This old one in Stokes Croft is by DNT, most of whose street work ends up in this immediate vacinity. I particularly like this image, because of all the other bits of graffiti around it. It says something about this spot.
DNT, Stokes Croft, Bristol, April 2016
Just to the left is a brilliant wheatpaste of Jodie Foster by french artist Tian, and to the right (cut off) is a piece by Mr Klue and Akarat. I love this tank, so full of movement and smoking guns/spray cans, however I’m not too sure who the piece is about – it might well be a tribute piece to Buzz. This has been tucked away on my archive way too long.
This is another old one from 2016 on a wall that is no longer accessible, but was once a choice wall for the ASK crew. This is a fine piece by Cheo, which I have been looking at for ages, but still can’t make out the writing. ‘Equips’? As ever, great character and beautiful crisp lines.
Cheo, Raleigh Road, Bristol, April 2016
I enjoy looking through my archive pictures as it affords me to look at people’s work through a different lens, one which has a better understanding of the artists and their art.
I am doing another trawl through my archives and pulling out artworks that I think are worthy of posting, but for one reason or another got left behind. This piece by Drew Copus from 2016 features a naked woman (quite an unusual sight in Bristol street art) covered in his trademark insects.
Drew Copus, Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2016
This is a fine stencil piece which is slightly worn down by skateboard traffic. Right next to the piece, you can see the last three letters of ‘seismic’ which is the work of Jee See, and these two have collaborated in Dean Lane skate park more recently. I am rather fond of this piece – edgy and urban.
Although I only recently posted my first piece by Corupt, I have been aware of his work for quite a while. In all the time that I have seen his work, this is the first time I have seen anything by him on a more conventional ‘show’ wall. Usually his work is sprayed high above other pieces in spots with a high turnover.
Corupt, Raleigh Road, Bristol, January 2018
Often colourful, he sprays his moniker with a deep perspective and variety of decorative fills. This busy piece has a candy, cakes and ice cream feel to it…maybe it is the colours and drips. Looking forward to posting more from Corupt.
I always enjoy featuring new artists on this blog. Of course they are not necessarily new artists, and may even be well established, it is just that they have only recently entered my consciousness. This fun cartoon-style piece is by Nevla who I think is a local artist/designer whose street work seems to be centred around the M32 roundabout and area.
Nevla, M32 roundabout, Bristol, January 2018
In this piece, he has given himself enough red background to allow his character in greyscale to stand out. It is a nice piece and I will be interested to see how his work develops over time. I have photographs of several more of his works and will be posting them in due course.
In the depths of Easton is this Deamze piece on a cafe wall. I have known about it for some time, but parking in this particular spot is utterly impossible, and it is onluy recently that I have been able to do so and grab a couple of pics. Unfortunately, and because of the parking issues in the area, there is a car obscuring the wall.
Deamze, Roman Road, Bristol, March 2018
I have a feeling this piece has been around for a while, but I still thought I’d post it. It reminds me of the craze for colouring books, as it appears to be unfinished, however i can assure you it is complete. I love the character, but am not sure who it is. There is a tribute to Dom, which dates it to within the last 18 months or so. Always a pleasure to find pieces off the beaten track.
I am still a little baffled that it has taken me so long to become aware of this hoarding. This is the second piece I am posting from this spot and it is by the irrepressible Andy Council.
Andy Council, Newfoundland Street, Bristol, March 2018
Andy Council has very cleverly managed to stretch out a Tyrannosaurus Rex horizontally to keep it within the confines of the hoarding, by positioning it leaning forward. As with his work, the whole is made up of architectural building blocks, some of them Bristol landmarks, to create this colourful and wonderous beast.
Andy Council, Newfoundland Street, Bristol, March 2018
I expect this one to be around for a while because the development behind will probably take a year at the very least to complete, and it doesn’t yet look like it has even begun.
Bringing up the 150 mark for Upfest 2017 (roughly half way through!) is this striking mural by Kristx. Again, this is another piece that I never got to see in its finished state, which is a real pity, because it looks magnificent…a bold and captivating work.
Kristx, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Her biography in the Upfest programme is comprehensive, but also suffers a little from translation issues, alternating his and hers throughout. She is French, self taught and has been spraying full time for four years. More of her work can be seen on her Facebook stream, well worth a visit.
Kristx, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Another artist who it would be great to welcome this year. I am not sure if she applied or was accepted/
What a brilliant piece this is from Cheo, the largest of several walls from the artist at Upfest featurig the animation character Morph. In this piece Morph is joined by his erstwhile partner in crime Chas.
Cheo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
My favourite part of this wall though is not the two characters in the foreground, but the gallery of bristol artists behind them. Morph originated on a television programme for children called Vision On, and one section of the show was dedicated to ‘the gallery’ which showed paintings that had been sent in by children, accompanied by great music, that all children of my generation would recognise instantly.
Cheo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Cheo’s hilarious take on the Vision On gallery features several well known Bristol street artists with his take on their entries, knowing what he knows about their styles now. very funny.
Cheo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
In the piece he honours Andy Council (dinosaur), Soker ( a little girl), Voyder (a unicorn), 45RPM (an owl), 3Dom (a castle), Inkie (a Wallace and Gromit), Cheo (a bee) and Chelway (a whale). Poking fun at his mates.
When I took the picture of this door last October, I was simply capturing an interesting image of street art on a door, nothing more nothing less.
It turns out that there is a lot more to this door that I had thought, which I only found out about when researching for this post. The door is the entrance to Clayton Patterson’s gallery on 161 Essex Street on the lower East Side of NYC.
This is Portal number 7 of an interactive street art experience combining technology, art, urban space and community called ‘13 Portals‘. The project team have created an incredible ‘gamified’ experience that encourages participants to complete tasks and unlock the knowledge of the ancients. The door used to have a QR code in the white space at the bottom that linked up to the experience website.
I’m not sure when all this took place, possibly 2017, but it all looks rather complicated to me. I was just interested in the door.
The artwork itself appears to have ‘borrowed’ a little bit from the Terminator films and combines a skull with features relating to the number seven. This is what the website has to say about this door:
‘The number 7 is Saturn. It is death and transcendence. It is the seven colors of the rainbow, the seven western notes and the seven days of the week. 7. Seven is an exceptionally powerful number and also one of the biggest keys to the mystery. Each color, note or planet, represents a different perspective that we can seek to achieve awareness, clarity and enlightenment. It is the metaphor for the different races and the conflicts before they ultimately find harmony.’
So there you have it, perhaps we shouldn’t simply take things at face value, even a door.
Natural adventures 