Tag: Street art

5340. Brunel Way 214.

Mr Draws, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Mr Draws, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

I caught up with Mr Draws when he was painting this piece, and he told me it was going to be something a little bit different and he was right. Mr Draws has always had a strong environmental conviction running through his work, and he says that he wants to do more of this kind of messaging work in the future.

Mr Draws, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Mr Draws, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

Drawing attention to contemporary issues is something that street art does very well, and Mr Draws doesn’t pull any punches in this piece which states “No art on a dead planet”. The whole thing is simply done with big bold letters on a striking background. The colour fades in the big letters have been worked very nicely, and although not painted in his usual style, there is something so very Mr Draws about the piece.

5339. Dean Lane skate park (615)

Peggy, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Peggy, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

One of the things that I really like about Peggy’s floral works is that she likes to occupy little niches or modest walls, rather than commanding a large ‘in your face’ space. I think that these smaller spots lend themselves really well to her finely crafted designs, which she can adapt to the selected space, which is more difficult to do with writing or character pieces.

Peggy, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Peggy, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

I am not a big fan of brown and dark colours in street art, don’t ask me why, it is a personal taste thing, but in this case, Peggy has worked her magic on me and I like what she has done. Her floral pattern, naturally, has an eye at the centre, keeping watch over the skate park. Lovely work from Peggy, who perhaps ought to have a gallery on Natural Adventures – watch this space.

5338. Brunel Way (213)

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

By the time this post is published I will be midway through leading a workshop for a partnership in Lincolnshire. I arrived in Lincoln yesterday evening, and have never been here before. I was pleasantly surprised by the old town, and the cathedral is one of the most impressive I have seen in England. It is a pity I will be here only for a day, and returning home immediately after the workshop. I digress… Maybe wasn’t very impressed with this piece, when he posted it on Instagram, and was minded to go over it, but he hasn’t so far, so maybe he has some affection for it after all.

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

The subtle colours and gentle interlocking shapes make this more of an abstract piece than anything else, and as such does a good job, I think. The green shape has something of the pachyderm about it, and once seen can’t be unseen. I rather like this modest and gentle piece. My kind of thing.

5337. Dean Lane skate park (614)

Mudra, Kosc and Saor, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Mudra, Kosc and Saor, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

This is an absolute epic piece that didn’t last nearly as long as it deserved, and the artists who over painted it should have, in my view, been a little bit more respectful, however everyone knows it is a jungle out there. The Wild West triptych is by Mudra, Kosc and Saor, all of NTS crew.

Mudra, Kosc and Saor, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Mudra, Kosc and Saor, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

I managed to catch up with the artists while they were painting the piece, and watched as they went about it. There was a lot of planning involved, and they managed to get the proportions right to take out the whole wall in magnificent style.

Mudra, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Mudra, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

To the left, and adopting the collaboration colour scheme, Mudra has written his name in reverse, I mean why not? The letters, in a block style, with each having a different design, a la SkyHigh look like a jumble of rocks in front of a saloon, on which Kosc and Mudra have left tags.

Kosc, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Kosc, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

In the centre Kosc has painted a wonderful generic western portrait piece, pointing a smoking six-shooter at the viewer. I asked him if it was anyone in particular, and he said that it wasn’t, which saved me having to guess when writing it up.

Kosc, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Kosc, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

Completing the triptych, Saor has painted yet another tight, highly graphic set of letters, which closely resemble Epok’s style of writing, but with his own unique stamp. On the buildings on this side, the crew name NTS and a Saor tag adorn the facade. The piece is so clean, and the colours perfectly matched – his work is stepping up to a higher level, without doubt. this is such an impressive epic piece which it is unusual to see outside of a festival, so the boys did really well. Bravo!

Mudra, Kosc and Saor, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Mudra, Kosc and Saor, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

 

5336. M32 roundabout J3 (487)

Noise, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2023
Noise, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2023

Background noise. I have only recently become consciously aware of Noise and his rather distinctive style of writing. I have a few of his pieces in my archive, but until now didn’t know much about him, and actually still don’t apart from his name. Noise has been a presence in Bristol, but somehow I just haven’t picked him up on my radar.

Noise, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2023
Noise, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2023

Noise’s writing style is not only accomplished, but rather easier on the eye than some writers. His letters are large, rounded and distinctive, and share a quality with Dopes’ letters. The fills here are beautifully done and create a kind of shiny surface effect. This may be the first, but certainly won’t be the last piece by Noise to appear on Natural Adventures.

5335. M32 roundabout J3 (486)

Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2023
Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2023

Kid Krishna has had a quiet couple of weeks, which means that I can catch up on some of his pieces, although there is so much happening at the moment, it is never easy to catch up on anything. This is a bright, happy piece from Kid Krishna, featuring elements of the Wizard from Vaughn Bode.

Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2023
Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2023

I can’t really express how good I believe this piece to be. It is clean, tight, cryptic and joyful, and since Kid Krishna appeared on the Bristol scene about 18 months ago, he has been turning out pieces like this one with extraordinary regularity, and in doing so, really pushed the boundaries with his unconventional style.

5334. St John’s Lane (3)

Rusk, St John's Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Rusk, St John’s Lane, Bristol, June 2023

The paint jam on the new hoardings on St John’s Lane turned out some very special pieces, including this gorgeous writing from Rusk. Before posting it, I really ought to have gone back and photographed it without the mottled light on it, but I am both lazy and impatient, so have decided to post it warts and all.

Rusk, St John's Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Rusk, St John’s Lane, Bristol, June 2023

Rusk has been turning out this very special ribbon-style writing for  little while now, and I have to say that I definitely like it. It is almost like a transition between flat wild style and anamorphic style, having plenty of three dimensional depth to the letters sitting on a flat background. Great colours, great letters spelling RISKY beautifully presented and finished.

5333. Cumberland Basin

Daz Cat, Werm and Kool Hand, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Daz Cat, Werm and Kool Hand, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

I am very pressed for time this morning, so this is a bit of a quick one. There were actually four pieces in this collaborative wall, but these three were more familiar to me and formed part of a set, with the fourth having a slightly different feel to it. The three artists, well known to regular readers are Daz Cat, Werm and Kool Hand.

Daz Cat, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Daz Cat, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

To the left of the three is a rather cool rabbit character, or long-eared cat, sitting cross-legged and striking something approaching a yoga pose. What you don’t get from this picture is the scale of the piece which is probably 9ft tall, I know this because I painted something immediately to the left, which was dwarfed by it.

Werm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Werm, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

In the middle is another stunner from Werm, who is getting his style sorted with his small letters and expanding decorative extensions. He has consistently been one of the most productive artists on the streets for quite some time , and rarely disappoints.

Kool Hand, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023
Kool Hand, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2023

On the right, Kool Hand has painted one of his customary character/writing combinations in his soft curvy style. The toothy dog is leaning on the letters, and both elements are nicely highlighted with white dots which offer depth to the piece. Altogether a nicely colour coordinated triptych from the trio.

5332. Brunel Way (212)

Lee Roy and Waste, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Lee Roy and Waste, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

This was my third attempt at photographing this fine collaboration from Lee Roy and Waste, under Brunel Way, because of the rather irritating light and shadow that is cast on sunny days from the left. I got there in the end. I was lucky enough to be there when the artists were painting the piece and I got to meet Lee Roy for the first time, and what a genuinely lovely person he is – we chatted plenty.

Lee Roy, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Lee Roy, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

The collaborative wall is clever in that each side is a reversed-out colour version of the other, and how different they look, using the same powerful pink and black colour scheme. Lee Roy talked to me about his rather free style and said that he used to write really tight letters, in a more traditional graffiti manner, but that he found it increasingly unenjoyable, striving for perfection and instead has adopted a more liberated style, tending towards anti-style. He certainly seems to be happy with his current work, and has been churning out pieces at a terrific rate so far this year.

Waste, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023
Waste, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2023

I don’t know much about Waste, other than that he is a friend of Lee Roy’s from out of town. I forget where… Cardiff? Swindon? I should have made a note. I like this piece a lot, and note that Waste has made things easy for himself, using the ‘tram-lines’ in the wall to keep his letters regular. All in all a very nice collaborative wall, which fortunately remained undogged long enough for me to get some decent photographs.

5331. Dean Lane skate park (613)

Jee See, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Jee See, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

One of the first street artists/graffiti writers I met, way back, was Jee See, while he was painting a column under the M32 motorway. He was really happy to talk about his work and was very welcoming, giving me the confidence to keep going with my blog.

Jee See, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023
Jee See, Dean Lane, Bristol, June 2023

This ‘seismic’ piece on the famous curved wall in  Dean Lane makes me laugh, because it illustrates the importance of bringing a ladder or finding something to stand on when painting tall walls. Jee See’s familiar block letters with 3D drop shadows diverging halfway through the piece have been a steady feature of the street art scene for some years, although he doesn’t appear to paint all that often these days. The piece presents well, with white letters on a black background – nice and simple.