I first became aware of PakOne a couple of years back when I found a piece by him that he did for Upfest 2015 in the Steam Crane. Even then I was impressed with the depth he gives to his work through the clever use of shadows and perspective.
PakOne, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
This year’s piece is an absolute gem and utterly beautiful, made even more so by the scattered street furniture surrounding it. A floating rock with a tree in full pink blossom, isn’t this what dreams are made of?
PakOne, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I tried striking up a conversation with the artist, but I think his English is about as good as my French, so we exchanged nods and I went on my way. This is an outstanding Upfest piece.
Surely one of the most endearing and sympathetic partnerships is that between Copyright and Gemma Compton. At this year’s Upfest these two produced this beautiful collaboration in the very busy yard behind the Steam Crane.
Gemma Compton and Copyright, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I met them on the Friday, when they were able to make a really good start before the festival started on the Saturday – I think it ws a wise choice as this pub gets incredibly busy.
Gemma Compton and Copyright, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
In this piece, so typical of their collaborations, Copyright stencilled the female figures and Gemma Compton created the intricate butterfly wings in her favoured blue tones. The piece as a whole fills this slightly awkward space brilliantly and the eye is drawn along from left to right and back, scrutinising the symmetry of the piece.
Gemma Compton and Copyright, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
The couple managed to dodge the showers and the crowds to pull off one of the best pieces of the festival and one that screams out Bristol from every inch. Both of these artists produce wonderful artworks for sale, marginally outside my affordability although I might just have to save up – how great it would be to have some of their originals hanging up at home.
Gemma Compton and Copyright, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Not only do I like their work, but I like both of the artists. They are always happy to have a chat and don’t appear to mind me bothering them when they are at work. Probably my next interview targets.
I met Mr Sleven for the first time this week. He was spraying something outside the Matchbox Gallery in Stokes Croft. As I approached, I asked him his name. He said why, so I told him that I photograph and write about street art in Bristol. Then I told him not to tell me his name and I guessed. I looked at his work and said that it looked like the work of Mr Sleven, he was suitably impressed that I knew his style. In that moment I realised that I know quite a lot about this stuff, albeit in a rather chaotic and unacademic way.
Mr Sleven, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Anyway that was a digression. This is his piece from upfest, which actually I don’t think I would have been able to identify were it not for the signature. It is a nicely balanced piece and the work of a real street artist…I know what I mean by that even if you don’t.
This is the official and rather awesome piece by Helen Bur who also left Bristol a little extra gift at the M32 roundabout. HB appears to be equally at home on a sketch pad, on canvass or on a wall, and her website showcases her work magnificently – I recommend watching the video of her piece in Cardiff.
Helen Bur, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I think Helen Bur’s work is really special and her style lends itself so very well to large walls. It would be great if she came back next year and got one of the larger permanent walls so that we could enjoy it for a year, rather than a few days.
One of the real pleasures of Upfest is the way in which it brings together artists from all different disciplines and from all over the world giving us the opportunity to witness the huge spectrum of talent. Side by side we have graffiti writers and fine artists and graphic designers and illustrators equally respected and admired.
Cai Burton, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
This is a beautiful piece from Cai Burton who is an illustrator and designer and is based in Bristol. You can see more about him and his work on his excellent website. Owls seem to work very well in street art – I’m not sure why, but they crop up reasonably frequently. Note to self – do an Owl special. This was a popular piece at the festival.
‘Trick of the eye’ – this is a magnificent piece by one of my favourite Bristol artists, Sled One. In this one piece he has created an extraordinary fantasy world and constructed a brilliant piece of wildstyle writing into the mix as well.
Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2017
The writing says ‘eye’, which is clever enough on its own, but it is the remarkable hand (protruding from the iris of the eye) pulling a rabbit from a magician’s top hat, hence the titlwe of the piece.
Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2017
In my view, the magician of the piece is Sled One. He really is an extraordinary talent and creates these ‘stories’ like no other artist I have seen. While his story telling is great, it is the beautifully crafted characters that make these pieces. His imagination is allowed to run wild and he produces these surreal cartoon style creatures which are so full of interesting detail and demand to be studied.
Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2017
This is an absolutely stunning piece of graffiti art that would hold its own on any wall anywhere in the world.
I think this is the largest Decay piece I have seen, and I like it. Going large suits his work in my view. When I first saw this wall, there was a large white van obscuring the bottom half, and I was rather fed up. But by the next time I visited, the car park was empty and I got a good unobstructed view.
Decay, Backfields Lane, Bristol, November 2017
Decay has taken to adding some philosophical text next to his pieces recently, and I think mit works quite well. Here he says ‘living in the days of ill soul’ and I kind of get what he’s talking about.
Decay, Backfields Lane, Bristol, November 2017
He has worked hard to make it look like the piece is emerging from a hole in the wall and I think to a greater extent it works. On seeing a previous piece by the artist, my wife rather spoiled things by pointing out a phallic undertone…which I hadn’t noticed. Now when I see his pieces I kind of see it again, and especially in this piece. I am not sure if it is deliberate or accidental, but it is difficult to ignore once it has been pointed out. Sorry.
This part of Stokes Croft is quite a difficult area to set up a business, especially in the food sector. There are already quite a lot of cafés and restaurants which cater mostly to the Bohemian set from Montpelier. This particular restaurant ‘Meat Liquor’ was targeted more at the young student market, but I understand it had to close after less than two years, due to incidents in the area and in the restaurant. The area has the highest incidence of drug dealing in Bristol and maybe the closure was connected to that. Anyhow, the hoardings have gone up, and not long after that the graffiti art arrives.
Ryder and Aspire, Stokes Croft, Bristol, December 2017
This, I believe, is a collaboration between Ryder and Aspire (the bird man) who must have been visiting from London where he now lives. The writing says Ryder and the bird I think is a turkey, so this must be a festive piece. I looks a little like it might have been done reasonably quickly, but it certainly adds colour and vibrancy to the hoarding.
It is always worth taking a look in places that you don’t go to too often, just to check if there is anything new. Well I hadn’t been to this spot for a long time, I know not since before the end of July, because this piece is by Dabuten Tronko, who visited Bristol for Upfest 2017.
Dabuten Tronko, City Road, Bristol, December 2017
It is an interesting piece and picks up the theme of his other boats that he sprayed where the A38 meets The Bearpit roundabout. This is a curious piece of writing set on a red and grey background and picking out a rowing boat within the letters. I am not sure what the word says, if it says anything at all. I like making discoveries like this.
Perched on the side of a five storey block and partially obscured by the building below is this fabulous pop art piece by London street artist D*Face. This was another nice surprise for me while out shopping in SoHo with my children, who I have just noticed are in the featured image.
DFace, Broome Street, New York, October 2017
The piece is called ‘double crossed’ and features a couple of his D*Face dogs. There is an interesting short article about the piece in street art news which talks about the little clown in the bottom left hand corner, which D*Face left there when he was asked to paint this wall.
Like so many excellent pieces in the area, this was organised by the LISA project.
Natural adventures 