Wildstyle writing is an acquired taste, and one which I have developed a hunger for, but it was not always that way. When I first started writing about street art, I was often left cold or baffled by writers (burners, throw-ups of wildstyle). I just didn’t get it.
I really did enjoy my recent tour of Camden Town, and one of the first pieces I saw was this lovely Dan Kitchener work in a tiny car park area off the Kentish Town Road. The three walls were festooned with street art, but this piece had pride of place along the entire length of one wall.
Aspire sprayed this a little while ago, and within a very short space of time, a rather ‘jobsworth’ enforcement notice went up over the top of it. Some people are really stupid, or don’t really care, but when you look at the whole scene I know which bit I consider ugly and which out of place.
Continuing for a little while with my Camden adventure, just around the corner, from the Fanakapan flies was this amazing rhinoceros by Osch. Both Osch and Fanakapan are unbelievably prolific. Hardly a week goes by without one or both of them creating something new.
In this piece, Osch uses his unfurling ribbon style to create the illusion of a solid creature, which is clever as painting itself could be considered to be an illusion. Layers. The rhino is superb, and reminds us (it’s function) about the plight of these creatures in the wild.
Rounding off the picture, and something that is a part of photographing street art, is the context of the piece, and in this particular piece there are some discarded flower pots that somehow add to the whole scene. A street art photographer’s dilemma is always to balance the perfect clean image, with the actual image in its context. I, like others, try to get both…but parked cars are a real menace!
I knew that the area is a favourite for street artists and graffiti artists, but I had no idea about the layout of the streets or what could be found where, so I just started to wander – my favourite thing.
I eventually happened upon this incredible mews, running parallel with one of the busier streets, but hidden away (note – always seek out alley ways and back streets). The reward for my explorations was this magnificent Fanakapan mural of flies (of course the helium balloon type).
This work is exceptional, not only the flies, but the perspective on the walls and shadows cast. A masterpiece and a privilege to find it and photograph it. There were loads of other pieces in this mews and I will in time post about them too.
I haven’t seen any work by this artist before or since I took this photograph. His name is Rusk (or Rusk 1 or One_rusk on Instagram), and this piece is really rather Summery, even though it was sprayed in September this year. We did actually have a nice September.
The piece didn’t last long, as nothing does at Dean Lane, but it will remain in my memory, because of its unique subject matter, and also the fact that I don’t know the artist at all. Maybe I will start spotting more of his work as I look around, I hope so.
I have been aware of this wonderful Andy Council horse for some time now, but was never quite sure where it was. I actually found it when taking pictures of some other works from Upfest that were a bit of a trek away from the main drag.
This really is an astonishing wall by Kleiner Shames. It is outstanding not only in its sheer scale, but also in the colours and designs incorporated. The mural seems to be telling several stories.I love Kleiner Shames’ work, indeed I have some of it hanging on my walls at home. Rather than string out a laboured description of each photograph I will simply show them below as a series of pictures, taken from left to right of the mural. Simply superb work.
At risk of getting a bit samey, I simply have to share this exceptional recent piece by Sled One. This time we see one of his wildstyle pieces, where you can make out the letters SLED and the word ONE at the far right.
‘Seismic’ is becoming a trademark word for Jee See at the moment. There are several versions of this burner popping up in various hot spots around the city. This one, although the photograph doesn’t really convey it, is quite unusual in that the background is in a metallic copper finish and really striking.
I have a feeling that with Jee See being so busy on the streets recently, there will be more of his work appearing in my posts soon.
Natural adventures 