This is something a little different from Sub, who usually likes to go large and tends to be quite conservative with his use of colour. I am guessing that it might have been a bit of a dregs piece, I also think he is rather fond of newly buffed walls, and this one proved irresistible.
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2025
He has stuck to his simple three letter formula, with a deep, in this case unfilled drop shadow, but the obvious part of the piece is the splatter of colour throughout, keeping it lively and joyful. Sub continues to paint a lot and is gradually expanding his technique and scope.
One of the first artists I met, quite a few years back, was Object… and I have been enjoying his sketch/collage pieces ever since. For a couple of years now, maybe more, Object… has been very quiet, but in the last month or so he has been pasting his creativity about the place.
Object…, Purdown, Bristol, March 2025
This combination collage of wheatpastes and paint contains a lot of social and political commentary, as well as a creative outpouring. It is difficult to make out too much from the piece, without studying it up close. It is great to see Object… out and about, though.
Aha! Another wonderful piece by the fast-developing Lis, this time pushing he illustration creativity beyond her frequently painted mushrooms. This is a humorous cartoon piece beautifully panted on an awkward slope.
Lis, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2025
The mint choc chip character is looking most forlorn, probably because it has been dropped on the ground. Again, as with her other spray painted pieces, the finer detail look like it might have been completed with an ink pen of some description. Either that or she has mastered a fine line technique with a spray can unsurpassed by any other artist. So good to see Lis expanding her portfolio.
When I come across any pieces by Nips, I know I am I for a fill treat, it is pretty much a sure thing and I like that about her work. This one was painted in quick succession with another, I guess it was a painting weekend or something like that.
Nips, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2025
In this piece her customary NIPS letters are filled with a nicely blended palette of blue, turquoise, pink and red and some reversed out spots for a little bit of decoration. The white accent lines do their job well, creating a fine 3D effect. The selection of a yellow background contrasts well with the letters and brings focus to them. A sound piece from Nips.
More from the irrepressible Hemper, this time at the farm end of the tunnel. His recent run of form has been quite extraordinary, and I imagine quite liberating for the artist himself. Although he always paints original designs, he has been pushing the boundaries a lot lately.
Hemper, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2025
This is a chrome piece with brass knobs on, and unusually for Hemper it looks to be rather political or at least a social commentary piece. The chrome letters have anthropomorphic limbs which are crushing and vandalising a Tesla Cybertruck, a sentiment probably shared by many people in the current political climate. I feel that Cybertrucks should be side lined on their ugly appearance, let alone the hideousness of their owner. I am teetering on a bit of a rant, but simply don’t have time, so I will round off the post here. Superb work from Hemper.
Fade, Jody and Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2025
After a few posts from a trip to Liverpool, I return to my comfort zone of Bristol with this magnificent production piece from Fade, Jody and Dibz on the long wall at Dean Lane.
Fade, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2025
The triptych begins with some great writing from fade on the left, where the absence of colour and decoration within the letters demonstrates the artist’s talent in its rawest form. All the artwork is beautifully tight, and he switches up things a little with the black border fading to orange on the right.
Jody, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2025
In the middle is a superb portrait by Jody – I think the first I have seen this year – which presents a woman in three-quarter profile with loads of interesting light and shade cast across her face in red and blue tones, creating so much depth and interest. So very well painted, and as an example, have a look at the shadow cast under her nose. Brilliant. The hair is sensational too.
Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2025
To the right, Dibz continues with the white letters, reflecting those of Fade on the left. This piece from Dibz is pretty much an archetypal work by the maestro and rounds the collaboration off perfectly.
Liam Bononi, St James Street, Liverpool, March 2025
There were several memorable highlights to our recent weekend away in Liverpool, and nestled just under my wife’s completion of the half-marathon, and walking around the docks and the Liver building, was this utterly outstanding portrait mural by Liam Bononi.
Liam Bononi, St James Street, Liverpool, March 2025
The portrait piece, of a contorted agonised male face, is particularly impactful on account of both its size and its positioning on an entire elevation of a large, isolated Victorian building. There is so much detail in the face and hands, a signature of Liam Bononi’s work, and there is a fair amount of emotional wrestling going on here.
Liam Bononi, St James Street, Liverpool, March 2025
Without doubt, I am a big fan of Liam Bononi’s work, and the quality of his portraits. What a fabulous surprise to find one as magnificent as this on the back streets of Liverpool.
Molly Mural, New Bird Street, Liverpool, March 2025
As you will know from yesterday’s post, I recently spent a weekend in Liverpool, and the old ‘graff radar’, which I thought I had turned off, swung into active duty. Not being familiar with the street/graffiti artists in Liverpool, it was comforting to come across this rather nice mural by Molly Mural, who has painted many times in Bristol, where she is based.
Molly Mural, New Bird Street, Liverpool, March 2025
I’m not sure how long the mural has been there, but I guess a while, as some of the paint was chipping. The piece appears to be full of symbolism and stories and is centred around the numbers 1 and 3. The abstract piece is characteristically colourful, and after doing a little Interweb search, it turns out it was inspired by Taylor Swift’s ‘second era’ and her lucky number 13. You live and learn.
A couple of weeks ago I visited Liverpool with my wife and daughter to cheer on my wife and our nephew-in-law who were running the half-marathon. After finding a strategic place to stop and wave them on at the mile marker, we had an hour or two to kill before being at the finishing line at the end of their admirable adventure. Our rather less energetic walk took us to a café, which happened to be in a street art district.
This discovery had been completely unplanned by me, I have only once before been to Liverpool, long before I was interested in street art, and didn’t do any research before our trip. I got lucky once again. While my daughter and niece, caught up and had a coffee, I ran around the area, like a mad thing, taking as many pictures as I could. This was one of the first.
Aske, Jordan Street, Liverpool, March 2025
As a football fan, I can appreciate that this is a fine piece on two levels. One, the quality of the portrait of Jurgen Klopp, former manager of Liverpool Football Club, and two, the love for football and how the local team touches lives. The artist is Aske, not known to me, and this is a fine tribute to a local hero. More from this Liverpool adventure to come.
The council, for whatever reason, seem to like buffing the walls of the M32 roundabout with a neutral grey paint. I am not too sure what the purpose is, other than to give people doing community service a civic activity. That the exercise is costly and futile doesn’t really come into the equation. Once buffed, the wall becomes an inviting canvass for street/graffiti artists.
Kid Krishna, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2025
Kid Krishna didn’t waste too much time creating this CRIE piece in blue lettering with some yellow splashes. The piece carries a couple of messages: ‘drugs don’t work’ and ‘fight the power’, which suggests the artist is working through a few things, as are we all, at the moment. A nice ‘virgin wall’ piece.
Natural adventures 