I only really became aware of The Art of Sok’s work a couple of years ago or so, and thoroughly enjoy his cartoon style. There is a simplicity to his work, which relies on outstanding design beautifully sharp accurate and sharp execution.
The Art of Sok, M32 Spot, Bristol, June 2025
The Art of Sok has painted a face on a wall, without any outlines of a head, as if the wall itself were animate, looking not unlike something you might see in a Thomas the Tank Engine illustration, only better. The colours and shading are near-perfect and design flawless. A great first Bristol piece of the year.
One of the great pleasures over the last eight or so months has been watching the development of Lis (formerly Le Imposter Design), from an occasional line-drawing artist to a full-on and busy spray can street artist. Her transition has been swift, but he has held onto some of her original techniques and augments some of her pieces with pens for the finer detail.
Lis, M32 Spot, Bristol, February 2025
This is an unusual study piece on a column in the M32 Spot. There was a tagger a few years ago who used to paint coffee pots like this all over the city, but this is the first one I have seen since then. The piece has a naive art style about it, and is fun to look at, and I wonder if it had a dual function of being a bit of a practice for borders, lines and shading. So much more to come from an artist who is in overdrive.
I am not entirely sure where Jest Soubriquet is based, but he comes to Bristol to paint often enough to make me think it is probably along the M4 corridor somewhere. This piece is painted on one of my favourite walls in Bristol under the M32 and features a wolf.
Jest Soubriquet, M32 Spot, Bristol, February 2025
While I would say there are one or two things not quite right with the Wolf, I think it is a great representation and the colours and shading augment the animal really well. I am interested in the overall composition, which places the wolf in front of a brown and pink background, which might represent something, but I am not sure what. The words’Beware the dogs of war’ accompany the piece and perhaps put into some kind of context. Always great to find pieces by Jest Soubriquet.
I can’t believe that today is the last day of January… I swear that time is accelerating, or at least that is how it feels (it is my age you know). I recollect that Stivs told me a long time ago that he and Mest had shared a flat for a while, which might account for this coming together to paint this collaborative wall.
Stivs, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2025
Stivs has been smashing it consistently for a long time, and his current penchant for painting characters from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise is a very welcome theme. A fun fact – did you know that ponds and lakes up and down the country (particularly in the south) are populated with terrapins (a non-native species) which were purchased by children and families thanks to the power of the movie franchise, as adorable exotic little pets. Little terrapins grow into big terrapins, and as these creatures outgrew their tanks, people released them into the wild (an illegal act without a licence). Some survived and have adapted to their new environment, and that is why you might spot them if you keep your eyes open.
Mest, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2025
I have always liked the simplicity of Mest’s writing, and although he doesn’t paint all that often, he manages to retain his style and technique with ease. The letters, in an informal font, are nicely proportioned and filled without being fussy. There is a very nicely done drop shadow, which again is delivered without fuss. What lifts the piece, in my view, is the way the greys work with the background colour and the fabulous interface created with the subtle green border. A fine collaboration.
Logoe has been back in town again, and what I particularly like about this piece is that he has taken the whole long board over. Sometimes this space is occupied by two artists and occasionally by three, but in this instance Logoe has hogged the whole thing, and has certainly eked out his letters to fill the space on the right. I left the chair in front of the piece, because I felt it added a bit of artistic interest.
Logoe, M32 Spot, Bristol, December 2024
Script writing is something of a speciality for logoe, and his joined-up letters appear very much as they might on a page. The fill drifts from bright yellow on the left to pale orange on the right, and the whole thing is liberally sprinkled with little oval dots running horizontally just above the midline. Set on a blue background, the whole thing looks lovely.
I am baffled that I have posted fewer than 200 pieces from the M32 Spot – it feels like an awful lot more than that. I am very much an admirer of Creamylines’ work, and simply don’t see enough of it. His original pieces always remind me of stained-glass windows in the use of colour and the segmentation of different elements as if separated by leading.
Creamylines, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2024
In this column landscape/seascape/riverscape piece, Creamylines offers a bright and optimistic view of people and nature beneath a bright sun and patchy clouds. There is lots of detail, and naturally I am drawn to the fish in the middle section. There is so much to enjoy in this uplifting piece. I definitely would like to see much more from Creamylines.
I first saw this portrait piece from a distance, and couldn’t for life of me think who the artist was and it was only when I got close enough to take some pictures that I could see it was by Bogat, of course. There is a little clue in the central panel of the baseball cap.
Bogat, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2024
This is an archetypal cartoon character piece the likes of which you might see anywhere in the UK, what is a little different from Bogat in this one is the speech bubble with the rather unsavoury words “Ya mum smells like prawn cocktail”. And there we have it… subversion, art, expression, talent and fun all plastered up on a small column under the M32. It is what it is all about.
This is an utterly magnificent piece taking up the whole board under the M32 by travelling artist ESKA. It is one of at least three pieces he has dropped while staying I;Bristol, and possibly more, but Being in Cornwall at the moment, I have lost touch a little.
ESKA, M32 Spot, Bristol, October 2024
This epic piece is a feast for the eyes, with a stunning colour palette of goods and silvers. There is so much going here with the combined writing and symbolism. To be appreciated fully it really needs to be seen up close because there is a lot of detail that isn’t captured with the full image, and I now rather regret not taking close-ups. ESKA has been a breath of fresh air o; the Bristol scene.
When Logoe hits town, he tends to hit it pretty hard. When this collaborative piece was painted earlier in the month, I think it might have been a one-off, because I didn’t find any other pieces in all the spots he usually decorates so freely. It is a collaboration with Nova, about whom I know absolutely nothing, but it is a beauty nonetheless.
Logoe, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2024
More often than not Logoe writes with thin script letters, but he has switched things up in this piece of graffiti writing with great big fat chrome letters with a bold solid black drop shadow. The whole piece is very neat and tidy and well presented on a red cloudy background. Of course, there is a sprinkling of small oval dots running through the piece, just in case we weren’t sure it was by Logoe.
Nova, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2024
Nova has painted letters using the same colour scheme, and also incorporated little ovals, although arranged a little more orderly than Logoe’s. Another cross-reference feature is the yellow ‘o’ in both pieces. Nova’s writing is also nicely presented, and I am intrigued to know more about the artist, but that might need to wait until the next time I bump into Logoe. A fine collaboration an a favourite wall.
Wow, wow, wow! This is something rather different and special from Silent Hobo. Not only has he changed his style, but these pieces come as a set of three on three sequential columns under the M32 at the M32 Spot.
Silent Hobo, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2024
The three pieces appear to be snippets from a conversation, and I rather hope for Silent Hobo’s sake that they are not autobiographical. The first column has a portrait of a man declaring “Baby I’m doing my best”.
Silent Hobo, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2024
The second column is a reply from a woman saying those words that nobody wants to hear “Yes but…” Sounds like he might be in trouble. The portrait is remarkable, and really so different from the rest of his work. It is less cartoony and more realistic and has the appearance of oil on canvass.
Silent Hobo, M32 Spot, Bristol, September 2024
The third column is the killer blow… “You told me you were good”. Whatever the context of the conversation, I hope all works out well,. I am full of admiration at how skilful Silent Hobo has been to get viewers to invest so much in the characters in such a limited space. I suppose we can all construct our own stories about the three columns, but the artwork, which is remarkable, speaks for itself.
Natural adventures 