.
Safety in numbers
sandy snails cluster in dunes
waiting for the rain
.
by Scooj
White Italian Snail
Tag: Snail
7787. Brunel Way (363)
I was very happy to catch up with Sled One as he was finishing off his snail, way back in April – a piece that nearly slipped through the net. Happy, because I hadn’t seen him for a long while, which was perhaps not too surprising because he told me that he was a bit of a ‘fair weather’ artist with regard to his street work. Here he teamed up with Oust, amongst others is an outstanding collaborative wall under Brunel Way.
The Snail is so full of character and a multitude of charming details – his face with those eyes on stalks is a picture. Three cheeky ladybirds are hitching a ride on the snail’s back and his shell is a clever representation of planet Earth. The snail is sliding his way through the grass.
Next to the snail set in a grassy landscape is a wonderful piece of graffiti writing from Oust. The letters and drop shadow pick up on and reflect the colours used in Sled One’s adjacent snail. The wildstyle writing is beautifully presented with organically blended colours in the letters, with some spots, and a blue background with further spot decorations. This is a superb pairing from the overall collaboration.
7506. Purdown (102)
Another day and another wonderful piece from Creamylines, an artist who has been knocking it out of the park recently. Unlike most artists in Bristol, Creamylines tends to paint solo, and maybe that’s just how he likes it. It would be interesting, one day, to see him collaborate with others, it could bring about some exciting outcomes.
The central element of this composition is a friendly snail carrying the landscape narrative on its back, and that landscape contains the smorgasbord of sun, birds, hills, ponds, faces, figures and abundant nature that we might expect. Charming and full of the good things in life, I am so much enjoying Creamylines’ purple patch.
6865. Chalk Farm Road, Camden Town, London
One of the most noticeable things about photographing street art in London is that there seem to be a great deal more paste ups and wheatpaste artists than in Bristol. Perhaps this is a function of a huge amount more wall space to choose from, as well as a cultural thing.
This wonderful wheatpaste piece, by Apparan (no stranger to Natural Adventures), features a beautiful portrait of a woman and a snail. The piece is called ‘way home’ and was pasted up in December 2023 during a bit of a wheatpaste jam as far as I can make out. It has worn very well indeed.
6642. Sussex Street
This is a wonderful political commentary collaboration from Sepr and Andy Council, who are unhappy with the Government’s attitude towards the situation in Gaza. On the left Sepr has painted a passive protest piece featuring a dove sitting on an olive branch. It is both witty and poignant and is beautifully painted.
To the right, Andy Council presents on of his ‘stitched together’ composition creature pieces, which this time is a snail, perhaps representing the slow speed of any progress on ending the Israeli occupation and systematic demolition of Gaza. The snail is painted in the colours of the Palestinian flag. Brilliant stuff from the duo.
5823. St Mark’s Avenue (10)
There is a convention in the world of street art, that is rarely followed, which suggests that when you paint over a piece by other artists, you tag them in your piece, and it is great to see that Conrico has followed that convention, with his piece on a garage door in St Mark’s Avenue, acknowledging Soap and Face 1st whose old piece he overpainted.
Conrico has a style all of his own, often looking like brush work, rather than painting from a spray can. This piece features a snail in a horrible dam setting, with a shell that presents an altogether more inviting scene. The contrast between the two parts of this piece tells a wonderful story of hope and possibilities. This is a really nice piece from Conrico.
Slowly
.
Uncomplicated
a life lived in the slow lane
minimum effort
.
by Scooj
2444. Dean Lane skate park (246)
Photographed on a sunny afternoon, this is a beautifully thought out piece of writing by Cassette in the fine tradition of using a different style for each letter. Particularly pleasing is the way the artist has crafted the ‘SS’ in the form of a snail and the ‘TT’ as a couple of palm leaves.
This is the second time I have seen work from Cassette in Bristol this summer, and both pieces were on this wall. The other was of a very nicely painted whale. I believe the artist is from the Southwest, but it is nice to see that he finds time to visit Bristol from time to time.
1229. Brunel Way bridge (4)
Another piece from the ASK Halloween paint jam under Brunel Way. This is exceptional work from the exceptional Sled One with an interesting story woven into his wildstyle writing.
On the left there appears to be a snail-like character and on the right a Grim Reaper figure that is making for the terrified looking snail (can a snail look terrified?). Meanwhile, Sled One has incorporated the letters SLED into the piece with artistry and skill.
Once again we see this master sprayer at his very best, creating a whole world in a space 3m x 2m. Incredible really.
Horseradish
A small snail anchors
atop a shimmering sea
of emerald green.
by Scooj
Natural adventures 