Tag: RBF

5447. Greenbank (91)

Peggy, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023
Peggy, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023

Peggy is a tattoo artist and street artist who paints wonderful floral murals about the place. She is an active crew member of RBF (Resting Bitch Face crew), and joined in with their recent Barbie paint jam up at Greenbank. What I particularly like about this piece is that Peggy, who I imagine is fairly principled, has not created a piece that is overtly ‘Barbieised’.

Peggy, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023
Peggy, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023

This floral design might have conceded a little bit more pink than Peggy might ordinarily use, but she has kept to her overall style, which I admire. This is one of her larger pieces and is a great example of her beautiful flower designs. Fabulously presented, the piece also has some little feature stars that create focal points that draw the eye, but also provide a bit of sparkle. A wonderful non-Barbie, Barbie piece.

5441. Greenbank (90)

Unity, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023
Unity, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023

Popular culture has had a bit of a renaissance recently with the release of the Barbie move, which I must confess left me a little cold. For all the hype, clever role-reversals, and funny one-liners, I can’t help feeling that Mattel will be laughing all the way to the bank and that their self-deprecating and rather too knowing involvement has paid off. I guess there is a failure on my part to connect with Barbie as a concept, as her world and mine never collided until now.

On the upside though, Barbie has been an inspiration in the street art world, and this piece by Unity, is one of many from an RBF- Barbie paint jam on the long hoarding at Greenbank (more from this paint jam to follow).

Unity, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023
Unity, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023

Unity is an artist in the RBF crew who lives in Wales and occasionally comes to Bristol to paint with her friends. I managed to have a short chat with her at the Cheltenham Paint Festival recently, and she is a lovely lady. Her working of her name in the Barbie font and colours is brilliant and very tidy indeed. She totally captures the spirit of Barbie in her own way and carries it off very well. Plenty more to come from this fun paint jam.

5430. M32 Cycle path (224)

Bnie, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
Bnie, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023

It feels a little bit repetitive banging on about how good Bnie’s work is, given that I say so every time that I post her work, but it is pretty much impossible not to do so. Bnie has been pretty busy this summer, not only on the streets of Bristol, but on the festival circuit too.

Bnie, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023
Bnie, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, July 2023

Bnie has played with her font a little in this piece, with a slight relaxation on the form with some arrows and pointy bits at the base of the letters. The letter fills are clever, looking almost reflective, as though dappled sunlight is bouncing off the piece. The letters are lifted with tidy 3D drop shadows and yellow and orange borders. Painted as part of an RBF paint jam.

5428. M32 roundabout J3 (502)

Pekoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023
Pekoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023

There is never a time when I am not thrilled to find a Pekoe piece. She belongs to a small handful of artists who define the Bristol scene and ones that I always keep a special eye out for. This modest piece on the M32 roundabout marks a return to her portraits, which have been playing second fiddle to here writing recently.

Pekoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023
Pekoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023

This pink faced girl with green hair is in three-quarter profile and is glancing out of the side of her eyes, giving her a slightly irritated or angry look. With great lips and the signature tears, this small piece reminds us what a great artist Pekoe is. It is amazing that she has found the time to paint this piece, given her bust summer festival itinerary.

5410. Purdown (60)

Lupa, Purdown, Bristol, May 2023
Lupa, Purdown, Bristol, May 2023

I feel that, having met Lupa for the second time recently at the Cheltenham Paint Festival, I should really start digging out some of her pieces from my archives, especially as we had a great chat and I felt most honoured that she not only remembered me, but also remembered my name, and thanked me for the recent post I wrote about her piece in Peel Street Green.

Lupa, Purdown, Bristol, May 2023
Lupa, Purdown, Bristol, May 2023

This is a lovely and enduring piece up at Purdown, which I photographed in May, but I think had been there already for a while and was still there when I walked the dog around the site last week. There is a charm and simplicity about Lupa’s work that makes it enjoyable to see, and she manages to give off good vibes – maybe it is the design of the letter ‘U’ with its smiley face, or the large block letters, or the vibrant colours – probably a combination of all these things. I look forward to seeing more of her work, and will continue to mine out old pieces from the archive.

5378. M32 roundabout J3 (495)

Tasha Bee, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023
Tasha Bee, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023

Oh! how I have missed Tasha Bee’s work in recent years! She has had a long lay-off while concentrating on her Pot Heads pottery business. At last she has found a moment to paint one of her extraordinary portraits and there is no question that she hasn’t lost her touch in the slightest, carrying on exactly where she left off.

Tasha Bee, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023
Tasha Bee, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2023

I hope that this isn’t a one-off and represents a return to Bristol’s walls, because she has been sorely missed. The subject of the portrait has a serene expression, a trademark of Tasha Bee’s work, and has flowers in her hair. Perfectly executed and modestly hidden away behind a bush, this piece is a thing of beauty. Bravo!

5360. Peel Street Green (15)

Lupa, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2023
Lupa, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2023

At long last Lupa makes her debut on Natural Adventures, and not before time. I have a whole bunch of pieces by her, but for reasons unknown to anyone, including myself, this is the first here on this blog.

Lupa, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2023
Lupa, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2023

There is a freedom and joy in Lupa’s work that lifts the heart. In this piece the blue letters are set on a pink background – it’s that winning pink/blue combo working hard once again. The fills create  great sense of depth, with their cosmic appearance, and the white details add interest as well. The three shapes above the ‘U’ have the appearance of a crown, in this appealing piece. I also really like the slightly rough and ready presentation, which allows a freedom of expression, that some more precise and on-point pieces occasionally lack. A great first to share with you.

Lupa has been decorating our walls for a few years with her colourful letters

5344. Peel Street Green (14)

Bbygwya, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2023
Bbygwya, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2023

The wall at Peel Street Green is, in my opinion, rather underutilised by artists, and the turnover quite slow, which is strange, because the broad pattern in Bristol is one of massively increasing turnover, due in part to the growth in the number of artists painting over the last few years. It was refreshing to see an RBF takeover recently at this spot that included this rather lovely piece of graffiti writing from Bbygwya.

Bbygwya, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2023
Bbygwya, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2023

The letters, in a rolling script, spell out FLUKZ, I think. Set on a pink background, the dark blue letters are brought to life with some interesting cosmic patterns and a thick 3D white drop shadow. Thee is a confident sense with her writing, and although this is only her second appearance on Natural Adventures, you can be certain it won’t be her last.

5254. Greenbank (82)

Pekoe, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2023
Pekoe, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2023

This post gives you a sense of how far behind I am with my posts and how difficult it is to keep up with the sheer volume of street art and graffiti writing being painted in Bristol right now. The wonderful piece by Pekoe is from an Easter paint jam with her RBF crew friends.

Pekoe, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2023
Pekoe, Greenbank, Bristol, May 2023

Pekoe has spent this spring concentrating on her letters, and it is always great to see artists pushing and challenging themselves. I think that Pekoe may struggle a little with straight lines and that she might benefit from writing a more curvy word – there are a lot of straight lines in PEKOE. The fills are lovely and typical of her style, and the eggs a nice festive touch. More writing from Pekoe in the pipeline.

5248. Dean Lane skate park (600)

Vozie and Bnie, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2023
Vozie and Bnie, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2023

It is fitting that my six hundredth post from Dean Lane should feature a stunning collaboration wall from Vozie and Bnie, two of my favourite writers at the moment. There is an awful lot to like about this colourful collaboration, and the colours and style remind me of the cartoon fairground scene in Mary Poppins or the Village from the TV series ‘the Prisoner’ – the psychedelic elements probably elicit those thoughts.

Vozie, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2023
Vozie, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2023

To the left Vozie does what she does, although in this version of her name, she has written VOSE, not VOZIE which we are more accustomed to seeing. Beautiful letters, beautiful fills and a fabulous drop shadow… there is little more to say.

Bnie, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2023
Bnie, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2023

To the right Bnie has replicated the colours, fills and shadow to make this a truly collaborative piece. As with Vozie’s half, Bnie has created beautiful letters, using beautiful fills and a fabulous drop shadow. This is an exceptional piece from the RBF girls, and a bit of a fave of mine so far this year.