On previous occasions when I have tried to photograph this Andy Council whale, there have been vehicles parked, on the grass, right up to it. I finally got a clear shot at it during a recent walk to Bedminster.
The style is unmistakable…a natural form created from architectural elements, usually recognisable Bristol landmarks.
This piece was painted during Upfest 2015 and is one of my favourites by Andy Council.
8/10
Back in September I posted a tribute to Mibsy at this exact location.
Recently it would appear that another much loved member of the Bristol graffiti community has passed away, and tribute pieces are popping up everywhere, as tags, burners or full scale walls like this one.
There is little documented information about Mike Buzz, but there is this quote taken from the Bristol Graffiti and Street Art FaceBook site; “one of the nicest guys in the graffiti game. Buzz says love life. Rocking in paradise”
This is a lovely work by Deam, Ames and Skank, and once again reaffirms just how close the graffiti and street art community is in Bristol. It is also good to see that there is a small reference to Mibsy on this new work. There will be more posts on Buzz soon.
8/10
This rather beautiful and unusual piece by The Krah, is hidden away in the dark reaches of Leonard Lane. The Krah is a London-based artist/street artist, who was raised in Greece where he was a prolific graffiti artist during the 1990s.
He has a fabulous website that shows off his work, and is really well presented…well worth checking out. This piece is typical of many of his works and has that designed feel to it that can also be seen in Inkie’s and Zesk’s work.
A lovely and refreshing work.
I pass this mural every week on the way to my daughter’s piano lesson. Every time I see it, I say to my daughter “I must get a picture of that”. She groans, and has become very bored with me repeating myself.
Today I took the pictures. This commissioned piece appears on the side of a shop on the Whiteladies Road. A commission is probably the only way street art is going to make it into this area. It is by Andy Council, and I have posted a couple of his works previously from the Hotwell Road and Nelson street. You will see he has a very distinctive style.
His works often incorporate Bristol landmarks and here he has included the Clifton Suspension Bridge. This is very safe street art, but brightens up the area nonetheless.
6/10
Following on from yesterday’s post I thought I would add another piece by Aspire. This mural is tucked away off the main road at the southern end of Stokes Croft. This beautiful robin is in great company…is that marilyn in the yellow telephone box?
I have no idea who pasted the yellow phone box, I like it…it is quirky and it appears to have changed colour from red (as seen on streetview). I like the robin more though. I’m on a bit of an Aspire streak…maybe more next week.
7.5/10
The pure joy of Bristol street art is that it is so incredibly varied; from the sanitised masterpieces to the illegal spraying. Fine art and burners sit side by side. For those interested in art Bristol is becoming a very large free-to-view canvass.
I have recently become aware of a number of pieces by Aspire, a Bristol-based artist who specialises in portraits of birds, using his spray paint to create pixelated images. More on this in a nice interview with the artist from the Our Autonomous Nature website. I like his work very much and will post more works from around the Stokes Croft area.
7/10
It is such a glorious Winter’s day today, cold and sunny. I had to get out for a short lunchtime walk. I headed down to Nelson Street to photograph this stunning mural by Aryz.
Aryz, originally from Barcelona, painted this mural in 2011 as part of the ‘See no Evil’ street art event in central Bristol. In his biography, it states he likes a large mural…well this is pretty big.
I have been meaning to post this for a long time, but have struggled to get good pictures of it. the light is difficult and shadows often obscure parts of it. These pictures are from different days – the sunny ones from today.
8/10
Another recent tribute wall to Mibsy (Mibzy) Just off the Gloucester Road, by the Paintsmiths, a commercial outfit of two street artists, Felix ‘FLX’ Braun and Jack Dones.
This rather lighthearted but heartfelt tribute incorporates a Simpsons theme and plenty of doughnuts. I can only guess that Mibsy was fond of the Simpsons.
I haven’t knowingly seen any other murals by the paintsmiths, but I think that is because they tend to do commissions with specific clients.
Many of the shops on Gloucester Road have commissioned street art on their shutters, which is how some artists have managed to make some money from their craft. This one caught my eye for several reasons.
The sad story is that this family run butcher shop ‘Stutt and Son’ that has been trading since 1919 has recently been closed at short notice due to the ill health of Mr Stutt senior. The hurriedly scrawled note on the shutter is heartbreaking.
The artwork is by Zase, but is clearly one of his early works as it is unsophisticated and rather raw, compared to some of his more recent pieces, such as the one in Ashley Road. He has come a long way.
As for the Butcher, the shop will be sold and another trader will move in, reinforcing the transient nature of a commercial high street.
5/10
I’ve been going through some old pictures from my iPhone today, and found a few street art images from a long while before I started this blog. This particular picture struck me, because I recently posted a 3Dom piece from this exact location.
This work, also by 3Dom, was photographed in July 2014…it seems that this wall is his.
There is also a subtle tribute to Mibsy. This is a nice work, but long since gone.
Natural adventures 