Tag: PAD

4443. Dean Lane skate park (493)

Cort is an intriguing artist. He is a quiet ever-present who just gets on with doing what he likes doing with the minimum of fuss, and then once in a while he produces what I would term ‘statement’ pieces like this one, which shout loud and clear to all who view them ‘I am Cort and I was here’.

Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022

This is the second highly memorable piece from Cort on this wall in the last few weeks and clearly demonstrates his talent. PAD is the crew he belongs to that includes Laic217 and Trafficity, and is given centre stage in this piece. The character is nicely done and is clean with great solid fills. I believe Cort’s modesty belies his talent, and his work is often overlooked on the Bristol scene, which is a pity.

4308. Dean Lane skate park (473)

Cort is a quiet, unassuming, Polish artist who has been writing in Bristol for several years now, but he is an artist I have only met on one or two occasions. Although he has finished this piece in Dean Lane by the time I arrived, he was still in the area chilling. I did manage to exchange a few words, but I’m not entirely certain he enjoys conversation about his art, and he comes across as rather modest.

Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022

I happen to think that this is one of his finest pieces to date, and there have been an awful lot to choose from, and it also demonstrates what a good character artist he is too, although he rarely paints characters. The colour selections are attractive and there is good balance between the character and the writing, with a clever bordered box drawing all the elements together.

Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022

The character is really nicely painted in a semi-abstract form, including a Mickey Mouse hand. The character is smoking a joint, a theme commonly used in street art, which chimes with the ‘edgy’ or rebellious nature of the art form. Cort also spells out the crew name (PAD) for us, which in full is Paint and Destroy. This piece raises the bar for Cort, and I will be looking out for more characters from him.

4285. Dean Lane skate park (470)

It is always great to meet a new artist, and on this particular day there were a lot of artists painting in Dean Lane skate park and I knew all of the except Trafficity who painted this fabulous stylised piece of writing which spells out ZIOM. Trafficity is another Polish artist and paints with compatriots Cort and Laic217 under the PAD crew label.

Trafficity, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022
Trafficity, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022

The green-blue tones with horizontal transitions are very nicely done, with lots of little detailed pixels and blocks dotted about the letters. There are some lovely details and scrolls through some of the holes in the letters too. ZIOM actually means ‘dude’ or ‘mate’ in Polish, and is a pretty cool thing to be writing, I reckon. I look forward to seeing more from Trafficity before too long.

4145. Dean Lane skate park (449)

This is a lovely door piece in Dean Lane from Laic217 that I am sure will make it into a Thursday Doors post sometime in the future. Featuring a masked spray painter, it is a striking and nicely worked piece that fits the space perfectly.

Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2021
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2021

This was the third in a quick-fire spate of Laic217 pieces, we may have to wait a short while for the next ones to come on line. In the meanwhile we can enjoy this fine work.

4118. M32 roundabout J3 (367)

I would think it would be safe to say that Laic217’s status as a character artist in Bristol is at the highest level, and what is so gratifying about this has been watching his consistent progress over the years. His pieces are so self-assured, and have an ease about them, although the content is sometimes not quite so easy. This is one of at least three recent pieces by Laic217 in Bristol.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2021
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2021

The subtle use of colour in the background is just enough to provide some contrast with the greyscale character, helping to lift it from the wall. The theme is a common one for Laic217, with a skeleton, clad in dark robe material, is busy spraying the wall with cloudy grey paint. The whole thing appears effortless, although that is only because the artist’s expertise has made it do. This is a great and typical example of Laic217’s work.

4022. River Avon (20)

One of the most overlooked artists in Bristol, whose work rarely appears on social media, is Cort. It might be that his low profile and reluctance to chat and engage contribute to this situation, but in my view, his work is worthy of being noticed and written about.

Cort, River Avon, Bristol, September 2021
Cort, River Avon, Bristol, September 2021

This bright piece on the River Avon cycle path is unusually regularly proportioned, aided undoubtedly by the brick course. The thin, angular letters, so distinctive of Cort’s work and beautifully filled with a nice palette of blues, and a hint of green accents. I like this piece a lot from the PAD crew artist.

3736. M32 roundabout J3 (326)

It is great to see these two painting together again, in particular Cort, who has rather gone to ground during the Covid-19 pandemic. Laic217, on the other hand, has been painting in fits and starts, but appears to have settled into a more regular rhythm recently.

Cort, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2021
Cort, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2021

Cort’s writing takes on his familiar form of irregular letters combining straight forms with curvy ones and spelling CORTOS. The letters are decorated with red blobs and Cort has used some thin yellow lines to add emphasis.

Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2021
Laic217, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2021 

Laic217 gives us a rather chilling scene of two characters looking like something from a dystopian future with a pile of small rocks in front of them. There is a story here, but I don’t quite know what it is. The characters are fabulously created from shades of purple and pink with lots of shadow in the creases of their clothes. Laic217 is raising his game week after week and it is so good to see.

3534. New Stadium Road (28)

The incredible Laic217 has been out and about again although his efforts over the last year or so have very much been in fits and starts. It is a long time ago since he has painted in this particular spot and how his work has come along since then.

Laic217, New Stadium Road, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, New Stadium Road, Bristol, March 2021

I am a complete sucker for his work and every time I find a piece my endorphin levels are suitably topped-up. This is an absolute belter, and I think one of my favourites. The woolly hat reminds me of the cap that my all time hero Jacques Cousteau used to wear and is so perfectly sprayed. Laic217 has become such a specialist in painting different fabrics and textures and the black and red puffer jacket is a perfect example.

Laic217, New Stadium Road, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, New Stadium Road, Bristol, March 2021

The pose of the skeletal character is typical of a Laic217 piece with  a spray can at the ready. Some great detail, imagination and craftwork have been combined to produce this fine work… one that is so utterly worth a look if you get a chance.

3471. M32 Cycle path (107)

This is the latest in a sequence of new Laic217 pieces, but one that alas only lasted a few days before being over-painted. Set on a nicely prepped black background, this piece has a skeleton (of course) and some throw up writing about the place. This is quite clever, because it looks like the tagging looks like it was already there and Laic217 has planted his piece over the top of it, but it is all his work.

Laic217, M32 cycle path, Bristol, January 2021
Laic217, M32 cycle path, Bristol, January 2021

At risk of repeating myself, something I do a lot of on Natural Adventures, it is the textures in the clothes and materials that Laic217 carries off so well. On this particular piece, the zip is the star of the show. If you like street art with clothed skeletons, then Laic217 is yer man.

3454. Dean Lane skate park (385)

I am very much enjoying this little pulse of activity from Laic217, and from all over the city too, what a treat. This is a tidy piece in which he recognises his PAD crew by name, and possibly represents some of them with his skeletal characters… who knows?

Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2021
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, January 2021

The black and white skeletons on a magenta background almost look like charcoal sketches and are very nicely done, and he has managed to achieve expressions from expressionless skulls – very clever. His crew (or kru as he calls them) are Cort, Ugar, who seems to have left Bristol, MRB and Zios (I don’t know either of them) Zbok (followmyrabbits) and Laic217 himself. Some great Polish/Hungarian talent there.