Tag: London

Thursday doors

Doors 68. Fournier Street (Part 1)

Well I think I hit door gold last week when taking a trip to London. My sister, who lives in Stoke Newington, and I had decided to spend the day together to remember our father on the first anniversary of his death.

My sister suggested we take a walk in the Brick Lane area – I think she thought I’d enjoy showing her the street art in the area, and indeed she was right. Some of the pieces we saw are posted elsewhere on Natural Adventures.

Heading back to a bust stop near Spitalfields Market, we turned right off Brick Lane and into Fournier Street. My jaw nearly hit the floor. I explained the whole ‘Thursday Doors’ to my long-suffering sister and proceeded to snap away. Fournier street is one of those amazing East End streets that has pretty much kept its character, and rather than being knocked down in some kind of ill-thought-out gentrification project it has survived and thrived in private ownership by people who took a punt back in the 1950s/60s that these houses were worth looking after. Gilbert and George are an example of that, and if you Google them in Fournier Street, you can see articles about their house (Number 8 I think).

Enough guff… here is the first installment of Fournier Street doors:

Double double door, Brick Lane Muslim Funeral Services, Fournier Street, London April 2019
Double double door, Brick Lane Muslim Funeral Services, Fournier Street, London April 2019
Blue door and fine portico, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Blue door and fine portico, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Nice doors and great Victorian tiles, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Nice doors and great Victorian tiles, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door and swanky portico with lamp, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door and swanky portico with lamp, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door, slightly wonky, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door, slightly wonky, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door, eight panels and beautiful surround, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door, eight panels and beautiful surround, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door, is this one wonky too? Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door, is this one wonky too? Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door with splendid portico, Fournier Street, London, April 2019
Door with splendid portico, Fournier Street, London, April 2019

More Fournier door delight to come in Part 2 soon.

For more doors and indeed the inspiration behind Thursday Doors go and take a look at Norm 2.0 blog where there are links to yet more doors.

2146. Shoreditch, London (29)

Sweet Toof is a London artist who has always had strong links with Bristol especially through his long-standing friendship with Rowdy. Even now, there are several toothy pieces dotted around the city. It is funny, but I have always thought of him as a Bristol artist, because of his legacy here.

Sweet Toof, Shoreditch, London, April 2019
Sweet Toof, Shoreditch, London, April 2019

It was extra special to find this triptych of shutters, that look rather recent, when in London last weekend walking in the Brick Lane area with my sister. It doesn’t seem to matter where I pitch up in the world, there always seems to be a Sweet Toof piece close by.

Sweet Toof, Shoreditch, London, April 2019
Sweet Toof, Shoreditch, London, April 2019

These three are really rather special, and have a feel of ‘see no evil, speak no evil, hear no evil’ about them. It is nice to see the three different aspects of the skulls. Obviously that Master’s degree from the Royal Academy of Arts was not wasted.

Sweet Toof, Shoreditch, London, April 2019
Sweet Toof, Shoreditch, London, April 2019

I do like Sweet Toof’s work very much indeed, always blending mortality with humour in his incredibly distinctive style. Great find.

One year on

.

My sister and me

we remember him today

and tell our stories.

.

by Scooj

Signal failure

 

Delayed at Didcot

nothing much to see or do

tracks are tracks are tracks.

 

by Scooj

Motivation

.

Energy levels

stratospheric, preparing

to facilitate.

.

by Scooj

2069. Shoreditch, London (28)

I think that this piece by AKA Jimmy C is another one that falls into the category of ‘recently done, just in time for my visit to Shoreditch’. It is a touching painting of a man carrying a child with fatherly affection and care. As with all AKA Jimmy C pieces it is painted using tiny spots of paint to make up the whole – pointillism graffiti.

AKA Jimmy C, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
AKA Jimmy C, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

I had walked past this charming piece and it was only when I turned back, checking for traffic, that I saw it. It goes to show that in this game you really do need to keep your wits about you. This is a sensational piece and simply adds to the enormous spectrum of street art.

2068. Shoreditch, London (27)

I have only seen Ant Carver’s work at Upfest, so it was with some excitement that I found this wheatpaste piece by him during my extensive stroll around Shoreditch. His style is instantly recognisable and all the better for having witnessed the way he builds his work up at Upfest 2018.

Ant Carver, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Ant Carver, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

This was not the only wheatpaste by Mr Carver that I found on this particular walk and It will give me great pleasure to share the other one with you soon. It comes as no surprise that it is the eyes that captivate the audience in his pieces, and it must have something to do with the way he builds his pictures up. Great work.

2067. Shoreditch, London (26)

This wonderful mash-up piece by Ewan Blackford is right up my street, metaphorically speaking at least. To me it has components of the Sky High approach to mixing it up a bit, and some of the crazy character stuff of artists like 3Dom or Si2 (Hull Graffiti).

Ewan Blackford, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Ewan Blackford, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

It is a nicely composed wall and certainly eye-catching. Together with the location of the wall itself, this piece was unmissable. I have not heard of the artist before, but that is true of so many of the London-based artists…let me conquer Bristol first.

2066. Shoreditch, London (25)

When I took my little trip to Shoreditch last year, I think I got very lucky indeed. It seemed that around every corner there was a fresh new piece waiting for me of which this was one. I have not come across Klaas Van der Linden before, but on this trip I was fortunate enough to find two of his pieces.

Klaas Van der Linden, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Klaas Van der Linden, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

This skeleton would appear to be visiting London to make his fortune in the style of Dick Whittington, or maybe that is coincidental. I love the care that KVdL has taken with this piece, completely prepping the wall with chrome, even far over to the left before completing his silhouette piece. Somehow skeletons always look brilliant in silhouette. A tidy and fun piece.

2065. Shoreditch, London (24)

Back to some more incredible work from Shoreditch. I am still only a fraction of the way through posting some great pieces from my November trip to the ‘Big Smoke’ – I love the Bristol scene, but it is great to get out and see what else is out there. This is a beautiful character and writing combo from the highly respected and accomplished artist Tizer. Although I have heard of him and seen a few of his pieces, I know little about him, until I read this spectacular interview on the Bombing Science website. If you do nothing else today, you really ought to dig this out and give it a quick read, he is an amazing guy.

Tizer, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Tizer, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

This vibrant piece is so full of class and is clearly the work of a highly experienced writer. The lettering is quite organic but beautifully proportioned and the character looks like a throwback to the ’70s or ’80s. A tidy piece. Now go and read that interview.