6462. M32 roundabout J3 (630)

Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024
Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024

I prepared today’s posts yesterday, because I am (at the time of scheduled publication) on my way to Cornwall for a few days away with a fine friend who I have been fishing with every year for more than 35 years. My posts may become a little erratic over the next few days, but with the earlier dark evenings I should have a little time to write them.

Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024
Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024

I really don’t get to post enough work by Corupt, so it feels good when I do get round to it. This is a lovely piece spelling STICK, but this time he has taken a homonym approach and replaced the ‘I’ with a ‘Y’. The letters are blocky and rigid and beautifully filled with colourful spots, stripes and drips. The whole thing is bordered with a thick black line and then reinforced with a red outline a couple of inched further out, framing the piece nicely. It is always great to see Corupt’s work, and to chat when I bump into him, which seems to be quite frequently these days.

6449. M32 roundabout J3 (629)

Klashwhensober, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024
Klashwhensober, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024

Klashwhensober is as busy as ever, and I only tend to post a fraction of the pieces he produces, I expect I’ll need to go back through the archives and do a couple of sweep-ups of his work in due course. Every now and then one of his pieces catches the eye, and this one on the roundabout is one of those.

Klashwhensober, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024
Klashwhensober, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024

This modest spot is tucked away behind a tree, and isn’t easily seen without looking for it. Klashwhensober has written the word SOBER in ribbon letters, filled skilfully in blue and yellow, with a variety of well-painted patterns and features. There is some menace lurking in the form of clutching hands and fingers wafting from the cloudy background. I think that Klashwhensober’s pieces often indicate a busy and cluttered mind, and it would be interesting to see if he could create a piece of writing that was simpler in structure and could show off his skill as an artist. Unlikely to happen methinks.

6415. Dean Lane skate park (762)

Hypo, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2024
Hypo, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2024

I am really flagging. This is a beauty from Hypo, who I met at the M32 roundabout a couple of days ago. He continues to turn out quality pieces with great regularity, and this one is so full of energy and effervescence.

Hypo, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2024
Hypo, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2024

We talked a little of his penchant for symmetry, and chatted about Werm who is going through a phase of writing his letters with a bilateral symmetry. In symmetry lies perfection… That’s yer lot, back to bed for me.

6400. M32 roundabout J3 (627)

Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol September 2024
Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol September 2024

I bumped in to Kid Krishna earlier this week when he was painting under Brunel Way which was particularly nice as I hadn’t seen him for a very long while. I’m not sure he recognised me without my beard. He has been on fire lately, even venturing into The Bearpit, which hasn’t seen any action for several years.

Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol September 2024
Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol September 2024

This is a really unusual CRIE piece with interesting colours. Quite unlike anything else you see about the place. The two colour palettes appear to be so at odds with one another, but somehow it works really well. I am mindful that I have a whole ton of Kid Krishna pieces in my archive and probably need to dig them out.

6395. M32 roundabout J3 (626)

Butch, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024
Butch, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024

This is the third piece by Butch that I have posted, and although I can’t put my finger on exactly why, I really like what I see. There is a consistency to the letters from piece to piece, which means that the main focus is always likely to be on the fills and background.

Butch, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024
Butch, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024

This work by Butch, is on the cusp between casual throw up and a polished tight piece, which is an interesting space to inhabit, and I see that there is potential to create some high class finishing, but perhaps not the desire to go full-on high-end. The letters are composed of solid ‘plates’ of light blue and dusky yellow, riveted together, a device used by some artists, and a very effective one too. This is great work from the PLB graffiti writer.

6393. M32 roundabout J3 (625)

Unknown artist, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024
Unknown artist, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024

I photographed this piece before I knew that Mena had had an accident and that she couldn’t have possibly painted this piece. I initially thought it was hers, but had doubts, because it isn’t really in her style. This leaves me with a bit of a problem, in that I don’t know who to attribute this shout-out piece to, hence the label of  ‘unknown artist’.

Unknown artist, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024
Unknown artist, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024

There are some clues in the piece as to who painted it… there are lots of graffiti arrows, used a lot by artists such as Hypo. There are also some nice subtle stars in the fill patterning, which many artists use. This one will remain a mystery until somebody tells me who painted it, but the sentiment is, I’m sure, much appreciated by Mena and her family/friends.

6386. M32 roundabout J3 (624)

Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024
Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024

After his slightly controversial topless piece, entitled Norks, a few weeks back, Stivs has followed it up with this fantasy piece, only this time the character has a hint of clothing in an effort to avoid the piece being scribbled over.

Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024
Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024

Whilst this piece won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, it clearly demonstrates Stivs’ talent as a cartoon character artist as well as the best Calligraffiti artist in Bristol. I was lucky enough to catch up with him, and Corupt, as he was finishing off the piece, adding touches to the writing with such ease and complete competence. Another great piece by Stivs.

6378. M32 Roundabout J3 (623)

Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020
Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020

This is the last archive round up for the time being, and a few wonderful pieces of graffiti writing  that missed the boat back in March 2020, just around the time of the first Covid lockdown in England – what strange times those were. First up is this fabulous STICK piece by Corupt, complete with ‘panels’ and ‘rivets’.

Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020
Corupt, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020

Another piece by the same artist, this time using his KORUPT letters. In this chrome lettering, there is more than immediately meets the eye, with some patterning in the fills, with two very subtle colour variants. Nicely done.

Trafficity, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020
Trafficity, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020

It is always great to find Trafficity pieces, but to find an unpublished picture in my archive is extra rewarding. The letters ZIOM are filled with chrome, but unlike Corupt’s piece above, the patterning in this one is created by the piece beneath coming through (I think). Unusually, Trafficity has gone with a single tone, when I am more accustomed to seeing two or three horizontal colours through the piece.

Rusk, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020
Rusk, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020

It is very unlike me not to post Rusk pieces as and when I find them, so this one from the archive is a rare gem. Great graded fill, nice orange border and green drop shadow… what’s not to like?

Phour, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020
Phour, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020

Rounding off this selection of ‘lost’ pieces from March 2020 is this bright and cheerful piece by Phour, whose writing is consistently neat and tidy. He has gone with some interesting colour choices in the fill, which work really well and feel quite joyful.

That’s it from the archive for a while. Back to normal with my next post.

6371. M32 roundabout J3 (622)

Fudge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024
Fudge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024

Ooh, it looks like we have another writer on the streets in Bristol, possibly two, and the subject of this post is Fudge. I think I may have spotted her getting ready to paint this piece (slightly controversially covering up Haka’s wonderful Pooh Bear piece, but I think she is new in town, so that is ok), with a friend (Mare?), but as they didn’t have any paints out of their bags, I didn’t approach them, because that might have seemed a bit weird (one of the challenges of being a white male of a certain age, I’m afraid).

Fudge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024
Fudge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2024

I have to say that this combination piece ticks a lot of my boxes. Full of fun and joy a large-eyed character appears to be blowing a bubble gum FUDGE, or at least pursing her lips are pursed in the direction of the letters. The character is well drawn and the letters, fills and borders indicate a certain amount of experience. I am very much looking forward to seeing more from Fudge, and have at least one other piece ready to post.

6336. M32 roundabout J3 (621)

Saor and Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024
Saor and Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024

Oof! what a belter of a collaboration. Sometimes fortune smiles upon you, and on the day I found this outstanding piece, the artists, Saor and Kosc had literally just finished and were packing up their stuff and saying their goodbyes. Just looking at this collaboration, you can see that it oozes class.

Saor, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024
Saor, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024

Saor, to my mind, is the perfect antidote to losing Epok, an artist who no longer paints in Bristol (alas), because his style is similar, crafting pieces of such precision and disguising his letters, SAOR,  perfectly. The colour palette is beautifully thought out and parts of this piece remind me of the work of the great Miro conflated with the Cubist movement. Wonderful stuff.

Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024
Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2024

Kosc opted for a skull on this occasion, and told me that he finds it easier to paint skulls than fully-fleshed portraits, because the viewer is less familiar with the anatomy of a skull than of a face, which allows for more wiggle room regarding accuracy. Funnily I found that slightly counterintuitive, but maybe that is my naturalist background. Anyhow it is a great piece and such a contrast with Saor’s piece. Chalk and cheese.