Tag: River Avon

4022. River Avon (20)

One of the most overlooked artists in Bristol, whose work rarely appears on social media, is Cort. It might be that his low profile and reluctance to chat and engage contribute to this situation, but in my view, his work is worthy of being noticed and written about.

Cort, River Avon, Bristol, September 2021
Cort, River Avon, Bristol, September 2021

This bright piece on the River Avon cycle path is unusually regularly proportioned, aided undoubtedly by the brick course. The thin, angular letters, so distinctive of Cort’s work and beautifully filled with a nice palette of blues, and a hint of green accents. I like this piece a lot from the PAD crew artist.

4014. River Avon (19)

A new name that has cropped up a lot recently is Desi, and on meeting her for the first time last week, I felt it would be fitting to start posting her work. I believe that she has only been spraying walls for about a year, but her progress has been rapid and she is producing some nice work.

Desi, River Avon, Bristol, September 2021
Desi, River Avon, Bristol, September 2021

Desi is an artist who uses the same letters in a broadly similar style, but decorates them differently, testing out different colour combinations and painting techniques. This is a fairly straightforward piece with a green fill and blue highlights bound with a black border and 3D shadow. The final touches of stars add interest. I am so full of admiration of anyone who gives it a go, and am inspired too. I wonder when I will find a moment and have the courage to spray my first wall.

The first of many Desi posts I’m sure.

3951. River Avon (18)

Yep, even more from Eman, a Bristol graffiti artist who appears to be tireless in his pursuit of happiness. Eman has painted a lovely old-school flat-capped character on the long wall that runs alongside the River Avon, opposite the paintworks. There are several of his pieces along this stretch which he obviously favours.

Eman, River Avon, Bristol, September 2021
Eman, River Avon, Bristol, September 2021

Eman is developing, and at the moment his characters are reasonably simple in their composition. The cartoon design is bounded with a black outline and the fills are solid with a little shading around some of the leading edges to lift the piece. Over time, I expect to see him add more depth and detail to his work, because this is an artist who doesn’t like to stand still.

3809. River Avon (17)

Wherever you are in Bristol you are probably never too far away from a piece by Eman. This is an artist who has spent the last six months or so bombarding Bristol’s walls with writing and characters, stretching his portfolio ever wider.

Eman, River Avon, Bristol, June 2021
Eman, River Avon, Bristol, June 2021

This character piece is one that he is fond of, and it has cropped up in Natural Adventures a couple of times before. It is a character that Eman has used for his Instagram profile, so it it one he obviously identifies with. Painted an the cycle path alongside the River Avon, this blue face stands out from the crowd. Always more to come from Eman.

3773. River Avon (16)

I cannot tell you (except I am) how much I am enjoying these kawaii pieces by Maesyhook that have been appearing all over the city over the last few months. The style and characters are quite unlike anything else we see in Bristol, and her work is a breath of fresh air.

Maesyhook, River Avon, Bristol, June 2021
Maesyhook, River Avon, Bristol, June 2021

This piece is on the cycle path which runs alongside the River Avon opposite the paintworks. The cheeky little fox character has a little speech bubble with a kawaii poo emoji, which in itself is all rather cute. Cute is the kawaii way, although with Maesyhook it has some edge through painting her work on walls, rather than on computer screens. I love this piece and her work.

3558. River Avon (15)

This is a rather unusual piece from Laic217 in so much as it looks rather more like a commission than a graffiti art work. I think that the texture of the breeze block wall has also contributed to the unusual look of the piece.

Laic217, River Avon, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, River Avon, Bristol, March 2021

Carrying the words ‘cans ‘n roses’, this is an obvious nod to the hard rock band and the piece has a hard rock feel to it. Is this where Laic217 gets some of his inspiration from? I guess it is less important where it comes from, instead it is what he does as a result of inspiration, and this is an absolute gem of a piece.

Laic217, River Avon, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, River Avon, Bristol, March 2021

As I already mentioned the surface of the wall gives the piece a kind of matt finish which is so unusual. The can and roses motif is beautifully conceived and executed, Laic217 is an artist who just seems to go from strength to strength.

Laic217, River Avon, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, River Avon, Bristol, March 2021

Of course, a little bit like Nightwayss and his monkeys, no Laic217 piece is complete without a skull or skeletal character and here he doesn’t disappoint. Another triumph from an artist who is having another busy patch.

3525. River Avon (14)

There so many things that I love about street art and graffiti writing. Firstly there is the beauty of the art itself and an admiration of the technical skills needed to create it in the first place; then there is the hunt… finding a piece and photographing it and if you get extra lucky having a chat with the artist whilst they are working; post-production includes archiving the pieces and finally sharing them here on Natural Adventures and on my Instagram feed. It keeps me busy. There is also resolution, which happens when you archive a piece, waiting for the day when you know a little bit more about it and can post it. This day is now and the piece is by Pura Decadencia.

Pura Decadencia, River Avon, Bristol, November 2020
Pura Decadencia, River Avon, Bristol, November 2020

I think that this was the first piece I saw by Pura Decadencia, but it is the third that I have posted. A girl dressed as Satan set on a purple and orange flame. I saw a sketch of this piece in her Instagram feed and the devil had a tail, which I think would have capped this piece off nicely. I wonder if she forgot to add it. Fabulous work nonetheless.

3490. River Avon (13)

I love coming back to photographs that I have in my archive, just waiting there for an artist identification. It is so fulfilling and closes a circle – a great feeling, like a detective solving a case. I was struck by this piece along the River Avon back in November last year and a little bit peeved that I couldn’t place the artist at all. I discovered the artist’s identity recently after I found another piece at Purdown and started investigating Instagram accounts of other artists who had painted up there – eventually I tracked down Antikki. All I needed to do was look at the signature… d’oh!

Antikki, River Avon, Bristol, November 2020
Antikki, River Avon, Bristol, November 2020

This is a lovely wholesome design piece and has a feel good factor about it – dancing figures bouncing bums in beautiful colours, what’s not to like? Antikki’s style is one that works equally well on walls or in smaller studio designs. I love it when designers and artists hit the streets, it kind of lends legitimacy to street art in a curious way. More to come soon.

3393. River Avon (12)

This awesome piece of writing, which I photographed back in November, along the River Avon cycle track, is by Spanish artist Claro_que_sssnoh or Claro for the purposes of this post. The Spanish crews are absolutely smashing it all over the city this year and have brought about some joy in a very difficult time for us all.

Claro_que_sssnoh, River Avon, Bristol, November 2020
Claro_que_sssnoh, River Avon, Bristol, November 2020

This piece was sandwiched between two depictions of Satan to form the central element of the collaborative wall. I’m not too good at deciphering this writing, but I think the letters spell out NOHSE, or something similar. Claro is assured with his writing and can paint in several different and contrasting styles. This is an assured and beautifully sprayed piece.

3356. River Avon (11)

I haven’t posted a Rapt piece for quite a while, even though I have several in my archives – I’m not sure why, sometimes it just breaks down that way. This is quite an old piece by the artist, but one I only recently photographed while walking the dog alongside the River Avon.

Rapt, River Avon, Bristol, November 2020
Rapt, River Avon, Bristol, November 2020

Rapt is one of those artists who usually incorporates a little character alongside his writing and here it takes the form of a ghost wearing round sun specs. The writing is nicely done although the purple and green don’t work too well together in my eyes, especially with the red and black 3D shadow on the letters. The yin yang symbol works nicely though. Colour selections are a very personal thing, but to the viewer some combinations work much better than others. I need to dig more of his work out of my archive.