4508. St Werburghs tunnel (296)

I just don’t seem to see enough of Soge’s work, but it is great to know that he is still in Bristol and taking a can to a wall once in a while. This recent piece was painted alongside Hire and other artists I am not so familiar with in a session in the tunnel

Soge, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2022
Soge, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2022

The scratchy writing spelling out SOGE is typical of his writing, and the pink and yellow-bordered purple letters appear to be sitting on a cosmic nebula-type setting. A fine piece of writing from a great writer who needs to get out more (IMO).

4139. Cumberland Basin

This is a little Christmas piece from Soge, who has quite a quiet year in 2021, and is a welcome sight. There haven’t been as many Christmas themed pieces this year as I might have expected, but I haven’t been out too much last week so hope to stumble across a few more.

Soge, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2021
Soge, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2021

This is actually part of a collaboration with Hire, and the pair have painted quite a few times together in the past. Nicely designed and finished, this is a welcome return from Soge. Happy Christmas.

3589. Dean Lane skate park (405)

It has been well worth the wait to see these two collaborating once again. Once a common sight, since last March, I think these two have only painted together a couple of times. This is back to the classic style for both artists, with their jagged spikes lettering.

Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021

On the left of the collaboration, set on a vibrant pink backwash, which if you look carefully is a tropical beach scene with ocean waves and palm trees, are the letters SOGE in an irregular formation. The letters look like the thorn forest in Disney’s Sleeping Beauty.

Hire, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021
Hire, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021

To the right is writing from Hire who has taken a break from his more recent representations to revert to old style work with a great result. These two artists absolutely smashing this style of writing which seems to be pretty unique to them in Bristol – I can’t think there are any other writers who do this. Great to see them back together and I am hoping it is the first of many more.

Soge

A gallery of outstanding graffiti writing and characters from Bristol artist Soge

All photographs by Scooj

Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2019
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2019
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2019
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2019
Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2018
Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2018
NEVERGIVEUP and Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2018
NEVERGIVEUP and Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2018
Soge, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2018
Soge, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2018
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2018
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2018
Soge and Hire, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2017
Soge and Hire, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2017
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2017
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2017
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2017
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2017
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2017
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2017
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2017
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, July 2017

3272. Dean Lane skate park (360)

Around the time of lock down when the streets were rather empty, some artists took the opportunity to hit walls hard, some others disappeared almost entirely… Soge was most certainly in the former category. The he went a bit quiet, and this newish piece in Dean Lane is the first I have seen for a month or two.

Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2020

One would normally associate Soge with his elaborate graffiti writing but he has been moving gently in the direction of character pieces (who can forget his lock down beavers?). This is an unusual and fun piece, clearly commenting on the coronavirus pandemic and our obsession with the news and ‘pandemic group behaviours’. The character looks like something out of Dungeons and Dragons and is really nicely painted and the green gives it a magical feel. A more than decent piece.

3041. Dean Lane skate park (330)

In this recent piece by Soge on a ramp in Dean Lane skate park, the artist is showing off his versatility with a rather different style than the one we are more accustomed to seeing. I don’t know the origins of why street artists use this ‘Hello my name is’ card, but I have seen it several times over the years and rather like it. (Note to self, do a special post on these?)

Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2020

I think that I have seen more pieces by Soge since lock down eased than any other artist and have been enjoying his resurgence greatly. This piece is very easy on the eye and the greens of the lettering contrast well with the red and white base. More quality work from Soge.

3015. M32 roundabout J3 (222)

I told you that Soge has been busy, and this is yet another one of a fine collection painted in the last three weeks or so. You might notice that this one was painted as part of the Poland v Spain paint jam at the end of May, and once again incorporates his little beaver character which looks like it has become an established thing for the artist.

Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2020

It was a privilege to be able to watch all the artists at work during the paint jam, and I managed to catch up with several of them and introduce myself to some for the first time, including Soge, who was painting next to Hire.

Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020

The piece of writing is really classy, and I particularly like the blue line that is coiled around the whole thing. What is also nice is that the beaver isn’t a throw-away gesture at a character, but a very nicely worked little thing that complements the writing without dominating is. A great, nicely balanced piece.

Poland 4 Spain 3

3012. Dean Lane skate park (325)

It feels like the lock down has energised and inspired Soge in a significant way. Firstly, the sheer number of pieces he has sprayed over the last three weeks or so is mind-boggling and secondly he seems to have raised his game in terms of creativity and quality. He has a new lease of life.

Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2020

This is a magnificent piece, which is lucky because it is a brave artist who would paint over the Epok and Piro collaboration masterpiece that occupied this wall and half of which sits above Soge’s work. The writing is first class and he has again used the crosshatch inside the O of SOGE which is a lovely touch. It looks like the beaver is becoming a thing, which I am really pleased about. I am a big fan of writing/character combinations. I love this piece.

2994. Brunel Way bridge (35)

In the previous post I was talking about a large piece by Taboo that I never got to see. Well, a tiny little bit of that piece, the ‘B’ I think, lies behind this delightful three-way collaboration from Laic217, Soge and Nevergiveup (Followmyrabbits).

Laic217, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Laic217, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020

On the left of the three pieces is a rather dark and menacing face-masked face from Laic217, wearing a hat with the letters ACAB emblazoned on it. You might notice that many pieces in Bristol carry those letters at the moment, which resonate with the Black Lives Matters movement and the acronym stands for ‘All Cops are Bastards’. Bristol has lately become famous across the world for its rather revolutionary support for BLF.

Soge, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Soge, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020

In the middle is a bright and vibrant pink piece by soge, who like his two Polish buddies here has been extremely busy since the end of May. Clean and tight writing spelling out the letters of his name SOGE. The yellow stars and weave in the centre of the piece add nice touches.

Nevergiveup, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Nevergiveup, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020

On the right is a very long-eared rabbit by Nevergiveup, beautifully filled and perfectly executed. This artist is tireless it would seem and I have utterly lostcount of how many of these bunnies I have photographed, and that probably only accounts for about half of the total. Gallery soon? A very tidy collaboration from three top artists.

2981. Dean Lane skate park (320)

This is the first of several new pieces from Soge, who seems to have been really busy since the lock down restrictions eased. His style is similar to his compatriot Hire’s, but perhaps slightly less jagged.

Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2020

Soge has knocked it out of the park with this piece. The SOGE writing is incredibly detailed and decorated with stars and bubbles. The background is a perfect colour for the main colours of the piece and the whole thing is very easy on the eye. You can see a little 2020 hidden in the letters too.

Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2020
Soge, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2020

Something a bit new, or that I haven’t been aware of before is that Soge has started to include characters with his work, and to the right of this piece is a little Beaver with a speech bubble saying ‘I love furlough’. I’m not sure why the beaver has an axe with a bleeding blade, but it adds a little bit of edge to the cute character. This is a really nice piece from Soge.