Portrait – Natural adventures

7969. Greville Street – Upfest 2026 (62)

Epod 3000, Upfest 2026, Greville Street, Bristol, May 2026

I don’t really want to write too much about this astonishing portrait piece by Epod 3000 for fear of diminishing it. Without doubt, this is one of my favourite pieces from this year’s Upfest festival.

The piece conveys so much about the subject of the portrait. Her flamboyant clothes, her facial expression and her head resting in her hands tell a story for each of us to interpret in our own way. But of course it isn’t just about the content and composition but also the craft and execution of the piece.

Much of the impact of the piece is created by a light source to the right and slightly above the subject casting shadows across her face and onto the wall behind. This is brilliantly done. Also, the folds in the material of her clothes is masterfully done at this scale and with spray cans. All in all, this is an outstanding piece by Epod 3000.

7961. St Werburghs tunnel (598)

Minto, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2026

An interesting and rather curious portrait piece by Minto peers out from the tunnel wall at passers by. The portrait is composed of an obvious outline and conventional eyes, while the rest of the piece is filled with fragments of shapes and colour to complete the whole.

The cartoon face a find a little unsettling, but it is a skilfully crafted piece and very much presented in Minto’s rather crowded style. Lots of ‘white space’ and busy bits. Great work from the graffiti writer.

7956. Smallbrook Queensway, Birmingham

Gent48, Smallbrook Queensway, Birmingham, September 2026

More quick ones today, there is fishing to be done. This is another piece by Gent48 in Birmingham. It is quite an old portrait piece, but the artist is clearly respected, because the piece is still here and untagged.

The cartoon-style character is painted with a sepia tint, making it look like an old photograph. I’m not too sure what the back story is, but it is a nice piece.

7951. Montpelier Park

Stivs, Montpelier Park, Bristol, September 2026

It feels like not much has changed in Montpelier Park for a long time, with a very attractive collaboration between j9449j and Lupa dominating the wall. When I returned from my recent holiday I popped up there on the off chance something might have changed. It was worth snooping around, because tucked away in ther far corner was this new portrait piece by Stivs.

I think it would be fair to say that Stivs has been on fire this year, truning out dozens of fabulous portrait pieces and calligraffiti writing all over the place. I am not sure if this portrait is of a particular person, or a figment of his imagination, but it is quite beautiful and given that it is painted entirely in shades of yellow/gold, with black and the odd touch of white shaded highlights, a teriffic feat. A masterpiece from a master artist.

7934. River Avon (130)

Hire and Stivs, River Avon, Bristol, September 2026

This is an interesting and well worked combination collaboration alongside the river from Hire and Stivs. Hire’s graffiti writing is to the left and a combination of writing and a portrait by Stivs on the right.

Hire, River Avon, Bristol, September 2026

Hire writes ODIAH most of the time these days, having moved on from the previous HIRE letters used in the past. The piece does hark back a little to when Hire used to produce very spiky pieces, and the combination of greys, black and red work very nicely.

Stivs, River Avon, Bristol, September 2026

Stivs has painted the portrait centrepiece, which has anime cartoon overtones and is accompanied with the words “If you use your head, even sweets won’t make you fat”.

The final bit of writing, spelling STIVS, is written in a soft calligraffiti style adopting the same colour scheme as used by Hire with the inclusion of some blue. A fine collaboration.

7929. River Avon (129)

Such has been the consistency of sunny days this summer, the shadows cast on this piece have forced me to photograph it on at least three occasions, but my patience paid off at last with these ‘clean’ pictures of the combination of letters and characters by Stivs.

Judging from the buffed background in two slightly different shades of blue, it looks as if these two cartoon portraits might have been painted on different days. The first portrait is accompanied with a D and C in calligraffiti style, part of his DSC tag. The portrait in gold and brown tones and with slightly exaggerated cartoon features is fantastic.

To the right, is a floating S written in a slightly different style, and a three-quarter portrait view, much more angular than the first, of a man with a tight haircut and goatee beard and large hoop earring. Once again the features are somewhat exaggerated. All beautifully finished as you might expect from Stivs. I’ll need to find out more about the characters next time I see him.

7922. Greenway Bush Lane – Upfest 2026 (59)

I am Ian, Upfest 2026, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, May 2026

I have said it before, but it is repeating, that there was a good blend of local and visiting artists at Upfest this year, rather more Bristol-based artists had a rare chance to paint, like I am Ian, with this bright cartoon piece in Greenway Bush Lane.

The portrait piece is a rather bizarre scene of a person with a very large nose smelling a flower. The flower stalk is of a most peculiar shape, and being held carefully by a hand, while a wasp comes into shot, looking like it might do some damage. A strange and weirdly compelling piece.

7919. Tobacco Factory – Upfest 2026 (56)

Georginart, Upfest 2026, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, May 2026

Back to May and some more pieces from Upfest, starting with these boards by Georginart and Ladygabe, in the Tobacco Factory. It seems such a shame that these pieces only get seen for a day, if you blink you’ll miss them. This first delightful piece by Georginart is a two-tone cartoon style character piece of a young woman reclining. Clear and simple, and beautifully portrayed.

Ladygabe, Upfest 2026, Tobacco Factory, Bristol, May 2026

The second board is by Ladygabe, and altogether more complex and sophisticated. It is a portrait set among flowers, with the two elements blending well. Lots of pinks and purples in this very pleasing piece. It is a pity I completely missed the boards on the second day, but you snooze, you lose in this game.

7896. St Werburghs tunnel (591)

The Cat Came Back, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2026

Oh how good is it to see this third recent piece by The Cat Came Back? Sadly though, I haven’t seen any more from the artist since I photographed this last month. In this fine combination piece, the artist shows off his considerable writing skills alongside a beautiful cat girl portrait.

Where has The Cat Came Back been all this time I wonder, and are these pieces a flash in the pan or something to look forward to seeing regularly? The letters spell out Jones, which I am guessing is the artist’s surname. Great letters shapes and fills. The portrait is really well painted and perfectly proportioned. The piece is bold too, set on a black background. Lots to like here.

7890. Elton Street (33)

Jody, Elton Street, Bristol, August 2026

Another wonderful framed piece in the Elton Street gallery, this time from Jody. What is so fascinating about this piece is not so much what Jody has painted, but what is absent beyond the confines of the frame – we are getting a peek into something much bigger.

Jody has painted part of a portrait, which looks very much in the futuristic comic style, with the eyes and nose clearly in view. The rich colours hint at a dark and shady scene, probably nighttime. There is some great detailing reflecting the way of graffiti writing, with lots of splats and drips, that appear to be so at home in this piece and don’t in any way disrupt the portrait. Skillful and intriguing work from Jody.

	hitandrun1964 on 7975. M32 roundabout J3 (…
	Paul - Cawston Green… on 7973. St Werburghs tunnel…
	scooj on 7973. St Werburghs tunnel…
	scooj on 7969. Greville Street –…
	scooj on 7968. Lime Road – Upfest…

	hitandrun1964 on 7975. M32 roundabout J3 (…
	Paul - Cawston Green… on 7973. St Werburghs tunnel…
	scooj on 7973. St Werburghs tunnel…
	scooj on 7969. Greville Street –…
	scooj on 7968. Lime Road – Upfest…

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