Ooh! I love this recent piece from Desi, whose work just gets better and better. This time she is writing VEIL, one of her two variants, but with joined up script writing, which is a new and exciting development that works rather well.
Desi, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, August 2023
I have often been quite critical of artists who don’t buff walls before they paint, because the underlying graffiti can often be distracting, but Desi, whether by design or luck, has managed to pull it off with this piece. The background somehow complements her writing and helps it to stand out. Beautiful curvy letter shapes are accompanied by great blue and pink fills (that B/P combo again), perfectly blended. I think that this might just be my favourite piece from Desi yet.
It feels a little bit repetitive banging on about how good Bnie’s work is, given that I say so every time that I post her work, but it is pretty much impossible not to do so. Bnie has been pretty busy this summer, not only on the streets of Bristol, but on the festival circuit too.
Bnie, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
Bnie has played with her font a little in this piece, with a slight relaxation on the form with some arrows and pointy bits at the base of the letters. The letter fills are clever, looking almost reflective, as though dappled sunlight is bouncing off the piece. The letters are lifted with tidy 3D drop shadows and yellow and orange borders. Painted as part of an RBF paint jam.
John D’oh has been a little quiet in Bristol lately, so it was great to find this new piece in one of his favourite spots underneath the M32 motorway. One thing that John D’oh is never short on is humour, and this Judy Garland Wizard of Oz stencil reinforces that point.
John D’oh, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
The writing says (from the scarecrow) “Dorothy I can smell weed, urine and spray paint. I think we must be in Bristol”. Of course that made me smile, but for any potential visitors out there, this is a rather tongue-in-cheek, myopic view of our fabulous city. I rather hope to see more from John D’oh, as his artwork adds variety to the everyday fare of street art and graffiti in Bristol.
Dog Bless the Band, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
Dog Bless the Band is a curious street artist I have yet to meet. I say curious because his pieces are unlike pretty much anything else in the city right now. Curious also because of his name and because of the letters he writes – MOTEL, I mean what is it all about?
Dog Bless the Band, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
The large monolithic letters have a very earthy feel about them which is exaggerated in this piece by the muted colours, especially the green dusting, which gives the appearance of algae or moss on rocks. I’m not sure if that is the effect he was aiming for, but it is how it comes across to me. To the right there is a toadstool.
Dog Bless the Band, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
I wasn’t entirely sure whether the toadstool was painted by Dog Bless the Band or by a friend alongside, but have decided it is his own work, perhaps a study, because of the same colour selection and proximity. There are no other signatures or marks that would suggest another artist, simply the surprise of seeing the toadstool. Perhaps this signifies him straying into accompanying his letters with other work.
Gatoloco (Kasoe), M32 cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
Visiting artists are always welcome in Bristol, and there is something comforting about artists who return, having painted some time in the past. Gatoloco has painted in the city before, but recently he left this lovely piece alongside the M32.
Gatoloco (Kasoe), M32 cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
Gatoloco has a very distinct style of chunky letters (KASOE) which in this piece sit over the top of what looks like some other letters, possibly ESK? Or perhaps I am over-thinking the whole thing. I am not usually a fan of browns in graffiti writing, but I think that Gatoloco has done a great job, and there is enough of the blood-red fill to lift the piece from its browniness. Great to see Gatoloco back in town.
Gatoloco (Kasoe), Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2019Gatoloco (Kasoe), Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2019
Taboo is an artist who makes me laugh out load, not just because his anti-style letters are a great antidote to perfect wildstyle writing, and his often psychedelic characters full of weirdness and charm, but also because from time to time he paints some epic blockbusters, and this one on the M32 cycle path is quite breath-taking.
Taboo, M32 cycle path, Bristol, June 2023
Clearly visible from the M32 motorway above, this piece offers drivers into Bristol a true Taboo welcome. Even on this massive scale, Taboo sticks to his style, with an irregular letter font, mid-line markings through the letters, and a druggy smiley character representing the first ‘O’. Huge and obvious, this is a great piece of work from Taboo.
Some artists manage to keep themselves very much to themselves, and that is true of most of the PLB crew, including Solar. I have been featuring Solar’s work for a few years, but have never met the artist and have never found out anything about them. That is fine and how some like to keep it, as anonymity is an important part of illegal graffiti and street art.
Solar, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, May 2023
I like to post pieces by Solar because they are very different to most of the stuff you see from day to day, often writing with thick letters in a blocky style but with an organic feel to them. Solar has gone full-solar on this one, with a sizzling sun-drenched background around the strong white letters. Nice work from an artist slightly underrepresented on Natural Adventures.
Laic217, Sako and Zake, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, April 2023
Zake has been involved in a lot of collaborations already this year, but this one is a bit unusual, in that it includes Laic217 and Sako (an artist I am not familiar with). The collaboration is one in which the artists share a broad colour scheme, but each piece is discrete.
Laic217, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, April 2023
Starting on the left, Laic217, who is going through a bit of a purple patch, has a rather dark, masked figure suspended over the letters LAIC. There are threads connecting the head and shoulders with the letters in something reminiscent of the Borg from Star Trek. The head is highlighted with a halo of pink, which adds an extra dimension to the piece. Lovely work from Laic217.
Sako, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, April 2023
In the middle is a warehouse landscape by Sako and a fragmented planet earth at the bottom left. I certainly don’t know what this is about, but there must be a meaning in it somewhere. The scene reminds me of the Ikea store bit before the tills… a place I dislike for so many reasons. A great scene created with some atmosphere, which is an achievement given the subject.
Zake, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, April 2023
Finally, on the right, Zake continues with his ever-expanding repertoire, giving us his version of a six-armed god – inspired by the multitude of Hindu Goddesses with this characteristic. In Zake’s version, each arm is holding a spray can, of course, getting ready for some speed painting I would think. As usual, the light and shade work is exemplary, and the figure has enormous depth. A bright and rather eclectic collaboration from the three artists.
One of my life’s great pleasures has been finding and cataloguing graffiti art pieces by Face 1st. For the duration of this blog, Face 1st has been a constant presence, gently evolving his style and boundaries, but sticking fairly rigidly to his basic concept of a smiling girl’s face. I try to post as many of his pieces as I can, but inevitably some get left behind. I might have to do a trawl through my archives and write an ‘amnesty’ post with all the pieces that never made it.
Face 1st, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, May 2023
In this vibrant piece, Face 1st has painted four laughing girls, appearing to have lots of fun, there is also quite a lot of stickiness on their faces. I would like to think that each of the faces is a letter of the word FACE, but I think that is probably stretching things a little. Face 1st continues to spread joy.
To The quickest of quick coffee breaks and then I must resume housework. Another tip trip completed and lovely hoovering with our brand new hoover (Shark)… wow, our old one was useless. So much dust and fluff! Just a moment to post this lovely piece by the returning Nightwayss
Nightwayss, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, May 2023
It is a bitter sweet experience when Bristol artists migrate away to other towns and cities, as Nightwayss has, and it is when they return that we get to reacquaint ourselves with what we have been missing. This is a brilliant portrait piece, I’m guessing of a DJ or musician, painted in shades of purple and black, with a bank of speakers behind and a record deck between. Fine work from a lost brother of Bristol.
Natural adventures 