Nice One

7385. Stokes Croft

Nice One, Stokes Croft, Bristol, December 2025

Some artists can be a little cheeky with their placements and some take that cheekiness to a new level by adding in adventure, whether on railways, derelict buildings or as in this case high up on buildings. Nice One has a record of going high.

I remember when there was scaffolding on this building, and Nice One taking advantage of the opportunity. His Times New Roman font (or similar) seems to work rather well on this building, and probably goes unnoticed by most folk, as people tend not to look up when they tread the streets. Nice one, Nice One.

7334. Backfields Lane (4)

Nice One, Backfields Lane, Bristol, November 2025

I don’t often feature dogged or tagged pieces, but I think that there is enough of this Nice One piece to warrant a post. Nice One is a bit of an enigma, painting some wonderful combination pieces and writing in a crisp, clean Times or similar font, all wholesome stuff, and then there is the edge part of his work, where he might paint his letters high up on a building there for posterity – more of this to come soon.

In this piece, a bearded character with a fisherman’s beanie is glancing across at the words Nice One, written in a fine script with some hatching in the contained spaces. A blue bordered rectangle adds structure to the piece. All very nice until you see the draft outline by the newish graffiti writer NONE – he must have been disturbed, and never finished his throw up.

7132. Greenbank (167)

Nice One has been producing some outstanding sketch-style portraits recently, and this is an absolute belter on the long hoarding at Greenbank. Incidentally, it looks like this hoarding might be around for a little longer, as the building work on one of the developments appears to have halted for a few months now – perhaps they ran out of money. It is a bizarre sight, almost as if time is standing still, with supplies and equipment simply left in situ and not a worker anywhere to be seen.

Back to the portrait piece. Nice One creates these sketches using spray cans, almost as if they are pencils on a piece of paper, scaling up his drawings in a unique and effective way. Nice One brings something thoughtful and different to the Bristol scene, which has such a wide spectrum of styles and talent. We are privileged.

7095. Brunel Way (328)

Nice One, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2025

I get the feeling that Nice One likes to use the streets as a bit of a test bed for some of his ideas, something that I have noticed quite a few artists like to do. In this case, Nice One has sketched out some ideas on columns and utility boxes at Curbside, underneath Brunel Way. This skull sketch is probably the pick of the bunch.

Much of Nice One’s work looks to me like he has had a training in art, and he creates some wonderful scenes with the minimum of fuss, like this boat surrounded by gulls. The yellow streaks hint at a dusk or nighttime as if lights on the boat are reflected on the water.

The third piece in this small collection is less easy to interpret. Maybe it is a beach landscape with some rocks and a hut and a calm sea that seamlessly meets the sky. Even though it is unclear, there is something serene about the sketch. Nice One is an enigmatic artist who enriches the street art scene in Bristol with his unusual take.

7087. Greenbank (162)

It looks as if the building work at the development alongside the Bristol to Bath cycle track has ground to a halt, for whatever reason. This has offered a stay of execution for the long hoardings that provide a wonderful spot for graffiti/street artists. Painting on borrowed time. These two pieces from Nice One are a curious pair that bookended existing pieces (I think).

Nice One has a wonderful touch that is quite unlike other artists in Bristol. His work looks much more like charcoal sketches or paint brush watercolour sketches, and bring something totally different for us to admire.

The two pieces are hidden portraits in greyscale that speak of threat and suffering, and I wonder if they are an oblique reference to the appalling situation in Gaza. Both are superbly presented and such unusual examples of artwork at this spot. Although the pieces are not signed, the appearance of an ‘N’ and an ‘e’ give him away. Classy stuff.

7063. Cumberland Basin

Nice One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2025

Although this piece is unsigned (which in itself is a clue), I have made the pretty safe assumption based on the letter font that it is by Nice One. The piece is a protest piece about the war in Gaza and says ‘Smash Elbit’. Elbit is an international military technology company and defence contractor based in Israel, and clearly central to the annihilation of Gaza and its people.

The bleak piece, which appears like a smashed window, is a reminder that we are all witnesses to a genocide that western democracies have failed to stop, and indeed appear to support. It cannot be that hard to get tough on the Israeli government, can it? Street art once again providing a running commentary of contemporary issues with impact.

6964. Dean Lane skate park (837)

OOF! This is a superb character portrait piece by Nice one, so full of movement and vibrancy. The ‘sketchy’ style that Nice One adopts for his character pieces has an impressionist quality, with what appear to be brush strokes rather than spray paint work, especially around the face and hair. This is a clever technique, and I suspect rather difficult to do.

The character is wearing enormous glasses, with a hint of reflection in them, which is incredibly effective. There is no need for a signature, when the whole piece sits over a huge ‘Nice One font’ ‘N’. A superb piece from an artist whose work is beautifully executed and always interesting.

A gallery of outstanding writing, portraits and landscapes by the brilliant Bristol artist Nice One.

All photographs by Scooj

Nice One, Stapleton Road, Bristol, April 2025

Nice One, Montpelier Park, Bristol, April 2025

Nice One, Stapleton Road, Bristol, February 2025

Nice One, Purdown, Bristol, February 2025

Nice One, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, January 2025

Nice One, Stapleton Road, Bristol, January 2025

Solar and Nice One, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, June 2024

Nice One, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2024

Nice One, Greenbank, Bristol, October 2024

Nice One, Montpelier Park, Bristol, June 2024

Nice One, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2024

Nice One, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024

6915. Stapleton Road

In terms of content, Nice One is one of the most dynamic artists in Bristol, he has created characters, landscapes, animals and here he offers up a dust cart, I mean… who’d have thought it?

The piece reminds me very much of Merny’s trucks and cars, in so much as the style is quite naive, with some interesting wheels for example. I love this piece, it is just so unusual, but demonstrates Nice One’s love for art and creativity in his inimitable style. I also love it that he kind of ‘owns’ this hoarding, like it is his private gallery.

6893. Montpelier Park

Oof. This is a beauty from Nice One, probably the most original and exciting artist to have come onto my radar in the last year or so. Before I started recording his work, I suspect I missed a whole ton of his pieces, which is deeply regrettable.

This is a superb skull piece painted in his sketchy style and accompanied by a hint of his NICE letters at the bottom of the piece. There is so much depth and texture in this piece, and the hatching gives it that sketchbook quality. I need to catch up with the artist again, it has been a while, as I have a whole load of questions to ask him about his work. Great stuff.

	Suzette Benjamin on Thursday doors – 8 Janua…
	Dan Antion on Thursday doors – 8 Janua…
	paulh121 on MOT
	scooj on 7388. Brunel Way (347)
	scooj on MOT

	Suzette Benjamin on Thursday doors – 8 Janua…
	Dan Antion on Thursday doors – 8 Janua…
	paulh121 on MOT
	scooj on 7388. Brunel Way (347)
	scooj on MOT

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