7314. Frome Side (62)

Sketch, Frome Side, Bristol, September 2025
Sketch, Frome Side, Bristol, September 2025

During a little flick through my September folder, I like to go back from time to time to see if I have left pieces worth posting behind, I found this interesting piece by Sketch. The unusual portrait was on the opposite side of the river, so these pictures are slightly zoomed in and not of the best quality.

Sketch, Frome Side, Bristol, September 2025
Sketch, Frome Side, Bristol, September 2025

I haven’t seen any work by Sketch outside this spot, and I think he is very much in his ‘discovery’ phase. The portrait of a man, wearing big yellow spectacles, is all rather fluid, and slightly in the cubist style. Smoke is flowing out of the character’s nostrils and swirling around his face… perhaps he is vaping. There is loads to like about this piece, including its originality. I am curious to seeing where Sketch’s art takes us next.

5588. Dean Lane skate park (652)

Jevoissoul, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2023
Jevoissoul, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2023

Jevoissoul has hit the ground running and here he has painted a classic portrait piece complete with joint and stylised smoke, all painted in his Picassoesque cartoon style. He is brave too, there are no many new artists who would paint this wall so early on in their development, and to be fair, Jevoissoul has carried it off well.

Jevoissoul, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2023
Jevoissoul, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2023

When I met him a little while back, Jevoissoul told me that he has been drafting and sketching his characters for years and is very familiar with his material. The challenge for him has been to scale up his work and to adapt to using spray cans, both of which he has done admirably. I have a feeling we will be seeing a lot more of Jevoissoul over the coming months/years.

Fire

.

Thick, dark smoke billows

and drifts slowly across town

the dread of a fire

.

by Scooj

3547. St Werburghs tunnel (230)

I was looking in my archives for something specific a few days ago and within moments was absorbed, sucked in, to folders from years ago. There are so many good and interesting pieces I have photographed over the years that have never made it into the blog. The next few posts are an attempt to adjust that imbalance, just a tiny amount.

Conrico, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2018
Conrico, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2018

Starting with this one from Conrico in the tunnel back in 2018, which I think might even pre-date the first piece of his that I posted. I’m not too sure what this character is or represents, but he seems to be enjoying his smoke. Colourful and tidy work from Conrico, whose style while being quite unconventional is most compelling.

3485. M32 roundabout J3 (281)

This is the second piece I have posted by Smoke Perfume, and it is painted slap bang over his previous piece on this wall which I posted here a few days ago. I was fortunate enough to run across him as he was about half-way through his work.

Smoke Perfume, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2021
Smoke Perfume, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2021

There is something rather nice about getting work in progress (WIP) shots, because it gives you an insight into how the artists go about building up their work. Even though I have been trying to teach myself to spray paint, I still find the process counter-intuitive, but that probably stems from the fact that I have no training in art or design whatsoever.

Smoke Perfume, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2021
Smoke Perfume, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2021

I am not too sure what the letters spell out, but I am pretty certain it is neither Smoke nor Perfume. Rather like the Serm piece next to it, the organic purple and yellow lettering is embellished with white smoky flames. I’ll be on the look-out for more from Smoke Perfume.

2901. M32 Spot (64)

Going through the archives is turning out some nice surprises, and I have been fiding quite a few old pieces by Conrico, like this one at the M32 Spot from August 2018, at a time when I wasn’t familiar with the artist.

Conrico, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2018
Conrico, M32 Spot, Bristol, August 2018

This wonderful melty column piece I suspect in some way might be drug related. There is certainly something fairly unusual and dreamlike going on and the separation of the character’s head and copious amounts of smoke suggest something weird is going on. Ever colourful and imaginative, Conrico is a lovely bloke whose work really brightens the place up.

Still

.

Smoke from a bonfire

hangs over a valley copse

breezeless dispersal

.

by Scooj

2442. St Werburghs tunnel (98)

Not long ago, this rather fun collaboration appeared at the farm end of St Werburghs tunnel. It is painted by Daz Cat on the left and CD on the right and while I am familiar with the former, I have never come across CD before this and another collaboration between the two. Perhaps he was just visiting Bristol.

Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2019
Daz Cat, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2019

I am used to seeing cats and dogs by Daz Cat, but even though I know he has done giraffes before, this is the first one I have seen and whaty a nice tidy piece it is too. There is an interesting ‘fairy tale’ type character in the centre of the piece nestling in the curled neck of the giraffe. A curious image, but rather compelling.

CD., St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2019
CD., St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2019

On the right hand side is a rather tight piece of a grimacing face having a smoke, with excess smoke wafting around the whole wall. The colour pallette is nicely balanced and it is amazing how well light blue and pink work together – I used to have a light blue fleece with pink trim that I bought in Jasper, British Colombia and it was my favourite item of clothing for many years. I can’t put my finger on it, but there is something about this work that I really like – maybe it is the rather surreal nature of the piece, I don’t know. A nice introduction to CD’s work.

Evening walk

 

Air thick with wood smoke

hangs in the urban valley

catches in my throat.

 

by Scooj