3341. M32 Cycle path (90)

What a wonderful, wonderful surprise it was to find this gorgeous piece by Rosalita (RAW) on the M32 cycle path recently, and better than that, it was one of three – others to follow soon. Rosalita is an enigmatic artist, making only rare appearances on the walls of Bristol, but her presence however rare is always welcome.

Rosalita, M32 cycle path, Bristol, November 2020
Rosalita, M32 cycle path, Bristol, November 2020

This previously unpainted column (it had been tagged), quite unusual at this location,  is the perfect spot for this amazing little cherub, perching on a skull. The piece is really unusual and the character beautifully painted and filled with a yellow base and red highlights, finished off with some beautiful tattoo decorations in blue. This is a heavenly piece (peace?) and a welcome addition to the writing we are more used to seeing around here. I can’t wait to post her other associated murals.

3340. M32 Cycle path (89)

Another little trip into my archives to share this outstanding piece of graffiti writing from Spanish artist Claro_que_sssnoh from August this year. At the time I took the photograph, I’m not certain I knew who the artist was and so it stayed in my archives waiting to be freed.

Claro_que_sssnoh, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2020
Claro_que_sssnoh, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2020

Claro (I am shortening the name to save my sanity) has produced an absolutely stunning piece with so much to admire. The joyful pinks and blues set a happy tone for the writing which is out of the top drawer. It is those pink spots though that grab the eye and make this a memorable piece. Mouthwatering.

3331. M32 Cycle path (88)

Another very nice piece from Pl8o, an artist who I would put in a cluster along with Phour, Mena and Mest, because they all have a similar approach to their work. Each of these artists write their names clearly and legibly in predominantly the same style from piece to piece, but the magic is in how they decorate and fill the letters. Pl8o is perhaps the one who tinkers with his letter shapes more than the others, but his pieces are always instantly recognisable.

Pl8o, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, November 2020
Pl8o, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, November 2020

This one on the cycle path is in pinks set on a blue background, always a winning formula, and the letters are broken up by fine blue lines creating an interesting effect. To add further interest, the 8 has been split into two pinks. This is a lovely piece from an emerging talent whose work is improving all the time.

3310. M32 Cycle path (87)

About a week ago I posted a piece by Mena for the first time on Natural Adventures and it was well overdue. Over the coming weeks and months I intend to free several more Mena pieces from my archives, starting with this one painted in May this year on the M32 cycle path, a favourite haunt of hers.

Mena, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2020
Mena, M32 cycle path, Bristol, May 2020

Mena tends to stick to a regular letter structure, with a central kink and a leaning to the right. The rest is all about the fills, shadows and decorations. It is always great to buff a wall first, it prevents any distractions getting in the way of the piece itself, and in this case sets a neutral background for the dark colours and neon green line running through the piece. Nice tidy work.

3303. M32 Cycle path (86)

I have a lot of photographs of graffiti writing by Mest, but have only posted a couple so far. He is an artist who sticks to a fairly strict formula in that his letter shapes are usually pretty similar, but it is his fills and colours that change from piece to piece.

Mest, M32 cycle path, Bristol, November 2020
Mest, M32 cycle path, Bristol, November 2020

In this one he treats us with a chrome, grey and green colour palette that works really well, and for good measure he has painted a few bubbles too. There is a lot more to come from Mest, so watch this space.

3300. M32 Cycle path (55)

On one of my favourite and rather tatty doors alongside the M32 is this newish piece from Slakarts in his newly perfected style of a three-quarter portrait in cartoon style. This particular version has a kind of melting head effect to the right-hand side.

Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2020
Slakarts, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, October 2020

I think that Slakarts had a long weekend with a little bit of time on his hands and a new concept he wanted to try out, because four or five of these characters appeared around Bristol at about the same time. It is a pity that some idiot got to the piece before I did and inserted a K on each eye, but in this game, you snooze, you lose.

3284. M32 Cycle path (84)

There is a thing at this time of year in the street/graffiti art world and that is to do a Halloween piece. I haven’t seen too many this year, although I have just been out to walk the dog and photographed a whole bunch more. This one is by Biers, who I am pleased to report is writing Biers again having spent the last year or two writing OhYeah.

Biers, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2020
Biers, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2020

This piece is a classic writing/character combination with a rather friendly looking grim reaper popping up to the right hand side of the writing. Biers has been reasonably dormant this year, so it is great to see him getting out and about.

3280. M32 Cycle path (83)

Classy. It is something of an overused word on Natural Adventures, but in this case it is simply the best word I can think of to describe this amazing piece of graffiti writing by Claro_que_sssnoh. To make things a little easier I am going to call the artist Claro, that should save me about five minutes in typing time.

Claro_que_sssnoh, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2020
Claro_que_sssnoh, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2020

The letters spell out SNOH, but it is the superb way Claro has layered colours onto the chrome structure, with really interesting letter shapes that stands out in this piece. It is clean, creative, complex and he has even thrown in a little character for good measure. It is great to see a quality piece like a this on this wall.

3274. M32 Cycle path (82)

Happy Haloween folks – although I’m never quite sure whether Haloween is supposed to be happy or scary – I’m still a bit old fashioned and struggle a bit with the commercialisation of this pagan festival, but then again isn’t it the same with Christmas? I digress…

I have done something a little unusual today, I am posting a piece that I only photographed this morning. This is a rare occurrence mainly because of the processes I have to go through to prepare my blog posts and the time I have available to do it. I tend to line up photographs in batches and upload them onto wordpress which means I can write the blogs from my iPad if necessary. But today I have seen something amazing and I have a moment of time to bump my queue with this outstanding Haloween piece by Smak painted only yesterday.

Smak, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2020
Smak, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2020

This was one of those wonderful discoveries. I had been to the recycling centre (tip) and on my home stopped off at St Werburghs tunnel and then on to the M32 Spot and cycle path just on the off chance that there might be something new… and there was lots, but right up there with the very best discoveries was this magnificent horror ventriloquist’s dummy by Smak.

Smak, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2020
Smak, M32 cycle path, Bristol, October 2020

I have had a little Google play and I think that the puppet might be Billy from the film Dead Silence, but not being fond of the horror film genre (I get scared tooo easily) I can’t be too certain. The portrait is masterfully painted and care and attention have been given not only to the subject but also to the background.

Finding this made my day.

Scary Haloween…

3270. M32 Cycle path (81)

Ah deep joy. Where would we be without these Pirate Wall Art (PWA) compatriots decorating our streets? What I like about collaborations betweeen Soap and Face 1st (apart from the obvious) is that they simply appear, unannounced and often unInstagrammed (if that is a word), so finding them is usually a pleasant surprise.

Face 1st and Soap, M32 cycle path, Bristol, September 2020
Face 1st and Soap, M32 cycle path, Bristol, September 2020

The piece is quite small when compared to some of their collaborations but is typically full of optimism, life and fun. On the left, is a trademark megatag mouth from Soap ond on the right two faces from Face 1st, each sporting lettered hair FA and CE respectively. Let’s hear it for these pirate heroes…