It feels like the RBF crew have got of to a great early start this year – it must be the birthday paint jams. Bbygwa joined in the celebrations for Desi and Even in Sparke Evans Park with this lovely combination piece.
Bbygwya, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
The theme for the paint jam was Studio Ghibli, a Japanese animation studio, so I am guessing that Bbygwa’s character is somehow connected to that. Her letters spell LUXE, (a corruption of FLUX – her moniker). The letters are beautifully presented, but alas, contain too much brown for my liking (regular readers will know that I am not a fan of brown in graffiti writing). Almost time for a gallery of her work – she’s in the pipeline.
This is yet another piece from the very well-attended birthday RBF paint jam in honour of Desi and Even back in January. It is a fabulous portrait piece by the lovely Pekoe. It has been a relatively quiet winter for Pekoe, but I am pleased to report she has definitely become more active this side of Christmas.
Pekoe, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
This portrait is beautifully finished, with superb tight lines, fills and borders. I am particularly struck by the white highlights that complete the piece superbly, on the lips, the eyes and most significantly adding a shine to the hair. The theme for the paint jam was Studio Ghibli, a Japanese animation outfit, and I don’t know if the spiders have anything to do with that or whether they are simply random additions. The other character to the left is part of Bbygwya’s adjacent combination piece.
This is another wonderful piece from the RBF crew paint jam celebrating the birthdays of Desi and Even. It is, of course, by Unity, an artist whose work I just don’t get to see enough. I believe Unity lives in Wales, and comes over to Bristol occasionally, but always smashes it when she does.
Unity, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
The irregular letters spell out UNITY and are superbly filled with a perfect blend of complimentary colours on the red/purple/blue spectrum. There is a strong Japanese influence going on here as part of the Studio Ghibli theme for the paint jam. The cherry blossoms are a wonderful touch, and probably worth recreating in the spring. Great work from a superb graffiti writer.
Zed in the Clouds and J9449j, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
I sometimes wonder if anyone would notice if I stopped writing about the street/graffiti art pieces that I post, and simply presented the photographs, but then I have to remind myself that this blog is primarily for me and my mental health… that others might enjoy it is a joyous blessing. I cannot be certain that this vertically stacked pair are collaborative or simply adjacent. There are red drips running through both, but I think that has more to do with the lower piece by j9449j incorporating them into his piece.
Zed in the Clouds and J9449j, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
The top piece is by Zed in the Clouds, an artist who is ridiculously underrepresented on Natural Adventures, a situation I simply must remedy. His combination piece contains the letters ZED and his trademark character. With the incorporation of the background the piece is literally zed in the clouds.
Zed in the Clouds and J9449j, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
The lower piece is by an artist who seems to delight in changing his Instagram handle on a regular basis, making it rather difficult to know what to call him, so I stick with the first name I used, which is j9449j. Among his other monikers are Dr3amc0re94 and all_4_n0thing – this is someone who doesn’t want to leave much of a digital footprint like many other street artists. His letters, which I can never read, always have fills that I like to think have a natural emphasis with lots of leaves and plant shapes. This is a fine piece of writing that could so easily be dominated by the vibrant background, but actually complements it well.
This beauty was painted by Peggy at the RBF paint jam celebrating Desi and Even’s birthdays. She has adhered perfectly to the theme of the paint jam, which was the Japanese Studio Ghibli and presented this No Face character from Spirited Away.
Peggy, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
Of course, the central element of Peggy’s piece is the floral patterns, with each flower stem containing an eye, something of a signature in her work. Wrapped around the flowers is a black cloak belonging to the No Face character. Three cute little fluffy spiders finish the piece off nicely.
Earlier on this month, there was a very well attended RBF (Resting Bitch Face crew) paint jam in Sparke Evans Park, celebrating Desi and Even’s birthdays. This piece is one of the birthday girl’s offering, and it is really rather good.
Even, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
This combination piece, brings together some lovely curvy letters in Even’s classic style and the ‘V’ is replaced with a fabulous smiling Cheshire cat. The piece is really bright and joyful, and certainly stood out on a rather cold and wintery day. There is so much more great work to post from this particular paint jam.
It would be great to know a little bit more about Wispa. She floats in and out of Bristol like a Willow the Wisp. Her Instagram is @willow_the_wispa, which might speak to her itinerant lifestyle. OK, news just in – I checked her Instagram that leads you to her web page, and here is an excerpt from her biography which helps to unravel the mystery somewhat:
I write Wispa, and am a female graffiti/street artist from the south of the U.K. I have been painting for 2 years. I paint all over the country, and have painted in Miami (United States) and Barcelona (Spain) as well as London, Bristol, Brighton and other U.K. spots I like to hit. Writers that really inspire are the likes of: Miss Motel (40hk), Samer, Dime, Isie Ldn, Spat, Zoegen (Miss Buns), Sterling & Skore.
Wispa, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
In this combination piece, part of a huge paint jam celebrating the birthdays of RBF friends Desi and Even, Wispa has painted some stunning letters and a Japanese animation character from the Studio Ghibli. The letters are beautifully laid out with great colour selections and wonderful fills, and the character is so very neat and tidy. Wispa is without doubt an extraordinarily talented artist.
Kool Hand and Werm, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
I am tired, really tired. Returning to work from a week on leave is tough, and expectations on me are high. Over the Christmas period, I was informed that I would be ‘on loan’ to another team for 2 days a week. I was given no clear instruction, there was no discussion, and today I will be finding out what the tasks expected will be. I am unhappy about the situation, and it is causing me all sorts of unnecessary anxiety, but I will of course be professional and try to do the best job I can. My biggest concern is that I was already working at maximum capacity, and I am worried about the work I will have to drop, and the ‘clients’ I will have to let down. On a more cheery note (thank God I have street/graffiti art to lean on) here is a fine Christmas collaboration from Kool Hand and Werm.
Kool Hand, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
A frosty, cold background is a fine setting for both pieces, and Kool Hand has gone for some big KOOL letters which are nicely filled and have some snowy white accents to give a little bit of a 3D perspective. Very festive.
Werm, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, January 2025
Werm presents his letters in the symmetrical form he has been painting throughout 2024, but it is the festive colour selection that is the talking point of this piece. The two-red colour stripes are slightly reminiscent (consciously or otherwise) of Christmas candy sticks, and the green 3D drop shadow completes the holiday mood. Some nice star bursts complete the piece very nicely indeed. A good Christmas piece in a year when there were fewer than usual around the city.
Jevoissoul, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, December 2024
Jevoissoul, who prefers to be called @slowlane100 on Instagram has had a very good year, and built up his repertoire from basic character pieces to tidy combination pieces, with writing that has seen a steady improvement. This wonderful piece, in Sparke Evans Park, shows how constant practice pays dividends.
Jevoissoul, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, December 2024
The letters SLOW are bookended with two characters, one with a cap and one without, and both with the characteristic mouth design that epitomises Jevoissoul’s work. There is a lot to like in this combination piece, but overall it is the neatness that comes across most. I am looking forward to a further year of improvement.
For the second day in a row, it gives me great pleasure to post a piece by Omie. I first came across Omie in January this year, and his regular interventions through the year has established him as a key player in contemporary Bristol graffiti writing.
Omie, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, December 2024
No two pieces by Omie are alike, and his creativity is running on full throttle, which is a refreshing approach to graffiti writing. Sometimes it can even be difficult to assign a particular style to Omie, and if he didn’t paint the same letters, his work could be quite difficult to identify. In this pinky/purple piece it looks like the letters OMIE are being created in some kind of machine, with tons of plasma bolts running through the letters. Something a little Dr Frankenstein about it all. A lovely piece to share on Boxing Day.
Natural adventures 