Tag: London

2882. Shoreditch, London

I have encountered Zabou’s work in London, Bristol (at Upfest) and in Cheltenham at last year’s paint festival, where I was lucky enough to meet her and have a quick chat, in which I basically gushed about her work and probably made a bit of a fool of myself. I seem to recall that I said I would send her some posts I had written about her work, but typical of my general uselesness I haven’t done it.

Zabou, Shoreditch, London, August 2016
Zabou, Shoreditch, London, August 2016

This is a fabulous piece in Soreditch of two angelic figures looking like they are going to get up to no good with spray cans at the ready. The piece has a kind of ’50s retro feel about it, maybe it is the hairstyles. If one took a look at it today, it might be easy to assume that the masked ladies were protecting themselves from the Coronovirus with their facemasks. It is interesting how things can be seen in different ways depending on the context or socio-political landscape.

2881. Shoreditch, London

In a small way, the lack of new art being sprayed in Bristol due to coronavirus lock down, has enabled me to dip into my archives and share with you some pieces that I simply didn’t have space for at the timw I took the pictures. The next three posts are from a trip to Shoreditch, London in August 2016.

Tizer, Shoreditch, London, August 2016
Tizer, Shoreditch, London, August 2016

This amazing piece of widlstyle writing is by Tizer who I understand is generally considered to be one of the best graffiti writers in the old smoke. Spelling out TIZER, the green,yellow and gold metallic-looking fill is given depth by the cleverly lined 3D shadow. Nice too be able to share this one from Tizer, an artist that when I originally saw this was completely off my radar (living in the provices as I do).

2845. Camden Town, London

Digging deeper into the archives. I took this picture in November 2017 in Camden Town, a full year and five months after it was painted by JXC. Frankly it is probably as good a photorealistic piece you are going to find anywhere, anytime. Why didn’t I post it before? I baffle even myself.

JXC, Camden Town, London, November 2017
JXC, Camden Town, London, November 2017

The picture may feel familiar and that is because it Chunk from the film The Goonies although with the addition of a tattoo on his stomach of JXC. I met the artist at the Cheltenham Paint festival last year, and he is such an incredibly nice guy and so modest with it.

JXC, Camden Town, London, November 2017
JXC, Camden Town, London, November 2017

It can be difficult to process that this piece has been painted with spray paint, and the sharpness of the patterns on the shirt are simply extraordinary. Similarly the out of focus background adds to the apparent authenticity of the piece. A small miracle.

2703. Shoreditch, London (38)

A stencil artist whose work I have always admired is London’s Unify. Unify’s work, for me has a real human touch, grabbing the viewer’s attention through an emotional draw. These works are more than illustrations they are stories, sometimes political, sometimes satirical, sometimes child-like and they are all pretty powerful.

Unify, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Unify, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

This beautiful small stencil depicts a young girl painting some little red hearts that collectively form a peace symbol, something that is used a lot in Unify’s work. It is a touching piece full of hope, and beautifully presented between these two flowerpots.

2702. Nomadic Community Garden, London (3)

The Nomadic Community Garden just off Brick Lane is an extraordinary place. A labyrinth of sheds and raised beds made from old railway sleepers. It is kind of untidy but un an organised way. At the far end of the garden is a large wall and it is covered in ‘high-end’ pieces from established artists.

Irony, Nomadic Community Garden, London, November 2018
Irony, Nomadic Community Garden, London, November 2018

I think I read somewhere that the garden was being cleared out. I’m not sure if this is the case, but it would be a pity. Cities need these eccentric spaces, without them we are all impoverished.

This fabulous piece is by Irony, whose work really is unparalleled. The mural was painted as part of the Meeting of Styles street art festival in May 2018. So, so cool.

2701. Hanbury Street, London (3)

I wish I had posted this piece when it was still politically relevant back in November 2018. It is of course an anti-Brexit piece with the words ‘leaving is the easy way out’, by New York artist BKFoxx.

BKFoxx, Hanbury Street, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
BKFoxx, Hanbury Street, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

This is a magnificent photorealistic piece irrespective of the message, and fits the wall perfectly. I love it when artists use the space well. There is more about this piece from the excellent London Calling blog.

2700. Shoreditch, London (37)

Continuing with some pictures from a (not so recent) visit to Shoreditch, I thought I’d share this rather atypical piece by SkyHigh. Regular readers will be familiar with his exceptional graffiti art pieces where each letter in the word SKYHIGH has its own unique font and style. This however is something completely different.

SkyHigh, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
SkyHigh, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

SkyHigh’s command of his craft is clear when he can paint something like this amazing kingfisher, which at first glance I thought might have been by Aspire. I’d love to know what it is about kingfishers that so many artists depict them… note to self, do a ‘kingfisher special’ some day. This is a magnificent piece by a magnificent artist of a magnificent bird.

2699. Shoreditch, London (36)

I was inspired by a recent post from Dosenkunst to go back through some old folders and pull out these amazing wheatpastes by Sten and Oli from a trip to Shoreditch in London back in November 2018. I have already shared some of their paste ups in two previous posts and still have more on file (watch this space).

Sten and Oli, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Sten and Oli, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

The rather forlorn characters remind me of childhood toys who have long since been forgotten by their owners, and have grown up sad, bitter or resentful – there is something unsettling about them, but also very endearing. I guess the word I am looking for is ‘outcasts’. These little characters are outcasts.

Sten and Oli, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Sten and Oli, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

Each wheatpaste is so beautifully crafted and carefully cut out before finding the perfect spot to paste them. This one looks like he has just discarded the orange peel, or maybe is just about to pick it up… who knows?

Sten and Oli, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Sten and Oli, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

I know nothing about the artists, or is it just one artist? And there is very little information on the Interweb, so we’ll just have to wonder who they are.

Sten and Oli, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Sten and Oli, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

All of the characters in this set are wearing crowns (a symbol used a lot in street art), and this last one is having a bit of fun exposing himself.

Gunners at home

.

A father and son

both alike in preference

are Emirates bound.

.

by Scooj

2628. Shoreditch, London (35)

There is a great problem with street art, and that is that there is simply too much of it. I would think that for every piece I feature in Natural Adventures, there are probably two others I have photographed that never make it. That is why going back through my archives is such fun, bringing dormant pieces back to life.

Jaune, Shoreditch, London, April 2019
Jaune, Shoreditch, London, April 2019

This is a small piece from a trip I made to Shoreditch back in April this year painted by the artist Jaune, who specialises in pictures of waste disposal workers often in miniature like this one. It is great going to London occasionally hunting for street art, because there are many more internaional artists who visit there, compared with the provinces. Jaune I believe is from Brussels in Belgium, but I have never seen any of his work in Bristol.