Tag: Street art

1900. Dean Lane skate park (180)

I think I suffer slightly from Laic217 withdrawal, which is only ever cured by seeing another of his pieces. Of all the amazing artists in Bristol, I probably get most satisfaction when I find a piece by Laic217. In no way does that diminish the other artists at all, it is just that I get a special buzz seeing his work. I suppose it is a bit like getting a special card in a set of ‘Match Attax’ cards – they’re all good, but you cherish the special one.

Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2018
Laic217, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2018

This is a fairly regular piece by Laic217, a skeleton character spraying and a nicely composed LAIC lettering. The piece was sprayed together with Cort, to the left and Ugar to the right. These three seem to enjoy spraying together, which is great for me as I like all of their work. I hope it is not too long before I get my next Laic217 fix.

1899. Dean Lane skate park (179)

I have only met Cort once, and that was about three weeks ago at the M32 roundabout – he was half way through a piece that I never saw completed, which is a pity (I have added it to the end of the post).

Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2018
Cort, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2018

His work is truly unique, as each of his letters seems to take on characteristics distinct from those adjacent to it, so while there is a style here, there is no formula pattern of letter shapes etc. It is interesting to note (again from the added half-finished work) that he outlines the letters and then fills out the background, which even though I know that this is how things are done, I find counter-intuitive.

Cort, Unfinished, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2018
Cort, Unfinished, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2018

I am warming more and more with every piece I see from Cort, and I believe his work has come on a long way over the last three years or so.

1898. M32 roundabout J3 (111)

The pedestrian/cyclist tunnels of the M32 roundabout are festooned with Face 1st pieces past and present, many of which I photograph, but never get round to posting. I was never going to let this one get away though.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2018
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2018

In this piece, which was very difficult to photograph on account of the narrowness of the tunnel and light intrusion, we see two faces with quite different expressions. It looks like the one on the left is full of mischief and the one on the right looks rather sad.

Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2018
Face 1st, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2018

The hair of both the characters spells out FACE and for good measure the artist has added 1st at the right hand side. Another nice piece from this most prolific of artists.

Thursday doors

Doors 55

Just a quick selection of graffiti/street art doors from a recent trip to Shoreditch in London. Enjoy!

Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018
Shoreditch Door, London, November 2018

by Scooj

Loads more amazing doors at: Thursday Doors – Norm 2.0

1895. The Bearpit (170)

We are lucky in Bristol to have people like Decay who continue to spray down at The Bearpit in spite of a Council determined to clamp down on spraying. Most of the decent work down there is confined to the boards that were put in place by the People’s Republic of Stokes Croft (PRSC), and this is where most of the recent work is, like this one. All the other walls are regularly buffed (at some expense ) by the Council. The paint doesn’t even get to dry before the taggers move in. It is an insane cycle of self-destruction. I really think that the Council need to devise a better plan. The Bearpit has the opportunity to become the best legal wall in Britain if they just try to think outside the box.

Decay, The Bearpit, Bristol, November 2018
Decay, The Bearpit, Bristol, November 2018

This Decay piece was a nice surprise for me as I rarely expect to find much down in The Bearpit these days. Great letters (DK) and for good measure two of his little character faces. Unfortunately there is a small poster slapped right in the middle – I guess it’s all part of the furniture.

1894. Dean Lane skate park (178)

I have not been able to get out and about much recently so I think I might have missed quite a lot of street art that has since been overwritten. I was lucky enough to have found this little lion playing the high hats by Roo.

Roo, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2018
Roo, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2018

Roo, I think, is a London-based artist who I know often paints with SkyHigh. When I see this, I wonder whether I might have missed something from SkyHigh or whether Roo just happened to be travelling in Bristol solo. Whatever, this is a rather tidy souvenir from his visit.

1893. M32 Spot (35)

Back home to Bristol and yet another rather charming column piece by Silent Hobo at the M32 Spot. As I have said before, Silent Hobo has a knack for capturing the mood of youth culture, and gives his characters a soulful poise.

Silent Hobo, M32 Spot, Bristol, November 2018
Silent Hobo, M32 Spot, Bristol, November 2018

The girl with the microphone and ‘BOOM’ written on her bottom is wonderfully crafted by one of Bristol’s most established character artists. It is always a pleasure to see his work.

You might also have noticed a rather nice Deamze piece lurking in the background.

1892. Shoreditch, London (10)

In a little side street/yard off Brick Lane there is a derelict area which is a bit of a street art oasis. On the passageway into the area is this magnificent piece by Envol, which is quite different from anything else there.

Envol, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Envol, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

I have come across Envol a couple of times at Upfest in Bristol, so it was great to see something by him outside of the festival context. His highly designed ‘classical’ pieces are simply presented but nicely framed with strong shapes and colours.

Envol, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Envol, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

When I first saw this piece I thought it had been dogged at the base of the skull, but on closer inspection and a quick squint at the Artist’s Instagram it seems that this is a deliberate technique that he adopts from time to time. It is a good feeling once again to stumble upon art in unfamiliar surroundings that I am familiar with.

1890. Shoreditch, London (8)

One of the things I love most about seeing street art in other cities is when I see a piece by an I am familiar with – it gives me that warm glow of conceit, and so it was when I saw this lovely burner by Bristol’s Voyder.

Voyder, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Voyder, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

The last piece I saw by Voyder was at Upfest back in July, so to find this one in Shoreditch was definitely a special moment. This is such a clever piece, I cannot really do it justice in any explanation, but I will try. Everything you see is utterly deliberate – the blurring of the letters and the drips and splashes, what makes this extra special is how Voyder has created this with extreme skill in blending the colours through the piece and making the whole thing look a bit amateurish. To the trained eye, this is utterly brilliant, to others it might just look a bit rubbish.

1889. Shoreditch, London (7)

Wowzer, this is a wonderful piece by Sr.X in Shoreditch on the wall of the Village Underground. I have seen work by the artist before in London, but didn’t know that he was Spanish and the Sr stands for Senor. I found this out by reading the informative blog by Jenikya, which features this and other pieces I will need to know about for my own posts, which is most helpful.

Sr.X, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Sr.X, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

It would appear that I got lucky as the piece was reasonably new and only painted at the beginning of November. This has humour and a strong retro feel to it. I think I would include the word ‘zany’ and perhaps even reference Terry Gilliam, the illustrator and animator (and film director) from Monty Python as a possible influence.

Sr.X, Shoreditch, London, November 2018
Sr.X, Shoreditch, London, November 2018

This is a huge piece, an impressive wall and for a day-tripper a wholly satisfying work that would have been worth the trip to London on its own.

Sr. X, Camden Town, London, November 2017
Sr. X, Camden Town, London, November 2017