Tag: Street art

4314. Dean Lane skate park (474)

This was something of a red-letter day for me, turning up at Dean Lane to find Mudra painting alongside Kosc and Flava136 (who has now changed his moniker to Saor). Unfortunately, Flava136’s piece had been painted over by the time I returned to get pictures of the completed works, but Mudra and Kosc’s were intact.

Mudra, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022
Mudra, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022

Mudra is an artist who, although he has only been painting in Bristol for a couple of years, has firmly established himself in the city and is definitely going from strength to strength. With each of his pieces, his confidence and dynamism grows, and I am thoroughly enjoying the ride.

Mudra, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Mudra, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022

This is a curious piece that, for once, doesn’t spell out Mudra, but instead incorporates the letters NTS, a crew name (I don’t yet know what it stands for). There is a typically stylised Mudra face with a giveaway coloured nose and for some utterly unknown reason a bird perching at a bird box. Great to see and great fun.

4313. M32 roundabout J3 (394)

Teao One is one of the senior writers in Bristol, and by that I don’t mean he is old, but rather is one of those that has been writing for many years, even though he only crept into my radar last year (how did that happen?), which tells me I still have so much to learn and understand about this craft in Bristol.

Teao one, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2022
Teao one, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2022

There is something very distinctive about Teao One’s writing style, lots of well crafted letters in a uniform style, beautifully crisply finished. It took me a while, but the letters appear to spell out GENERAL, although I’m not too sure what that means or refers to. A banging chrome piece from a skilled writer.

4312. Brunel Way (147)

Because I go out about three times a week, walking the dog in some of the easy-access graffiti spots, it is inevitable that I will meet artists from time to time. Now that the weather is improving and the days are getting longer, I expect to meet more while they are actually painting.

RZA and Enn Kay, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2022
RZA and Enn Kay, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2022

I was lucky enough to bump in to RZA and Enn Kay while they were painting this small collaboration. Stopping to chat with them was a real pleasure as both artists took time to chew the fat with me. I think that this might be the first piece I have posted from RZA, although I know I have others in my archive. Enn Kay is, of course, no stranger to the pages of Natural Adventures, in spite of the fact that he has only been spraying walls since the back end of last year.

RZA and Enn Kay, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2022
RZA and Enn Kay, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2022

This chirpy collaboration features an ‘octopus’ type monster from Enn Kay sitting alongside a face in a white burst breakout box (is the best way I can describe it). Enn Kay, in particular, is rapidly establishing himself in the Bristol scene with both his creativity and his productivity. Watch this space for more from these two.

4311. M32 roundabout J3 (393)

It is pretty much impossible to observe one of these classic Soap pieces and not feel a small wave of happiness wash over you. The stylised laughing mouths/skull shaped characters are a trademark mega-tag that Soap has been painting and refining for years.

Soap, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2022
Soap, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2022

This piece in great bronze colours was one part of an outstanding PWA paint jam, that included Face 1st and Chill, and a guest appearance from Kool Hand. The finishing on this piece is first class and demonstrates amply Soap’s skills.

4310. The Paintworks (1)

At last (thank you Paul) I have located The Paintworks wall, one which has been used a couple of times for the Bristol Womxn Mural Collective. This magnificent beetle painted by Nina Raines which dates back to September 2021 was a piece from a BWMC paint jam.

Nina Raines, The Paintworks, Bristol, March 2022
Nina Raines, The Paintworks, Bristol, March 2022

Nina Raines is a fabulous artist, who doesn’t paint with a particular style or subject, but is incredibly adaptive. I would struggle to identify her work if it was unsigned. The beetle is so beautiful and Nina Raines has managed to capture the iridescence of the carapace perfectly. Look out for more pieces from this wall.

4309. Cumberland Basin

I am thoroughly enjoying Haka’s work these days, and fortunately, he seems to be going through quite a fertile phase both in terms of productivity and also creativity. This new piece, which I witnessed being painted over a couple of days ago, is another in support of the people of Ukraine, although a little more subtle than some.

Haka, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Haka, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

I don’t quite get the significance of the pelican, but the Haka writing is clearly carrying the yellow and blue we are all becoming so familiar with, and just in case there was any doubt, Haka has included the caption ‘No war’. Another nice piece from one of Bristol’s consistent writers.

4308. Dean Lane skate park (473)

Cort is a quiet, unassuming, Polish artist who has been writing in Bristol for several years now, but he is an artist I have only met on one or two occasions. Although he has finished this piece in Dean Lane by the time I arrived, he was still in the area chilling. I did manage to exchange a few words, but I’m not entirely certain he enjoys conversation about his art, and he comes across as rather modest.

Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2022

I happen to think that this is one of his finest pieces to date, and there have been an awful lot to choose from, and it also demonstrates what a good character artist he is too, although he rarely paints characters. The colour selections are attractive and there is good balance between the character and the writing, with a clever bordered box drawing all the elements together.

Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2022

The character is really nicely painted in a semi-abstract form, including a Mickey Mouse hand. The character is smoking a joint, a theme commonly used in street art, which chimes with the ‘edgy’ or rebellious nature of the art form. Cort also spells out the crew name (PAD) for us, which in full is Paint and Destroy. This piece raises the bar for Cort, and I will be looking out for more characters from him.

4307. Greenbank (29)

Just because I haven’t posted much from the PWA boys lately, doesn’t mean they haven’t been painting, it is more a reflection of just how much street art is being created in Bristol at the moment. This is a rather nice piece from Face 1st, alongside Soap.

Face 1st, Greenbank, Bristol, March 2022
Face 1st, Greenbank, Bristol, March 2022

Face 1st has been painting these blocky letters a lot recently and has managed to include one of his faces, although it is rather obscured by the letters A and C. Fun stuff from this prolific artist.

4306. Cumberland Basin

This recent collaboration by Sepr and Acer replaces a Valentines Day piece by this pair last year. I wonder if this piece had been planned to be a repeat to mark the day of lovers, but got delayed for a while. Whatever, it is a truly outstanding collaboration, sharp, clean and tidy.

Sepr, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Sepr, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

On the left is a rather clumsy Cupid figure who has somehow managed to shoot himself in the foot with an arrow. Sepr has an amazing ability to bring his characters to life, and tell big stories. The shadows are supremely well painted and lift the character right off the wall.

Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

To the right, Acer has written LOVE in a lettering style that he appears to be playing with a lot at the moment, judging by recent posts on his Instagram feed. Rainbow colours on nicely designed regular letters… a fabulous font design. Altogether brilliant.

Sepr and Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Sepr and Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

4305. Leonard Lane (31)

Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside. Leonard Lane could hardly contrast more with a seaside scene, which helps this gorgeous mural stand out by Billy. Billy Colours, to give her her full name, together with Mr Penfold and Rtiiika, decorated the wall opposite the Centrespace Gallery at which they were exhibiting alongside Zoe Power, Merny and Beth Kirby in mid-February. Regrettably, I never made it to their show, which I am gutted about, but I have a busy life and things like that often fall outside the ‘to do’ list.

Billy, Leonard Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Billy, Leonard Lane, Bristol, March 2022

The naive style and simple captions tell such vibrant stories in a direct and honest way. It might sound patronising to say that her pieces are charming, and I definitely don’t want to be patronising, so to say they have a spellbinding charm about them might be a better way to say it. Lady in a hat as a caption works very well for me, and this piece left me feeling happy.