Octopus – Natural adventures

4965. Cheltenham Road

Tanith Gould, Cheltenham Road, Bristol, December 2022

I have been meaning to post this outstanding and captivating shopfront commission by Tanith Gould in Cheltenham Road since I first saw it a few months back. Finally, over the Christmas break, I managed to get out on foot and grab some nice pictures from the opposite side of the street.

It is great to see what Tanith Gould can do at scale, and she has absolutely nailed it with this octopus piece over two levels of the building. The words “for where your treasure is, there your heart shall be also” sounds like a quote from Pirates of the Carribbean (especially with the octopus prompt), but is actually a biblical quote (Matthew 6:21)

The piece is beautifully finished, and has enough detail and mischief to keep you looking at it, and it seems to work perfectly on this old city shopfront. I would love to see more commissions from Tanith Gould, who thus far, has been painting on the streets with the Bristol Mural Collective at their occasional paint jams.

4942. Various locations

Bogat is an artist who is underrepresented on Natural Adventures, so this flurry of pieces that I photographed in March last year should go some way to addressing this. Although I took the pictures in March 2022, some of the pieces in the M32 J2 tunnels may have been there for a while.

Bogat, who often painted alongside Asre, has a thing for open-mouthed portraits and the occasional octopus. The piece above, from Brunel way, is rather nicely done, with some nice shading on the octopus and its tentacles providing some depth. I rather like the bubbles rising off the writing, too, and filling the black space.

Bogat, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, March 2022

The rest of the pieces were photographed in the tunnels of the M32 roundabout junction 2, a few hundred meters North East of the junction 3 roundabout, which is a much more popular spot.

These tunnels are quite narrow, and dark, making photography something of a challenge. Somehow I managed to capture these pieces reasonably well, perhaps because they are in a portrait orientation rather than landscape.

It feels good to have posted these pieces, even if they have been collected together into one post. If I didn’t do that, then there is a real possibility that they would remain in the archives forever.

4854. Porto (12)

Antoine Caramalli, Porto, Portugal, June 2022

Although small, this wheatpaste was probably the most striking piece of street art that I came across in Porto. The placement of the piece was key, being on a bright yellow wall in a side street. The curious would stop and take a closer look, others would stroll on by without a glance.

The wheatpaste is by a French? artist Antoine Caramalli whose work appears to be strongly themed and considered. The two characters, a man and a girl are riding an octopus, and why not? And the man is wearing a pair of blue and red 3D glasses, a recurring theme in the artist’s work. Unusual and intriguing.

4780. Frome side (19)

Bogat, Frome side, Bristol, October 2022

I was very pleased to find this Bogat piece underneath the M32, but a little frustrated that another appeared a day or two after I took this photograph. Frustrated, because I only get to visit this spot occasionally, and often miss pieces that I’d like to see.

Bogat paints columns really well and his elongated portrait pieces seem to fit perfectly. This one includes a octopus, an animal used a lot in Bogat’s work. It is great to see that phallus tags are still de rigeuer centuries after the Romans perfected the ‘cock and balls’ stamp. Some things never change.

4356. M32 Cycle path (172)

I am always slightly surprised that anyone would paint this particular spot; the wall is uneven and on a bit of a corner, but it is popular and has quite a high turnover. Maybe it is accepted that nothing here will last too long, whereas some adjacent walls are more sought after, and therefore inclined to have more longevity, especially with some of the more respected artists in Bristol painting them.

Bogat, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, March 2022

Bogat and Asre (who goes by the name @runaway_joey on Instagram) paint alongside each other quite often, and judging from the shout-outs are obviously good friends. On the left is an unusual octopus piece spelling out BOG from Bogat, which is a little different from the long faces he normally paints.

Asre, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, March 2022

Asre on the other hand gives us exactly what you’d expect, with one of his trademark faces wearing a hat, and in this one also smoking a joint. The two artists have used the space well and are becoming part of the furniture after bursting onto the scene earlier this year.

Bogat and Asre, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, March 2022

4244. Dean Lane skate park (462)

I met Enn Kay last week under Brunel Way down by the river for the first time, and what an absolute pleasure it was too. He was painting with his ‘brother’ at the time, and I wasn’t sure whether that meant his ‘brother’ or his actual brother – I am not really up with contemporary slang, being such an oldie.

Enn Kay, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2022

Enn Kay has been absolutely smashing it lately, which is no small feat, given that he only started painting walls at the back end of last year. This is one of his octopus monsters, of which there are several knocking around. Beautifully painted and full of character, these pieces add so much to the vast array of styles and subjects in Bristol.

4216. Brunel Way (138)

With this post I am going to reacquaint you with relative newcomer to Bristol Enn Kay, and the second of his recent Octopus monster pieces. Although I haven’t yet met the artist, I understand that he has only been painting walls since December last year. That is incredible when you think about it, as it can take years to reach this standard. Enn Kay is an illustrator who has been drawing his characters for a while, so he is familiar with them, but upscaling to spray paint and walls is no mean feat, and he has achieved it very well indeed.

Enn Kay, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2022

The octopus-monster is set on a backdrop of stylised clouds, already introducing another layer of sophistication and his initials to the left are nicely done too. I love the mouth and teeth with the zig-zag running through it. There are many cartoon signature illustration techniques in this piece and Enn Kay has executed them really well. Look forward to more from the artist, I think he has a hunger for spray painting.

4209. Dean Lane skate park (457)

Allow me to introduce you to Enn Kay, an artist who has been decorating walls and columns in South Bristol for a few months, and who is very, very busy indeed. This post is likely to be the first of many from this monster character artist.

This ‘octopus’ monster piece is one of Enn Kay’s recent offerings, but I have pictures of pieces going back a few months. I am guessing that the artist has recently moved to Bristol and is loving the opportunities to spray. The monster is clean and neatly done with some great cartoon characteristics. I am looking forward to Enn Kay developing and adding more depth to his characters. It is great to welcome yet another artist to the pages of Natural Adventures.

3813. Gerrish Avenue

Three dancing octopus girls seems to be what is going on in this superb mural from Sussanah Polley who appears to have moved from Western Australia to the fine city of Bristol, and that is great news for us. This mural, ‘naked octopus party’ is one of a few adorning pubs around Bristol, and I need to seek out some of the others.

Susannah Pooley, Gerrish Avenue, Bristol, July 2021

Sussanah Pooley’s pop surrealism art is a perfect fit for Bristol’s street art scene, combining originality and creativity with perfect execution. Any piece of art with naked ladies and octopi gets my vote for sure. I found this piece by accident, which was very lucky, but will try to be a little more deliberate in future. A truly wonderful piece and I look forward to finding more.

3506. Purdown HAA Battery (19)

Because I don’t get to photograph up at Purdown Battery very often, I am not too sure whether this is a recent or an old piece by Rosalita, but either way it is an absolute cracker. This wall is tucked away a bit and takes a little bit of finding, so I don’t imagine that very many people have seen it, which in one way is a bit of a shame, but in another way it is how some artists like to do things.

Rosalita, Purdown, Bristol, February 2021

The subject of the piece is a mermaid, whose hair is made up of octopus tentacles, but instead of looking rather disgusting as in the Bill Nighy portrayal of Davey Jones from Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean, her hair is beautiful. This is an outstanding piece and another example of great work coming from Rosalita at the moment.

	paulh121 on 5277. Frome Side (22)
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	Matt on Twin downfall
	Matt on 5276. Dean Lane skate park…
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