This is a brilliant new hoarding in an area that Voyder likes to spray in a lot. He used to spray in the car park next to these boards, but it is out of bounds at the moment while the construction work is going on, so the hoardings will do. His last piece here was the ‘sticker’ piece which I still think is one of his best.
This one is vibrant and eye catching, and if you take a closer look, you can see that the letters are constructed with bones. A fun piece from this Bristol master.
Alongside works by Voyder, Deamze and Soker sits this unusual and rather good collaboration by two great graffiti artists – Beastie and Decay. The Decay element is easy to identify, displaying all his concentric shapes and tones although this time in blues, rather than the usual reds, greys, whites and blacks that are his favoured colours.
Had the piece not been signed, it would have taken me a little while to identify Beastie’s contribution on the left. Some will remember his mischievous cat in Stokes Croft that had been tagged, but has now been resurrected. Because I only see occasional works by Beastie, I haven’t properly ‘got my eye in’ with his stuff, and his style is rather more broad than some other artists.
This is an interesting collaboration with a rather solemn message, but i think they have carried it off really well. Such a pity about the black line through the piece, but you have to be quick these days.
This is another nice piece from wildstyle specialist Soker. It was in the Vector car park back in July, just before being overpainted during Upfest. The car park is a special place for Bristol street artists as it has five walls available in a gated space, so the works are rarely tagged. It also allows for gatherings and collaborations.
The second of two recent works by Voyder, following on from my previous post. This is a highly accomplished piece that on first inspection looks like a giant sticker that has a couple of kinks and tears in it, but take a closer look and it is just an illusion, the whole piece is sprayed.
I love this amazing attention to detail and deception, this really is a very clever piece, and demonstrates the versatility of Voyder. The work sits comfortably alongside Deamze on one side and a Beastie and Decay collaboration on the other. Both to follow soon.
I have to keep checking this piece to look at how Voyder has sprayed the crease. It really is masterful and creative. One of the best.
This is a beautiful piece of art that I think had been painted for Upfest 2015, although I am not certain. I took the photographs a little while ago, and the wall has since been painted over.
Opposite the Tobacco Factory car park, you (used to) come face to face with this building and a wonderful Thierry Noir pair. When I took the photographs, I hadn’t seen any of his work before, but on my escapades to London I have become more familiar with his very distinctive work.
These pieces were sprayed for Upfest 2015 and have since been over painted with a large Brexit commentary piece which was part of Upfest 2016 – I will post this newer piece soon.
Thierry Noir reminds me a lot of artists like Matisse, or the Stravinsky fountains outside the Pompidou centre in Paris, whose work contained bold and contrasting colours on simple figures and forms. Great stuff.
I used to play five-a-side football with someone called Karl Read, but it wasn’t this Karl Read. This one is a stencil artist from the South Coast and created this amazing portrait in one of the key locations for Upfest. Last year, the wall was home to Robers Wass’ beautiful fox.
There is something about the tones and lines that reminds me a lot of Copyright’s work, of which there is quite a lot in the area, and at first I thought it might be one of his, but then I looked closer.
Once again, one of the real pleasures of being at the festival was to be able to see the artists at work. In this instance, Karl was working with some really large pieces of card that were not entirely cooperating.
The more observant viewer, and one that gets to this final sentence, might spot a reflection of the author of this post (that’s me) in the glass door in the feature image. Vanity publishing!
At this year’s Upfest I have been struck by how many female street artists there are, which is really great, because I think there is a perception that most street artists tend to be male. Well, there was a great mix of gender, nationality and style, and perhaps Danielle Clough, who comes from South Africa and works with thick bright embroidery thread most embodies this extraordinary diversity.
Danielle was working hard in the hot sun on Saturday creating this magnificent piece, and continued her work through Sunday in the slightly cooler and at times wetter weather. The outcome is absolutely beautiful, and I hope it will be there for some time to come.
I believe this work by Danielle is the first time I have posted work by a known ‘yarn bomber’, but it certainly will not be the last. Refreshing and beautiful.
I still haven’t worked out how I am going to present all of the works that I captured and admired during Upfest over the last few days, but I have to get cracking because there is so much wonderful stuff to share.
This post has four works produced by Bristol street artist Angus over the duration of the weekend. It was a pity that I didn’t get to meet Angus, it just seemed that we were in different places at different times. I’m sure we will catch up soon. The first image is his ‘showcase’ piece that was on his designated board and is quite stunning.
Another couple of pieces sit either side of a large wall by Inkie (coming soon) at the Southbank Club on Dean Lane. On the left is a great face in reds and blacks…
…and on the right is a door that says it all really.
His fourth piece was in one of his favourite spots on Raleigh Road, where this recent work which I wrote about, resided.
I like this work a lot, with Muttley from Whacky Races, a message that he has been working with for a while, and some great colours and design. His work just gets better and better.
Well this may well be my last post before Upfest 2016 festival which begins tomorrow, and for which I have already seen a few early works on Instagram. There is a certain privilege that goes with being a Bristol street art blogger, and that is that each year, the largest gathering of street artists in Europe happens right here, in my back yard.
Another privilege is to watch, all year round, the work of these two wildstyle writers who are at the top of their game. This simultaneously painted pair of pieces is on the back wall of the Vector car park. Deamze is on the left, and Voyder is on the right.
The Deamze writing is reminiscent of a piece I posted back in June from the M32 cycle path. It uses the same greens and has his customary character and ASK motif.
The Voyder piece is really unusual and something quite special. In his Instagram feed he has tagged the piece with #lichtenstein, and you can see the pop art explosion of colour and form.
I love, love, love this. Voyder has absolutely cracked it with this one. Interpretive and in the style of a great artist and brilliantly executed. I can ask no more. Both of these will now have to make way for new pieces for the festival tomorrow. So excited.
Natural adventures 