6917. Stokes Croft

Hemper, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2025
Hemper, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2025

There are some newish hoardings at the bottom end of Stokes Croft, as the gentrification of the area once more picks up momentum. Kid Krishna has, as you would expect, pounced on these blank canvasses, but he left this space for Hemper, and what a banging piece it is too.

Hemper, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2025
Hemper, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2025

Overall, the piece has a copper metallic feel to it, with the highly illustrated letters spelling out HEMS. The piece is obviously an homage to DJing and to sound systems, perhaps a reference to the Blue Mountain Club that was knocked down behind these hoardings. There is too much to describe in this sensational piece, so perhaps the best way to enjoy it is to spend a moment looking at each element of it.

Hemper, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2025
Hemper, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2025

Of course, you can take a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink. These two are symptomatic of the world we live in, where shutting yourself off and hiding behind headphones is the norm – no effort required, no thought given to exploring the world right in front of your eyes. C’est la vie I suppose.

6490. M32 roundabout (633)

Hypo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024
Hypo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024

I rarely post unfinished pieces, but this one from Hypo was as good as finished and only needed a few little details added, so he said when I was chatting to him about it. I asked if he would mind me photographing it in its unfinished state, and he said not at all, which was fortunate, because I don’t think it lasted much more than a day and was gone the next time I visited.

Hypo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024
Hypo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2024

The dark grey letters have a deep metallic sheen, looking a little like brushed steel or something like that. The letter colours work really well with the lilac background and are picked out beautifully with the vibrant lime green border and ‘icicles’. Some small spheres or dots finish the whole thing off nicely. More great work from the hyper-busy Hypo.

5391. M32 roundabout J3 (498)

Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023
Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023

Kosc is surely one of Bristol’s most talented and versatile artists painting at the moment. Whether he is painting portrait pieces of graffiti writing in a collaboration or alone, his work is always immaculate and extraordinarily creative.

Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023
Kosc, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023

This piece on the M32 roundabout is in his metallic/greyscale style and presents the letters KOSC with a little bit of disintegration between the S and K. Some trademark rivets in the letters add to the metallic look of the letter panels. A nicely thought out and executed piece from Kosc.

2586. St Werburghs tunnel (111)

This is the second piece of fine writing I have seen from Face 1st in recent weeks and once again shows the diversity of his ability. In my view, this is a very fine piece of graffiti writing indeed and unfortunately the pictures just don’t convey how good it is. I think the piece was painted during a session with Fiva (to the left and already posted on Natural Adventures) and if you look closely there is a little shout out to Fiva at the top above the C and E.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2019
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2019

The piece transitions seamlessly from gold through light bronze to silver, an effect that is accentuated by the yellow lighting in the tunnel. This particular work kind of gives me a warm feeling – maybe it is nostalgia as the letters have a bit of a 1970s feel about them. A classy piece.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2019
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2019