Tag: Street art

657. M32 roundabout J3 (32)

At a recent gathering of crews at the M32 roundabout, there was this stand out piece. Most of the works (several to follow) were wildstyle writing, but slap bang in the middle of them this Sled One composition breaking up the pattern.

Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2017
Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2017

I think that this is an exceptional work. The way the light bursts out of the anthropomorphised fridge is extraordinary. There is also a story going on, as is usually the case for Sled One’s pieces, which I think is that the man is grabbing some hot dogs from the fridge which in turn will consume the man. Or something like that.

Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2017
Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2017

It has been a little while since I saw a new piece by Sled One and this has been worth waiting for. I like the nice touch of the fridge wearing a feathered cap. There is a lot to look for in this ‘cartoon’ style piece. It made me happy.

Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2017
Sled One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2017

656. North Street hoarding (6)

It seems like these hoardings have been here on North Street for years…because I think they have been. This is of course ok, because it presents graffiti artists with plenty of space to do their work.  This particular niche is a favourite for John D’oh and RIP, and here we have a philosophical piece from the latter.

RIP, North Street, Bristol, January 2017
RIP, North Street, Bristol, January 2017

The statement, positioned next to a heart reads ‘With all the battering it’s taken I’m surprised it’s still ticking’. Perhaps this lets on something about the artist’s lifestyle. I do like RIP’s work. Never too snazzy or complicated, usually a single layer stencil and often lighthearted or political. A vibrant member of SSOSVA.

655. The Bearpit (43)

Only a few days after I had taken the picture of the Decay piece in this exact spot (see previous post), Kid Crayon had overwritten it with one of his trademark faces. In recent times he has moved away from his wheatpastes (which I loved) and his faces, and tends to do more spray work, in particular in collaboration with SPZero76. So it was nice to see him revert, if only for a little while.

Kid Crayon, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2017
Kid Crayon, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2017

Although the piece looks like a wheatpaste, because of the creasing of the lining paper, it is in fact a spray piece. The blue face, great expression and peculiar proportions are what I would expect to see from this growing Bristol artist. More of his collaborative works to come soon.

654. The Bearpit (42)

In the South subway tunnel of The Bearpit there are framed areas which graffiti/street artists use to place their works. I think they were originally introduced to keep a little decorum and ‘usher’ artists to use the specified wall areas. To a certain extent it has worked, and they tend to use them to frame their works. Some of the other subway tunnels have the frames and some don’t.

Decay, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2017
Decay, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2017

In this example, Decay has taken up two of the frames to create ‘bookend’ pieces that work really well together. It is unfortunate that although I took this picture not long after it was sprayed, it had already been tagged.

653. The Bearpit (41)

This incredibly productive spot threw up some wonderful pieces recently and this magnificent portrait by Georgie was just one of them. Those that follow these posts might recall a piece by Georgie I posted here back in November 2016.

Georgie, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2017
Georgie, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2017

This is a really classy piece and instantly recognisable as Michael Cain. How she managed to produce this fine work in the dim light of The Bearpit subway is a real feat. Hats off to Georgie for this great addition to these walls. Her craft is amplified by the detailing of the background that helps the portrait stand out. I love this piece.

Georgie, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2017
Georgie, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2017

652. King Square Avenue (3)

Such is the prolific nature of Laic217, I am having real difficulty keeping up with his work that just keeps popping up all over Bristol. It seems to be about one a week at the moment, which is kind of crazy.

Laic217, King Square Avenue, Bristol, February 2017
Laic217, King Square Avenue, Bristol, February 2017

This piece is in a quiet side road off Stokes Croft, a site frequented by Epok and Deamze, but this sits comfortably in their company. Laic217 gathers several of his regular themes into one with this piece, the acid house influence, the toking smilie, the bucket hat, the skull and the brick wall.

Laic217, King Square Avenue, Bristol, February 2017
Laic217, King Square Avenue, Bristol, February 2017

He posted his black book draft of this piece on his Instagram feed, and the only variation from the draft is the colour of the LCD display, which was lilac in the draft. Much better as green. More to come form the busy Laic217. I forgot to say how much I like this piece…there I’ve said it now.

651. Upfest 2016 (100)

This is my 100th post about the amazing Upfest 2016 which happened during July in Bedminster, Bristol. At a guess I would say that I am only about half way through reporting on the pieces I photographed. Some of the remaining images probably won’t make the cut and anyway I only have a few months left to go before Upfest 2017 will be upon us.

Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

This is a really interesting stencil piece by Eins92 who specialises in micro stencils and who has already appeared in this blog for another piece he did at the festival. In this work he has created five micro stencils of the same subject but with different densities of paint and different layers. It is an interesting piece, but one that needed studying a little.

Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Eins92, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

The fine detail in these tiny pictures is remarkable. I would hate to guess how long each of the stencils takes to cut. He must have the patience of angels.

650. Upfest 2016 (99)

It seems that everywhere I looked during Upfest, I was being stalked by this brilliant little creature, called Jake the dog, created by LostHills. In each of the paste ups, Jake the dog is striking a different pose with something different happening. I love this kind of themed approach to street art.

Losthills, Jake, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Losthills, Jake, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Although I don’t believe that Losthills was an official artist at Upfest, his wheatpastes brightened up every corner of Bedminster, and several still remain six months on.

Losthills, Jake, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Losthills, Jake, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Together with C3, 23 Magpies, Phoebe New York, Face the Strange, What have I done Now and D7606, paste up artists were very well represented at Upfest 2016, and I rather hope there will be more this year.

Losthills, Jake, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Losthills, Jake, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

 

649. Upfest 2016 (98)

One of the most charming pieces of Upfest 2016 must surely have been this cat and mouse mural by Boe and Irony.

Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Unfortunately during the festival, I don’t think this piece got as much notice as perhaps it should have done for two reasons. Firstly, the scaffolding remained up until after the festival, and secondly it was tucked away in an area that was slightly off the beaten track. In a way this makes it almost more attractive and exclusive for Bristol street art fans.

Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I don’t know too much about either of the artists, there wasn’t even a biography in the programme for Boe. I have seen some of Irony’s work on social media before, but this is the first of his works I have seen ‘in the flesh’.

Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, January 2017
Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, January 2017

Irony describes himself on his Facebook page as a ‘painter, street artist, vandal’. That’s the spirit. Looking at his other works, it is difficult to believe that this London-based artist is self-taught.

Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, January 2017
Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, January 2017

This piece is so beautifully sprayed, the fur on both the cat and the mouse is amazing, and the electric-blue outline really makes the piece stand out.

Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, January 2017
Boe and Irony, Upfest, Bristol, January 2017

Who wouldn’t want something like this on the side of their house?

 

 

 

 

648. Upfest 2016 (97)

In the car park of the Tobacco Factory, the far left area of wall space was taken up by the Spanish artist Rudiart. Reading from the Upfest notes, it seems that Rudiart began painting in the streets of Cacares in the early 90s, but the City simply wasn’t ready for this kind of art, so by the end of the decade he moved on to Madrid.

Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

Since that time he has grown as an artist and travels around Europe to different festivals, exhibitions and events.

Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

I managed to take pictures of his work on both days of the festival, and he was in full flow with spraying on the Saturday.

Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

This piece comes in two halves. On the right is some wildstyle writing with a heavy 3D effect, something of a specialisation for Rudiart.

Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

On the left hand side of the piece he paints a futuristic scene depicting a lady in a spacesuit, with a rather nice ‘R’ on her cap.

Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
Rudiart, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016

The two halves come together nicely, although I don’t have a very good picture of the whole. His Facebook page is worth a quick look, and he did post a decent picture of the whole piece in one shot. Nice to see him at the festival.