Tag: Laic217

2539. Dean Lane skate park (259)

Oh what a fabulous day – deep blue skies after what feels like a month of constant rain and a new Laic217 piece on the curved wall in Dean Lane – it just doesn’t get much better than this. Laic217 just keeps on doing it and with each piece his technique improves. This piece looks like it has been lifted straight off a sketchbook and the tones he gets in this greyscale piece are to be admired. The overall composition is really interesting and has some resemblance to a piece he painted on this wall in March last year with the words ‘Ice Ice Baby’.

Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2019
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2019

Making an appearance, a feature of so many street works, are some ‘Hello, my name is’ stickers. Now can somebody please tell me the significance of these – why do they appear so often? On these, one says Laic217, another says CortOne (one of his painting pals) and the third I’m not too sure about.

Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2018
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2018

2458. Dean Lane skate park (249)

Readers of Natural Adventures will know that I am a monumental fan of the work of Laic217, and here is the latest collaboration with his often painting partner Cort in Dean Lane. I have to say though that this is not their best piece in my opinion. There is something not quite right about it. The two elements of the collaboration do not complement each other and I think these would be better as stand-alone pieces. Don’t get me wrong, this is still great work only not quite up to the usual high standard.

Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019

The central Cort writing is book-ended by two rather dark characters by Laic217. Although we are used to seeing Cort write CORT, he has also taken to writing PADY this year – I’m not sure what has prompted this variation, but writers often do this probably just to swicth it up a bit.

Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019

On the left side is a post-apocalyptic character with a skeletal face and mask. The mask could be interpreted as a gas mask or spraying mask and the two seem to intertwine. It all feels a bit chilling and like something out of a Terminator movie.

Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2019

On the right of Cort’s writing is another character in  the same dark and depressing regalia wearing a full overhead gas mask. These two Laic217 characters speak of doom and convey a dystopian future in a chilling and convincing way. I would have liked to have seen these characters separated from Cort’s writing, which is at odds with them.

 

2384. M32 Cycle path (33)

I know that skulls are not everyone’s cup of tea, but in the street art world they are a common subject for many artists from many genres. Laic217 rather specialises in demonic skulls or in distorted faces, but in my view, rather than being something creepy, thay are actually often quite humorous and light-hearted. This piece however is dark, whichever way you look at it.

Laic217, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2019
Laic217, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2019

Laic217 has used the pink eyes before to great effect and they convey a sense of absence of soul, demonstrating just how important eyes are in making judgements. One of the things I love most about Laic217’s work is his attention to the fabrics worn by his characters. He puts a lot of thought into every fold of their clothing, and this aspect of his work just gets better and better. A steady piece along the M32 cycle path.

2369. M32 roundabout J3 (157)

Laic217 has only gone and smashed it again, with this exquisitely summery scene. I can’t make up my mind whether the tree shade on the piece actually adds to the ambience, I don’t think it particularly detracts from it, which is not usually the case with shadows and street art.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2019
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2019

This is a masterful piece by Laic217 with many of the features we are accustomed to seeing in his work… the bucket hat and smiley and a skeleton spraying, although the sspray paint seems to have been replaced with sun cream or something more gloopy. The crowning glory of the piece though is the shirt.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2019
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2019

Laic217 works so hard on his fabrics and this Hawaiian shirt with tiger motifs has pretty much blown everything I have seen previously out of the water. I just don’t know how he has got the tiger print to look so good using a spray can – quite extraordinary. This is an artist whose work just goes from strength to strength and I just can’t get enough of it.

2261. St Werburghs tunnel (84)

Sandwiched between Eraze and Rusk (quite some sandwich) is this rather small and understated piece by Laic217, all the more unusual for the lack of a signature. The piece was painted back in May during what must have been quite some paint jam, during which at least ten artists converged on St Werburghs tunnel.

Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2019
Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2019

Laic217 had gone for a minimum of colours in the portrait but jazzed up the whole thing with a bright gold chain. The elements that link this piece to Laic217 are the zip fastener, the style of clothes and the dripping/melting effect. I’m not too sure about the ear on this piece, which appears to be a little high and large and almost blended into the cap.

2223. Wilder Street (32)

I got very lucky last weekend when I took the dog out for a ‘street art walk’ to Wilder Street and found Laic217 and Nightwayss painting together. The dog accompanies me quite a lot these days, poor thing, but is most patient when I stop to talk to the artists.

Nightwayss and Laic217, Wilder Street, Bristol, May 2019
Nightwayss and Laic217, Wilder Street, Bristol, May 2019

This is an absolutely fabulous piece by Laic217 who, in five years of writing about Bristol street art, I have only met once before. I stopped to ask him for a few tips about controlling the spray pressure coming from a can and other control techniques, and he was very kind with showing me a trick or two.

Laic217, Wilder Street, Bristol, May 2019
Laic217, Wilder Street, Bristol, May 2019

The completed piece is an upbeat summer special, complete with a beautiful pink shirt emblazoned with smiley faces. Unmistakably a Laic217 work with many of his trademark themes. So good, and so good to watch him at work.

2217. M32 roundabout J3 (144)

On the M32 roundabout we have yet another wonderful Cort and Laic217 combination. These two really do seem to enjoy painting together and somehow that personal chemistry comes across, even though their styles are completely different.

Cort, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2019
Cort, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2019

The Cort writing is so typically in his style, with unusual shaped lettering combining straight lines with curves and some rather tasty fillings too. The whole thing is set on what looks like a brick wall where the render has started to flake off, a great effect.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2019
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2019

To the right is the Laic217 writing bookended with characters in one of his favoured red colours. For me this piece is the epitome of everything that Laic217 brings to his pieces, some great writing, great textures and skeletal characters with an element of menace about them. Nice to see a little shout out to Ryder on the right hand side of the piece too.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2019
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2019

I could sit and look at Laic217 pieces all day. I don’t think I necessarily share his fascination with death, acid, bucket hats or brick walls, but I appreciate how he conjures up these extraordinary pieces. A rich and magnificent piece.

2193. St Werburghs tunnel (77)

Another artist I will never tire of is Laic217 and this piece in St Werburghs tunnel is so typical of his great work. Another weed-smoking bucket-hatted skull, which he simply gets better and better at crafting.

Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2019
Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2019

I feel a real closeness with Laic217’s work because since I started doing this recording  Bristol street art thing in 2015 I have watched his work closely and seen his style develop significantly, and although his subjects are often similar, the depth and complexity of his pieces constantly grows. Love this one.

2152. St Werburghs tunnel (73)

Another fine combo from Laic217 and Cort in St Werburghs tunnel. I feel like I haven’t seen too much from Laic217 in recent months, although actually he is still reasonably productive and I see maybe a couple of new pieces each month.

Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2019
Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2019

The Character piece has several themes that we have seen from Laic217 before. A skull, a brick wall, this time in the form of glasses and a brilliantly crafted hoodie jacket complete with zip.

Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2019
Laic217, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2019

More than other pieces that Laic217 has produced, this one feels surreal, probably because the brick wall obscures the eyes, or more correctly the eye sockets, so the character is dissociated from its surroundings… warning, beginning to sound a little pretentious.

Cort, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2019
Cort, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2019

It would seem that Cort recently has been rather fond of extending the length of his name, and in this case to CORTONE. I wonder if by lengthening it he gives himself more scope to play around. I like what he has done here, and I particularly like the random white surround with trios of black dots in it. All in all a nice collaboration from these two friends.

2137. M32 cycle path (21)

Top Cat by Deamze looks on at a recent piece by Laic217. While not quite up to the very high standards we have come to expect from Laic217, this is still a rather striking piece Bering many of the hallmarks used by this artist.

Laic217, M32 cycle path, Bristol, March 2019
Laic217, M32 cycle path, Bristol, March 2019

I would guess that this was probably painted rather quickly, and perhaps not enough thought was given to the proportions of the portrait. Whatever the reason, the top of the head and hat is a bit squished. I am rather fond of the skull shirt decorations though. More from Laic217 soon I hope.