In Cortona streets
I chance upon some wheatpasres
well, who’d have thought that?
by Scooj
Tag: Paste up
1651. Hillgrove Street (7)
I don’t visit Hillgrove Street as much as I used to when I first started writing about street art, probably because turnover of work is very low there, so there is rarely new stuff to find. However, it is always worth checking every now and then, and these two (relatively) new pieces bear this out.
The wheatpaste on top is by qWeRT, who seems to have blitzed Bristol some time during late spring or early summer. This is another charming googly eyed pair…there is always so much hope and love in these paste ups.
The bird below is a nice simple stencil by RIP who is an occasional visitor to Bristol, and always leaves behind as few treasures to uncover. Both pieces complement each other and are placed carefully. Placement is a key skill for small stencils and paste ups. All good.
1644. Upfest 2018 (6)
One of the great wheatpasters at Upfest this year was C3 with her distinctive red haired characters hand painted onto written paper. I must have paused to chat with her and D7606 several times over the course of the two days. I think she told me that she had only pasted a couple of pieces this year. I could only find these two, and both are winners in my book.
The art of wheatpasting at Upfest is a delicate balance between finding the right time to go out – the festival organisers are not too keen, because they are responsible for keeping the street furniture clear during the three days – and finding the right place that isn’t over-crowded. Some pasters simply slap their work on any available space. Others like C3 and D7606 are rather more discerning. Love these two paste ups.
1629. M32 Spot (26)
I love the recent spate of wheatpastes from Object… and I think I might actually prefer them to his larger painted pieces, but both are great n my opinion. There is often something disturbing and emotional in Object…’s work with his political passion never too far from the surface.
Outspoken and earnest, Object…’s pieces certainly challenge the viewer to see the world through the eyes of the less fortunate. This piece, while not necessarily falling into that category, certainly carries with it a disturbing nightmarish quality. I happen to love this piece, it is just a shame about the tag across the bottom of it. I hope to find more of these paste ups around the city.
1580. Dean Street
Always, always take a walk down that back street, you never know what you might see. I recently did just that in a small road that leads into Dean Lane and was rewarded with this wonderful wheatpaste by qWeRT.
This paste up is framed so expertly it is as if the space was created for it. I think this was put up on a reasonably recent trip to Bristol by qWeRT and is one of several characters dotted about the place. You will know that I love qWeRT’s work and that I am very partial to wheatpaste work generally. Chuffed to bits with stumbling across it.
1538. Upfest 2017 (171)
Wheatpasting is not as popular in Bristol as it is in other parts of the country, so it is a real treat at Upfest, when a (whatever the collective noun for wheatpasters is) descend on the city and cover just about every utility box with paste ups. Foremost among them is Face the Strange.
Most of his work has reasonably everyday scenes of people looking like models from a catalogue but with something weird obscuring their face. Face the Strange was going through a fruit phase during Upfest 2018.
However he is not a ‘one trick pony’ and this fun piece has a hamburger for a head. I love the Burger King packaging rip-off with his name in the ‘sandwich’. Things are good when FtS is in town.
1495. The Bearpit (146)
Another intriguing wheatpaste from the fantastic Object…, in one of the tunnels of The Bearpit. In this piece, Object… has written a lengthy statement which is wrapped around what looks like a sumo wrestler with a pi symbol tattooed on his chest.
Now I haven’t been able to read the text…that might take a bit of time…and so I’m not too sure what the piece is about, but knowing the artist, I expect politics is involved somewhere along the line. I actually am rather fond of this piece, and am really enjoying Object…’s current penchant for paste ups.
1368. Upfest 2017 (147)
I am not sure that Annatomix sprayed a wall or board at last year’s festival, and if she did, I didn’t see it. However, she did leave a couple of nice paste ups for us to enjoy.
This super wheatpaste features a fox and rabbit created in the unique ‘paper-fold’ style that Annatomix likes to use in her painting too.
This is one of the things I love about Upfest…all the ‘unofficial’ offerings from great artists.
1286. East Village, New York (2)
A second pair of magnificent Phoebe New York wheatpastes from my (not so) recent trip to the Big Apple last November. I have always loved her work ever since I first saw some paste ups in Bristol at Upfest 2016. Seeing them in her native New York is just that bit more thrilling.
The first of these is the largest wheatpaste of Phoebe’s that I have seen to date…pretty much life size and stands in a doorway on a side street. A glamorous look for our Phoebe, with the word ART pasted on in individual letters.
The second piece is one of Phoebe’s more normal miniature-sized pieces, with a vibrant yellow costume and striking hat; so very fashionable. This piece has the words ‘be confident’ emblazoned across it.
It would be fun to know whether Phoebe New York comes up with the phrase first and then creates the piece to reflect it, ot adds the phrase once the artwork is completed. Maybe it is a combination of the two. I enjoyed pointing out these wheatpastes when we were in New York to my daughter who shares the artist’s name.
1234. Upfest 2017 (118)
Upfest simply wouldn’t feel the same without all the ‘unofficial’ wheatpasters making their mark along North Street and other parts of town. One of the most notable wheatpasters over the last two years has been Losthills and his Jake the Dog pieces.
This one is a little different from his usual cut outs, and is a full size poster of ‘Jake World’ a parody poster of the recent remake of ‘West World’. Jake plays the lead role (in the original film I think it was played by Yul Brynner), with his face mask revealing electronics behind and confirming his robot status. I love this paste up – once again confirming Losthills as a fun-loving witty artist.
