Tag: Street art

47. Hillgrove Street (3)

I have refrained from publishing this picture for a while because I have been trying to find out who the artist is. The mural can be seen in a second story window frame opposite the wave and flegm mural featured a while back.

Dan, Hillgrove Street, Bristol, September 2015
Dan, Hillgrove Street, Bristol, September 2015

The witty picture looks rather old and appears to pre-date quite a lot of the other works in the area. I really should be able to find out who painted it, because it is signed, either MN or MAN. If anyone knows, please let me know and I will update this post. (UPDATE, The mural is by Dan)

Dan, Hillgrove Street, Bristol, September 2015
Dan, Hillgrove Street, Bristol, September 2015

 

46. Greville Road

Jodi, who painted this mural, lives in Brislington, Bristol. He is a direct contemporary of Banksy, and started as a graffiti artist in 1987 at the age of 15 at the Barton Hill Youth Club.

Jodi, Greville Road, Bristol, September 2015
Jodi, Greville Road, Bristol, September 2015

He left the graffiti behind him and studied design and is now an established designer and brand consultant. In 2008 he came out of ‘retirement’ and started working on street art commissions. This mural was completed for this year’s Upfest, and is a treat for those who like incredibly detailed and realistic work.

Jodi, Greville Road, Bristol, September 2015
Jodi, Greville Road, Bristol, September 2015

Jodi also took a commission in Millennium Square this year above the drinking water fountain, depicting the source of the water that the fountain is fed from. This commission was part of European Green Capital 2015.

 

45. Moon Street (1)

Another gold mine of street art is the area around Moon Street, tucked away behind Stokes Croft.

This week I stumbled upon another couple of Kid Crayon wheatpastes. What I like most about KC is that he seems to have found walls to paste his works all over the center of Bristol, and I am quite enjoying finding them.

Kid Crayon, Moon Street, Bristol, September 2015
Kid Crayon, Moon Street, Bristol, September 2015

His style is very distinctive, usually colourful portraits. There is always something slightly menacing about the faces. Some people don’t consider wheatpastes to be ‘real’ street art. I think they are wrong, and that is that.

Here are some reminders of his other works:

IMG_3309 KC image 2

7/10

43. Dean Lane (2)

I pretty much walked past this small poster, but stopped in my tracks and took a closer look.

23 Magpies, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2015
23 Magpies, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2015

This is a really interesting wheatpaste by an artist called ’23 Magpies’. I think the artist is based in Gloucester, given that most of the works I can find are from there. My guess is that this was posted up during Upfest 2015, as it is only a short walk away from North Street. I have not been able to find out much about the artist, but some other works are shown here.

6.5/10

42. North Street, Aldi car park

During this year’s Upfest 2015, arguably the premium wall was handed to Argentinian artist Martin Ron. This enormous mural is a picture of his girlfriend, her torso emerging from what looks like a tablecloth. I am very fond of the fish, but am not sure what it symbolises.

Martin Ron, North Street, Bristol, September 2015
Martin Ron, North Street, Bristol, September 2015

This mural has been painted over an earlier Upfest (2011) mural by German artist duo Herakut. You can see what it looked like in this post from zaqwsxcderfvbgtyhn.

Martin Ron, North Street, Bristol, September 2015
Martin Ron, North Street, Bristol, September 2015

As always, these things are ephemeral, and I’m sure that this mural will itself be over-painted in due course.

Martin Ron, North Street, Bristol, September 2015
Martin Ron, North Street, Bristol, September 2015

 

41. Nelson Street (1)

Stik, I think, has to be one of my favourite street artists. The simplicity of his figures masks a deeper emotional connection with the viewer…oh dear, beginning to sound a little pompous. All I mean is that there is a lot more to them than first meets the eye.

Stik, Quay Steet, Bristol
Stik, Quay Steet, Bristol

This pair are on a block opposite the Nick Walker mural featured recently. Stik has a knack for finding the perfect location to present his works. These figures are probably best viewed from a distance.

Stik, Quay Steet, Bristol
Stik, Quay Steet, Bristol

More on Stik from recent posts by Street Art Rat here and here and from one of my own from August 2015.

Stik, Quay Street
Stik, Quay Street

8/10

40. Quay Street (1)

This central Bristol location was host to the ‘See no Evil’ event in 2011. One of the most striking murals of the event was the gentleman in a bowler hat dripping paint from  a tin, on the side of one of the many tired grey blocks in the area.

Nick Walker, Quay Street, Bristol, September 2015
Nick Walker, Quay Street, Bristol, September 2015

Due to the event, the area is now something of a gallery for some of Bristol’s and the world’s best street artists. Always ephemeral though, the area is changing rapidly with new blocks replacing the old ones…mostly for student accommodations.

Nick Walker, Quay Street, Bristol, September 2015
Nick Walker, Quay Street, Bristol, September 2015

This is a wonderful Bristol landmark, and a ‘go to’ site for anyone interested in street art.

Quay Street, Nick Walker
Quay Street, Nick Walker

This work is quite different to his Rapunzel in High Kingsdown.

7.5/10

39. Church Road

Another fabulous mural created as part of Upfest 2105. This huge scene by DANK (Dan Kitchener) above the Salvation Army shop on the corner of Church Street and North Street is worth a trip to the area on its own. It reminds me of some of the street scenes from Blade Runner – and that is a good thing.

Dan Kitchener, Church Road, Bristol, September 2015
Dan Kitchener, Church Road, Bristol, September 2015

DANK, a London artist remains on the legal side of street art, and supports it through the large amount of commercial work that he does. He includes among his influences comics, science fiction films and black and white ’60s war films. There is a good interview with him from a couple of years ago here.

Dan Kitchener, Church Road, Bristol, September 2015
Dan Kitchener, Church Road, Bristol, September 2015

8/10

38. Dean Lane (1)

I took a swift walk through Bedminster today and encountered this very recently sprayed simple stencil.

Diff, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2015
Diff, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2015

I don’t know the artist because it is unsigned. It is really charming and makes use of the wall’s features.

Update 1 August 2022 – I believe this delightful piece was by Diff

8/10

37. Leonard Lane (4)

The fourth work from Leonard Lane, but certainly not the last. It really is a goldmine of environment related street art.

Stewy, Leonard Lane, Bristol, September 2015
Stewy, Leonard Lane, Bristol, September 2015

This is another lovely mural by Stewy which accompanies his Dodo and DJ Derek in the same street. I admire street art that incorporates its surroundings, like the window bars here.