Tag: Retro

5643. Hepburn Road (21)

Face 1st and Soap, Hepburn Road, Bristol, November 2023
Face 1st and Soap, Hepburn Road, Bristol, November 2023

A week or so ago I was drawn into Hepburn Road, because I could see two graffiti artists at work at the far end of the lane. It turns out that it was Biers and Bags painting together, which was a welcome surprise because, although I have met Biers many times, I have never yet met Bags, an artist horribly underrepresented in Natural Adventures. As I walked back up the street, I spotted this rather nice throwback piece by Face 1st and Soap.

Face 1st and Soap, Hepburn Road, Bristol, November 2023
Face 1st and Soap, Hepburn Road, Bristol, November 2023

I call this a throwback piece because it looks like the sort of collaboration that these two used to churn out regularly a few years back. Face 1st’s faces are simple, although decorated with a few splatters of green goo and Soap has reverted to his recognisable mega-tag of two mouths, that also have the overall appearance of a skull. Some lovely retro stuff in this somewhat overlooked spot.

5476. Cheltenham 2023 (8)

Smerk, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
Smerk, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

UPDATE (2 November 2023): On posting this piece on Instagram I am informed by Smak that this piece is not by him and that the content of this post should be ignored. This happens from time to time. The piece is by Smerk, and the letters indeed spell SMERK. A forgivable mistake on my part.

I haven’t seen too much work by Smak in Bristol recently, so it was great to see this piece on the multi-story car park in Cheltenham at this year’s Paint Festival. The first thing to notice about this Smak piece is that it is really rather different from the usual style of his writing. That isn’t to say he isn’t incredibly versatile, simply that this is a small departure, and one I rather like.

Smerk, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
Smerk, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

The letters in this piece have a slight 1920s/30s feel to them, like a modern version of something you might see at a lido or cinema, if you know what I mean. Perhaps it is the colour palette or the deep 3D shadows in red, combined with the letter shapes, I don’t know, but the overall effect is most pleasing and very easy on the eye. Unfortunately, by the time I got to the car park, Smak had already finished, but there were plenty of other artists up there to catch up with.

4652. St George skate park (15)

John D'oh, St George skate park, Bristol, August 2022
John D’oh, St George skate park, Bristol, August 2022

John D’oh has had another recent session in St George skate park, and I was able to get up there just before going off on my holiday. This fine stencil is one of several painted on the side of a skate ramp.

John D'oh, St George skate park, Bristol, August 2022
John D’oh, St George skate park, Bristol, August 2022

The artwork is deliberately retro, which seems at odds with the gentleman looking down at a mobile phone, a clever juxtaposition. It is the message that I love, and similar to one I often repeat here on Natural Adventures, encouraging people to look up and see the world around them, absorb it and enjoy the experience. A lovely stencil piece from John D’oh.

3187. Cheltenham 2020 (5)

This is the last post in this little digression from the Cheltenham Paint Festival (although I will post some more in the coming weeks) and it falls to the brilliant Bristol artist Sepr to round off his cluster. Some of the best pieces at the CPF are painted on the pavilion in Pittville Park and this is no exception.

Sepr, Paint Festival 2020, Cheltenham, September 2020
Sepr, Paint Festival 2020, Cheltenham, September 2020

Sepr’s style is so appealing to me, the retrospective style so reminiscent of the 1950s and 1960s and illustrations that used to appear in children’s books. The story here is of a man on the telephone listening to a penguin with a guitar and maracas. Go figure… stunningly executed work as always.