Tag: Street art

2590. Upfest 2018 (161)

This is the kind of fantastic work that we are missing ever since Aspire left Bristol for London. How lucky we are that he returned to us for Upfest 2018 and painted this new wall with these magnificent puffins.

Aspire, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Aspire, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

Aspire specialises in painting birds and he seems to be improving with every new piece he creates, it is just a pity that I don’t get to see much of his work ‘in the flesh’ any more, and have to rely on Instagram for my fix.

Aspire, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
Aspire, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018

This particular piece is quite unusual for two main reasons. Firstly I can’t recall seeing any sea birds from Aspire before and secondly there are lots of birds in the one scene, where more commonly he will paint only one. Love this piece.

2589. Dean Lane skate park (264)

Another nice piece from the archive, this time from the brilliant Hire. I managed to snap this piece just as it was being overwritten, so kind of got lucky. You can see the outline of the piece that went over it.

Hire, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2019
Hire, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2019

I think that Hire is probably one of the overlooked heroes of the Bristol street art scene and his work is always on point. His gothic style is his trademark, and we mustn’t forget his rabbits that were being painted in Bristol before the arrival of his compatriot Nevergiveup. These letters, skilfully filled with black and yellow spell out HIRE… I think. A great Deaner piece.

2588. Queen Charlotte Street (3)

Only a matter of a few days ago I posted a fine piece by Kedals at the Cheltenham Paint Festival, then on rifling through some old folders in my archive, I came across these two fabulous wheatpastes in March this year. Kedals has such a unique style that comes through in his larger murals as well as his wheatpastes.

Kedals, Queen Charlotte Street, Bristol, March 2019
Kedals, Queen Charlotte Street, Bristol, March 2019

The first of this pair of striking posters features a portrait of a rather portly man sporting what looks like a straw or canvas hat and smoking a rather large cigar. The whole thing is decorated with bright colours and shapes and is st for the eyes.

Kedals, Queen Charlotte Street, Bristol, March 2019
Kedals, Queen Charlotte Street, Bristol, March 2019

The second of these portraits looks like it might be called ‘booze cruise’ although with a Kedals piece who knows what the title or sub-text is? There is a lady smoking (smoking seems to be a bit of a theme) puff, puff, looking up at a vintage car with the words ‘gear 4 gas’. Curious and compelling stuff. I’ll keep looking out for the work of this unusual Bristol artist.

2587. St Mark’s Avenue (5)

It may be an old piece, but that in no way detracts from its class and beauty. Aspire left Bristol about two years ago, and this piece dates back to some time before then I suspect. My recent discovery of St Mark’s Avenue has been a bit of an archeological expedition, digging out perfectly preserved specimens from another age.

Aspire, St Mark's Avenue, Bristol, September 2019
Aspire, St Mark’s Avenue, Bristol, September 2019

Aspire specialises in birds, and I think in particular has a thing for Blue Tits – this is one of at least four that I have posted in his gallery. It is such a pity that he is only an occasional visitor to Bristol, his pieces were really rather special. Our loss is London’s gain.

2586. St Werburghs tunnel (111)

This is the second piece of fine writing I have seen from Face 1st in recent weeks and once again shows the diversity of his ability. In my view, this is a very fine piece of graffiti writing indeed and unfortunately the pictures just don’t convey how good it is. I think the piece was painted during a session with Fiva (to the left and already posted on Natural Adventures) and if you look closely there is a little shout out to Fiva at the top above the C and E.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2019
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2019

The piece transitions seamlessly from gold through light bronze to silver, an effect that is accentuated by the yellow lighting in the tunnel. This particular work kind of gives me a warm feeling – maybe it is nostalgia as the letters have a bit of a 1970s feel about them. A classy piece.

Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2019
Face 1st, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2019

2585. Leonard Lane (22)

So you’ll all know all about this one… . It is hardly worth me writing very much about Nevergiveup and his bunny rabbits, because they have featured so many times on Natural Adventures before, and there are still plenty more in my archive warren to keep me going for a while.

Nevergiveup, Leonard Lane, Bristol, November 2019
Nevergiveup, Leonard Lane, Bristol, November 2019

This particular beauty is lurking in a doorway of the wonderfully ‘colourful’ Leonard Lane – a fascinating alleyway that marks thwe ancient boundary where the city wall used to be. You won’t have to wait too long before I uncover some more rabbits.

2584. M32 Spot (53)

What a refreshingly different kind of collaboration this is down at the M32 Spot. Logoe and Haka have got together to produce this quirky and beautifully executed joint effort. On the left there is some really superior writing spelling out LOGOE in an attractive font style and with a great deep white shading to give it depth. I don’t have many pictures of Logoe’s work, but what I have seen I like.

Logoe and Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, November 2019
Logoe and Haka, M32 Spot, Bristol, November 2019

On the right is a cartoon character ‘Lucky Luke’ – remember him? I never really got into Lucky Luke as a kid, I was always an Asterix and Tintin man myself. This Lucky Luke appears to be smoking a little Boris Johnson (or is it a Trump? it is difficult to separate the two these days), with the words ‘sit back and enjoy a fat one’. All good fun and nicely painted.

2583. Redland Station

There isn’t much street art to speak of in Redland (where I live) so it is extra good to have found this bright and cheery piece under Lover’s Lane bridge at the end of the platform at Redland Station. This is a very nice collaboration between Zoe Power and Dave Bain.

Zoe Power and Dave Bain, Redland Station, Bristol, November 2019
Zoe Power and Dave Bain, Redland Station, Bristol, November 2019

Now Zoe Power I know all about and I love her mural works that are dotted about Bristol. Dave Bain however, I know absolutely nothing about and I haven’t heard of him berfore. Together though they have produced something that is truly collaborative and it is difficult to know where one artist ends and the other begins. If I might say so, this is very representative of the Redland area… safe, clean and decent. My favourite bit is the skateboarder’s hair – a real Zoe Power signature.

 

 

2582. M32 Cycle path (40)

What a magnificent chrome beast this is on the M32 cycle path by Slakarts. The light coloured accents on the nose and cheeks and on the eyebrows and hair help to bring much more depth to the piece.

Slakarts, M32 cycle path, Bristol, November 2019
Slakarts, M32 cycle path, Bristol, November 2019

This is probably my favourite Slakarts piece thus far, and it is typical of his stylised faces, and that it is cut off at the top and bottom matters not. I am pretty certain that I have more of his work slopping around somewhere in my archives, so I will try to dig it out. Nice piece.

2581. St Werburghs tunnel (110)

Yes, Fiva/Fiver has been at it again in St Werburghs Tunnel (goddam the light), with a piece full of Autumn promise. Copper tomnes and leaves leave us in no doubt about the time of year this one was created.

Fiva, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2019
Fiva, St Werburghs, Bristol, September 2019

Fiva is up to his usual creative deceptions of superimposing one style of writing over or into another. In this brilliant example a brick Fiver is covered over by a Fiver made of rather untidy wooden planks. The whole thing works really well and shows off his imaginative talent. Looking forward to more.