Another artist who consistently turns out High-quality pieces time and time again is Claro_que_sssnoh, and this one is on one of his favoured walls on the M32 Cycle path.
Claro_que_sssnoh, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, April 2022
All the ingredients are there, his intricate joined up writing, looking a little bit like pipework, set on a gorgeous red background with drips. The subtle blue fill patterns in the letters are really nicely worked and the whole thing looks strong and confident. Great writing from the Spanish artist.
On the curved wall at Dean Lane, Acer One painted this rather attractive piece, using his preferred rainbow writing that he has been working hard to perfect recently. The letters, in this case shapes, are slim and regular, and look as if they painted from a corporate font template. That sounds like a bad thing, but it really is not. Acer has designed up his lettering and shapes with thought and precision to create this font, and as ever his execution is faultless.
Acer, Dean Lane, Bristol, May 2022
Painting the curved wall is always a risk, because turnover is quite high, so it was brave of Acer to paint here and in fairness, it did last quite a few days. The extra nice thing about this font is the double shadow, one black and the second grey. I am very much enjoying this reinvention of Acer’s style and look forward to seeing a whole lot more.
Cort is an intriguing artist. He is a quiet ever-present who just gets on with doing what he likes doing with the minimum of fuss, and then once in a while he produces what I would term ‘statement’ pieces like this one, which shout loud and clear to all who view them ‘I am Cort and I was here’.
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
This is the second highly memorable piece from Cort on this wall in the last few weeks and clearly demonstrates his talent. PAD is the crew he belongs to that includes Laic217 and Trafficity, and is given centre stage in this piece. The character is nicely done and is clean with great solid fills. I believe Cort’s modesty belies his talent, and his work is often overlooked on the Bristol scene, which is a pity.
Here is a piece for the iced biscuit lovers among you. It was painted by Nina Raines in what appears to have been a mini paint jam by the Bristol Womxn Mural Collective a couple of weeks ago. I’m glad I managed to get a picture of this piece, as some of the others had already been tagged, and all of them were painted over shortly afterwards. It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there.
Nina Raines, Cumberland Bain, Bristol, May 2022
I have enjoyed watching Nina Rains’ artwork over the years, because she seems to be able to turn her hand to pretty much anything, and her styles adapt to the work she is creating. If she didn’t sign her pieces, it could be difficult to identify her work. Not only is this beautifully designed and painted, but it fits the shape and texture of the wall perfectly. More great work from Nina.
Nothing lasts long in Bristol these days, and even ‘high end’ pieces can have shorter lifespans than they deserve. A case in point is this wonderful collaborative wall under Brunel Way from Dibz and Acer. Rather more tragically, these two painted together again in the same spot last Friday/Saturday, and by Saturday afternoon it had been overpainted.
Dibz, Brunel Way, Bristol, May 2022
To the left is the Dibz contribution, but to add a little fun, each of the artists wrote the other’s name. So in this outstanding piece of wildstyle writing, Dibz has written ACER. I cannot put into words how good this writing is, so you can just judge for yourselves.
Acer One, Brunel Way, Bristol, May 2022
To the right, it is Acer One’s turn to play the game and adopting his favoured style of writing (at least recently) he has written DIBZ with care and precision, adding a little bit of interest behind the letters. The whole thing is a beautifully executed bit of fun from Dibz v Acer One.
One of the most recognisable styles in Bristol is from Taboo, and the interesting thing about that is that although he usually writes ‘Taboo’, no two pieces look the same, unlike some writers who like to recreate their letters in a similar format from piece to piece.
Taboo, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2022
In this one, Taboo’s unruly letters, once again seem to defy convention, for example, he uses two different border colours halfway through the word. The letters are imaginative and creative, and don’t really follow a font style, although one can tell that they are all by the same artist. No character in this piece, which is a bit of a pity, because they add a further dimension to the overall work. This is yet another wonderful piece of writing from an artist who likes to plough his own furrow.
Oof! Mest can really dial it up when he feels like it, and with this birthday celebration piece for Stivs, he has absolutely smashed it. I am guessing that during this birthday paint jam, Mest took his time to create this really tight piece.
Mest, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2022
The first thing to note is the unusual colour combination of cream pink and blue, which might not be an obvious alliance, but somehow he has carried it off. His letter shapes are a little more dynamic than usual and all the additional little details pick our different aspects of the writing. A very nice piece indeed, lifting Mest up into the next level. Also a fabulous tribute to Stivs on his birthday.
I would say that Emily Joy Rich is a fabulous designer and sign writing artist, and although she isn’t a regular painter of ‘non-legal’ walls, she does create som wonderful works on legal walls, blending ‘corporate’ art with street art.
Emily Joy Rich, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2022
In this piece in the Elton Street gallery, Emily Joy Rich has created some gorgeous script writing, so clean and crisp, on a moody cloud background. As is often the case with wordy street art, I am left with an ear worm that I simply can’t shake off and will be with me for the rest of the day. Rhythm is a Dancer by Snap! Is one of those tunes with a strong beat that stays with you. This is a fine piece from Emily Joy Rich.
To reach this wonderful piece by Mr Underbite, you need to trample through some dense spring vegetation, but it is utterly worth the effort. I find it impossible not to love this character, and the way he is presented. The shared name of the artist and character is a clever piece of branding/presentation, but might also become a constraint if the artist decides to develop or create new characters or styles. For the moment though, that doesn’t matter, because the concept is a good one, and it is lovingly created.
Mr Underbite, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2022
Mr Underbite definitely operates in this area, I haven’t seen anything further afield yet, but I’m pretty sure it won’t be too long before he spreads his wings. In green tones with yellow borders, Mr Underbite is looking as forlorn as ever, but his ‘Yo!’ exclamation would seem to indicate that all is well. Another fine and touching piece from Mr Underbite.
What a lovely thing to find on the long wall in Dean Lane skate park. Fresh, clean and definitely a collaboration to bring a smile to your face. The RBF crew have been particularly busy of late in various spots around the city, but you don’t often see their work in Dean Lane.
Evey, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
It looks to me like Evey has been having some coaching from Bnie with her 3D shadow, as I’ve never seen her paint these patterns before. This is what I love about street art; all the artists seem to be continuously developing and improving their work, moving from idea to idea and pushing themselves. The fills in her letters are rather fun too, and the colours definitely complement each other.
Bnie, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2022
The other half of the collaborative wall is by Bnie in which she has absolutely smashed it in my opinion. The piece has everything you would expect from Bnie but elevated to the next level. This might even be her finest piece yet. The letter fills are beautifully blended and the white highlights lift them out a bit. The 3D fill is to die for, with a clever and rather unique patterning, which is a sure trademark of hers. The double border is nice and neat and provides the distinction between the letters and background. I love this piece, and I am enjoying these recent RBF collaborations.