It is really great to see Mr Klue back in The Bearpit. For a long time he hardly made an appearance on the streets, and then in the late summer, he started painting a lot, but mostly in the St Werburghs tunnel. Now at last he returns to a spot that he has used before, on the steps down into The Bearpit.
Mr Klue, The Bearpit, Bristol, December 2018
I never tire of his abstract pieces that are so unique to him. They have a wispish dream-like quality with elements disappearing into infinity wrapped up in oval vortices. Mr Klue drafts dozens of these abstract pieces using a humble biro, his preferred sketching instrument. I love this one.
Happy Christmas folks – a special one for you today…
I have known about this piece for a little while, but just not had the space to get all the way down to the far end of North Street to photograph it until a couple of weeks ago. It is by the extraordinarily talented Muckrock who visited Bristol back in September this year. She was given permission to paint this by Upfest who curate this spot. It had been the site of the Dr Love piece from Upfest which sadly had been badly tagged.
Muckrock, North Street, Bristol, December 2018
Since I have been aware of Muckrock through this piece and a spectacular one she painted at Dean Lane skatepark, I have followed her on Instagram. OMG she is good, and I think I might be a little bit in love with her talent. It is a pity she lives in America, but I guess it makes her trip to Bristol all the more special.
Muckrock, North Street, Bristol, December 2018
I absolutely love this GIRL POWER mouth which has so much attitude about it. There is much to admire in the artwork…the creases, shadows and shiny reflections on the lips and teeth. I would love her to come back to the city – maybe for Upfest 2019 (Please).
This is one of two Daz Cat pieces I found on a recent lunchtime walk to the Cumberland Basin. It was good to find this, as I haven’t seen one of his pieces for a little while. This particular spot does seem to be a favourite haunt for the artist.
Daz Cat, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2018
This cat is so full of expression, I like the little black line across the teeth which ‘suggests’ individual teeth without actually picking them out. A neat trick. The absence of one eye might lead the viewer to conclude that this cat is a bit of a bruiser. Nice work.
In spite of the Council’s determination to eradicate street art from The Bearpit, there seems to have been a recent resurgence in visits from artists. Nothing like the turnover of a couple of years ago, but any new pieces are welcome. This is a lovely new piece by Nightways featuring a monkey sporting spectacles and a turtle on his hat. An interesting study and something refreshingly different from much of what we are used to seeing in The Bearpit.
Nightways, The Bearpit, Bristol, December 2018
This piece though brings me to something of a dilemma I have. I posted a piece by the artist back in August this year – it was a rather nice green monkey piece at Dean Lane. Recently, the artist contacted me through Natural Adventures and thanked me for posting it, but asked me to take the image down because he didn’t like it and he didn’t want people to see it (on a digital platform I guess) as a first introduction to his work.
His exact words are:
Hi, I love that you have made this post about me but I just really don’t like this piece of art that I made. It came out abit of a flop. Can you please take this post down as I don’t want it to be the first thing people see of my work when they type my name into google. Many thanks, nightways
Now, Natural Adventures is a ‘warts and all’ kind of blog. It is also an archive of street art and graffiti in Bristol, some of it good and some of it not so good, but it is an honest record of what is out there. I take pictures of art that I find and write about it, simple as that.
I hold all of the artists in great respect and am in awe of their talent, but as I see it, once they have committed a piece to a wall it is out there to be judged, enjoyed, tagged, photographed, whatever. The question I ask is whether I should respect the polite request of Nightways to take down my post of his work or whether I should politely decline. There is a risk that I might piss him off or a risk that other artists start asking for their posts to be taken down. I’m not sure what to do. Any thoughts?
This ‘wonder wall’ in Wilder Street is curated by Where the Wall, a Bristol street art tour business and as such it is rarely if ever tagged. It is almost like a showcase wall which guarantees high-quality artwork. The only downside is that the turnover here is glacially slow, maybe every six months or so.
Ments, Wilder Street, Bristol, December 2018
This piece by Ments is one part of a three-piece collaborative wall which includes Sled One and Smak (to follow). Ments has appeared in Natural Adventures many times, but he seems recently to have had an epiphany and he is really branching out from his trademark ‘organic’ work. The writing spells out MENTS and is beautifully worked. The thing with Ments is that he often deviated from any kind of symmetry in his work and does not confine himself to exacting letter shapes or heights etc, which sometimes makes his work look a little out of proportion. I suspect this is deliberate. Lovely piece.
You can’t hold him back. Mr Draws was planning to go and live in Germany at the end of the summer, but for whatever reason his plans fell through. His loss is surely Bristol’s gain as he continues to brighten up the place with his burners.
Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2018
This one has a rather wintry feel about it, the colours and icy drips definitely feel a bit frosty. I love the way that Mr Draws just keeps on going – no matter what life throws at him, he just seems to pick himself up and carry on. It has been a while since I last chatted with him, which is a pity, because he is a really lovely bloke.
There has been something of a population explosion of bunnies in Bristol recently…it would seem that Nevergiveup Familia has balls of steel and will spray just about any inanimate object in the city.
Nevergiveup, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2018
These are two of his more recent additions from the Cumberland Basin, one on either side of the floating harbour. These two are slightly smaller than his usual door-sized bunnies and are sprayed on utility boxes.
Nevergiveup, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2018
I am definitely a fan and will post rabbits as I find them, but probably bunch them together as there are just so many.
What a superb piece by Alex Lucas in the heart of Alex Lucas land. The artist and illustrator fills a niche in the Bristol commission market and is probably one of the most recognised artists in the city. Because nearly all of her work is commissioned, it tends to remain in situ for a very long while.
Alex Lucas, Ashley Road, Bristol, December 2018
This piece, wonderful as it is..and it really is…leaves me a little conflicted, not because of the artwork, but because before the development work behind the hoarding started, this used to be a regular ‘illegal’ wall for artists to try out their work, much of it outstanding. This is the gentrification process in full swing, the succession being; Illegal (tolerated) wall – permitted/commission wall – no wall (policed).
It is a sad but inevitable journey for most of our inner cities, and these areas are often in need of some TLC. My objection is that what will emerge from behind the hoarding will be unaffordable flats, little in the way of community assets and a sterilisation of a colourful area. The only people to benefit will be the people with money and power.
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I remember very well the piece that Bill Giles created for Upfest 2017, and this piece, in a similar style, is bigger and better. Bill is a Bristol designer/illustrator and street artist whose ‘melting’ characters are instantly recognisable.
Bill Giles, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
This piece, at the Tobacco Factory, is classic Bill Giles and has real class. It is great to have a picture of the skecth stage of the work to get a feel for how the piece gets from the black book onto the wall.
Bill Giles, Upfest, Bristol, July 2018
I like this piece, and rather wish he did a little more street work than he does. Imagine what this would look like at Dean Lane for example. A lovely piece for Upfest.
Natural adventures 