roughly the same place. This piece by Inkie is perfect for the location, and one of my favourite works in Bristol.
There is a little bonus piece near the bowse of the Thekla of Homer Simpson. I am not sure who the artist is, but it brings with it additional colour to the flank of the ship. All a bit of fun.
To find an Inkie work is always a pleasure. To find one that is still fresh, and you can almost smell the paint is even better. This piece was obviously a bit of fun, because the walls here at Dean Land skate park are over painted pretty much weekly.
I have a feeling that a few artists came together to spray these walls together last weekend, because in addition to Inkie, Zesk and Hemper and Mr Draws had all sprayed pieces at the same time. I am finding out that quite often groups of artists will congregate and have graffiti fun together.
I still stand out as an observer of street art, because that is what I am. Very slowly I am learning a little bit more about the culture, the relationships, the taboos and the protocols of the graffiti community, but I will always be an outsider looking in. It is not a regret, but more of an observation. It also means that my naivety in this landscape is sometimes crushingly obvious.
I do this though because it gives me great pleasure.
A couple of weeks ago I discovered, quite by accident, a goldmine of new pieces in Brunswick Square, St Pauls. There is a large new development along the south side of the square with hoardings all around it. It would appear that the developers have encouraged Bristol’s finest to decorate the hoardings, and they have done an amazing job.
This piece is by one of Bristol’s most well known street artists, Inkie, and is a bright and colourful wildstyle burner in his very distinct style. A lovely piece.
I will, of course, feature other works from this magnificent site soon.
There is a small enclave of street art in Cotham, centered around the Highbury Vaults pub. I have already featured two works in the area, one by Nick Walker, and the other by Unify. This is the third piece to be found here, and one that somehow passed me by until recently. Perhaps this is because it is so seamlessly blends in with the shop that it adorns.
This mural is a trademark Inkie. It reminds me very much of the styling used for Biba – maybe it is the black and gold thing going on.
7/10
Natural adventures 