Tag: Paul Monsters

1878. Upfest 2018 (97)

I think that this Paul Monsters piece counts as an Upfest work, even though it was completed a few days before the festival itself. Upfest simply wouldn’t be the same without Paul Monsters, and I mean that quite literally, as he is at the core of the organising work and biography gathering for the festival and works in the Upfest shop in North Street.

Paul Monsters, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Paul Monsters, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

Paul Monsters is a master of creating these geometric 3D patterns which he does both as small prints or enormous walls like this one. What was preciously a bland and unremarkable wall has been transformed into a thing of beauty which lifts the mood of the area and those that look upon it.

Paul Monsters, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Paul Monsters, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

In this piece he uses his trademark colours of orange, brown, purple, green and blue using shades of these colours to create the 3D effect. A remarkable wall from a lovely chap.

1620. North Street Green (12)

A wonderful collaboration between Paul Monsters and Loch Ness that has been hiding away in my archive for such a very long time. Too good to leave there, especially as I owe my debut piece to these two, Paul for all his unvelievable work on Upfest and Loch Ness for giving me my lesson in spray painting.

Paul Monsters and Loch Ness, North Street Green, July 2015
Paul Monsters and Loch Ness, North Street Green, July 2015

It is rare to see a piece by Paul Monsters these days that isn’t some kind of geometric design, and Loch Ness too has developed his technique and is favouring larger pieces these days. The two still collaborate, and I expect to see them both hard at work at Upfest.

I am writing this in advance, but by my estimate this post should be out the day before Upfest begins.

Europe’s largest street art festival begins in Bristol tomorrow, and I am (will be) beside myself with excitement. Time to prep cameras and make sure all batteries are powered up to the max. I’ll start to post images from the festival as soon as I am able, but regular followers will know that it take me about 9 months or so to work through them.

1353. Upfest 2017 (139)

Just across the road from South Street Park in a school yard the fabulous combination of Paul Monsters and Loch Ness were busy at work. I’m not sure that many people got to see the final piece, which had been slow to finish due to the weather combined with the fact that after Upfest, access to the school yard has been restricted.

Paul Monsters and Loch Ness, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Paul Monsters and Loch Ness, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Two fine bristol artists who use bright colours in their work, but with very different styles. Paul Monsters works with geometric patterns creating 3D shapes and shadows that draw the eye in to examine in detail what is happening.

Paul Monsters and Loch Ness, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Paul Monsters and Loch Ness, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Loch Ness, who also uses lots of colour in his work tends to spray monsters or animals with pieces that tell a story.

Paul Monsters and Loch Ness, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Paul Monsters and Loch Ness, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

The whole piece is a major asset for the pupils of the school, who probably don’t appreciate how lucky they are to have such a beautiful piece adorning this playground building. I got lucky, and managed to take these pictures when the gates were opened for the contractors to remove a cherry picker (which had been used by Nol in the same yard).

776. Lower Approach Road (1)

I had a recent tip-off via Instagram that Copyright and Paul Monsters were going to be collaborating again, this time on the slip road adjacent to Bristol Temple Meads station. I managed to wangle a moment of time and whizzed down to the station to see what was going on.

Copyright and Paul Monsters, Lower Approach Road, Bristol, May 2017
Copyright and Paul Monsters, Lower Approach Road, Bristol, May 2017

I arrived just as they were completing the piece, and it is another real beauty, just like their previous collaboration on North Street. Their styles really do work well together, with the geometric colour patterning of Monsters, providing a perfect foil for Copyright’s figures.

Copyright and Paul Monsters, Lower Approach Road, Bristol, May 2017
Copyright and Paul Monsters, Lower Approach Road, Bristol, May 2017

I spent a little while chatting with both artists and picking up on more of how the street/graffiti art scene works in Bristol, and a little about the work Paul Monsters does at Upfest. Such gents, and patient with my questions and observations.

Copyright and Paul Monsters, Lower Approach Road, Bristol, May 2017
Copyright and Paul Monsters, Lower Approach Road, Bristol, May 2017

What a wonderful welcome for visitors to Bristol and joyous sight for those coming home. I will post about the other two pieces at this location soon.

765. North Street shop front

Whenever I go out looking for street art and graffiti I always live in hope that I might find an artist at work, and this meeting with Copyright and Paul Monsters and indeed Gemma Compton who was just there (she and Copyright are married), signalled the start of something of a purple patch for me meeting artists. I don’t know if it is luck or what, but it is always great to stop and have a chat.

Copyright and Paul Monsters, North Street, Bristol, April 2017
Copyright and Paul Monsters, North Street, Bristol, April 2017

This is a really amazing collaboration between the two, Copyright’s beautiful women’s faces and the geometry of Paul Monster’s colourful patterns complement each other perfectly. I happen to know at the time of writing that they have worked together again since, because I found them again…more on this one some other time.

Copyright and Paul Monsters, North Street, Bristol, April 2017
Copyright and Paul Monsters, North Street, Bristol, April 2017

Paul doesn’t get out to spray much these days because he is working flat out with Upfest the organising team in their office in North Street. If you take a look at the list of artists for the 2017 festival, you have Paul to thank, as he put it all together.

Copyright and Paul Monsters, North Street, Bristol, April 2017
Copyright and Paul Monsters, North Street, Bristol, April 2017
Copyright and Paul Monsters, North Street, Bristol, April 2017
Copyright and Paul Monsters, North Street, Bristol, April 2017