7953. M32 roundabout J3 (797)

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2026
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2026

Reflecting back on the long hot dry summer, I would have to say that SUB is one of the most improved writers in Bristol. He has been relentless in painting his letters wherever he can it seems, and making them much more interesting with patterns, creative fills and adding the odd character here and there.

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2026
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2026

Sub has had a difficult challenge from the start by choosing only three letters, which tend to be large and so need a lot of work to make them stand out. Here he has managed to create a bevelled edge to his chrome letters, which works really well and together with a deep drop shadow creates plenty of depth. Running through the middle of the letters is a nicely worked blue plasma streak providing additional interest and without which the piece would be at risk of looking a little plain. This wall is a favourite spot for Sub, and there are layers of his pieces here, you might spot one or two.

7939. Frome Side (70)

Serm and Sub, Frome Side, Bristol July 2026
Serm and Sub, Frome Side, Bristol July 2026

This is a rather unlikely collaboration between Serm and Sub. I haven’t seen either collaborate with anyone, other than Sub with Bloem, so I had to look twice to make sure I had seen this right, which I believe I have. Infortunately there is a lot of glare on the photographs, a constant problem with this wall under the M32.

Serm, Frome Side, Bristol July 2026
Serm, Frome Side, Bristol July 2026

Both artists have written their own letters in their own style, but what this makes it a collaboration is that each has incorporated a character, Tom and Jerry, which are interacting with one another. On the left, Serm has painted some beautiful green letters with a deep reddy-brown drop shadow and Jerry the mouse making a quick escape from the clutches of Tom.

Sub, Frome Side, Bristol July 2026
Sub, Frome Side, Bristol July 2026

On the right, Sub has overlayed his large SUB letters with Tom the cat in hot persuit of Jerry. Although both characters vary a little from the cartoon originals, they are recognisable and add some humorous content to these two pieces of graffiti writing. A decent fun collaboration.

7902. M32 roundabout J3 (794)

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2026
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2026

The photographs of this combination piece by Sub, is a perfect example of why it is important to take pictures, even if the light conditions (sun/shade) aren’t perfect, because when I returned for a second attempt, the character had been dogged, so we’ll have to make do with these.

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2026
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, August 2026

Sub has been steadily improving, and has successfully added characters to his writing portfolio. His letters here are very nicely presented with some pink cloudy smudges, a plasma burst and some horizontal drips. Sitting alongside is a fun ghostly cartoon character – I am not sure if it is a Sub creation or an existing character that he has copied – I am not familiar with it. I just did a little research, and I think it might be a Super Mario ghost King Boo, without his crown. A great commbination piece.

7750. Peel Street Green (64)

Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2026
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2026

Sub is one of the more prolific writers in Bristol, and hardly a day goes by when I don’t see one of his pieces somewhere around the city. This is a reasonably recent one from the long wall at Peel Street Green.

Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2026
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, June 2026

There is a rather nice steely quality to the fill in these SUB letters and the letter surface has a bit of an iridescent sheen, reminiscent of a Pigeon’s breast feathers. Sub has played a little with the letter designs which are veering a little towards a calligraphy script. Nice piece from a hard worker.

Sub

A gallery of three letter graffiti writing documenting the rise and rise of Bristol-based artist Sub.

Instagram: @subsprays

All photographs by Scooj

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2026
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2026
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, December 2025
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, December 2025
Sub, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025
Sub, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025
Sub and Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025
Sub and Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2025
Sub, Monarch's Way, Bristol, October 2025
Sub, Monarch’s Way, Bristol, October 2025
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, July 2025
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, July 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2025
Sub, River Avon, Bristol, February 2025
Sub, River Avon, Bristol, February 2025
Sub, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, January 2025
Sub, Greenway Bush Lane, Bristol, January 2025
Sub, Frome Side, Bristol, January 2024
Sub, Frome Side, Bristol, January 2024
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2024
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2024
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2024
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2024
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, October 2024
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, October 2024
Sub and Bloem, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2024
Sub and Bloem, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2024
Sub, Greenbank, Bristol, February 2024
Sub, Greenbank, Bristol, February 2024
Sub and Bloem, Greenbank, Bristol, February 2024
Sub and Bloem, Greenbank, Bristol, February 2024
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, February 2024
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, February 2024
Sub, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2024
Sub, M32 Spot, Bristol, January 2024

7636. M32 roundabout J3 (769)

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2026
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2026

I think that it is fair to say that Sub is an artist who has grown on me over the last couple of years. At first, I considered his letters too large and uninteresting, but to be fair, he has worked really hard and improves from piece to piece. He is developing his fill skills significantly and is now turning out some fine pieces.

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2026
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2026

It has been great witnessing this improvement, and here, Sub has elaborated on his letters and worked on a shaded midline running through them. This technique is at the heart of calligraffiti, and I think the Sub, in this piece, has made his first flirtations with the style. So much more to come from Sub.

7391. Peel Street Green (58)

Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, December 2025
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, December 2025

This is what I have been waiting for from Sub – a wonderful fusion of his extra-large letters and a creative fill. In my mind’s eye, this piece and the one from underneath the M32 mark a new level in his work, and is a culmination of tons of practice and development during 2025.

Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, December 2025
Sub, Peel Street Green, Bristol, December 2025

His SUB letters give the impression of being hollow and having the appearance of a pastry cutter, which is a clever effect. The void is filled with pink and blue ephemeral hexagons that appear to float in the space. Some green blobs distract the eye and round off the work – I can’t make up my mind whether they add to or detract from the piece. I hope that Sub will be able to kick-on from this fabulous end to the year in 2026 – I’ll be watching.

7376. Frome Side (66)

Sub and Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025
Sub and Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025

2025 has been an outstanding year for Bloem and Sub, with both artists making great strides forward with their work. In particular, Sub’s steady progress is beginning to bear fruit as he introduces more ideas into his letters, particularly with his fills.

Sub, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025
Sub, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025

I have always felt that Sub’s letters were a little over large, but now that he is being more creative with his fill patterns, the space lends itself to something quite grand, like this repeating black and white pattern. This must have taken a while to complete freehand, but it was certainly worth the bother. A deep 3D drop shadow in dark red sets the piece off beautifully.

Sub and Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025
Sub and Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025

In the middle of the two pieces is a wonderful character piece of Betty Boop, skilfully and faithfully reproduced by the pair. I have a feeling that both artists were involved in the creation of this character. It is not the first time that Betty Boop has appeared in Natural Adventures (see below).

Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025
Bloem, Frome Side, Bristol, December 2025

Bloem continues with her outstanding work, and this Burberry check piece is simply brilliant. The letters spell out BLOEM, and the check design flows beautifully through the piece, swishing in all directions. I love the red smily face and strap handle. This is a supremely well crafted piece and a wonderful collaboration. Bravo!

Still, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2023
Still, St Werburghs, Bristol, May 2023

Kid30, Nottingham, November 2023
Kid30, Nottingham, November 2023

7270. Monarch’s Way

Sub, Monarch's Way, Bristol, October 2025
Sub, Monarch’s Way, Bristol, October 2025

In the centre of town, alongside the Harbourside (a floating harbour), there is a large office building called Canons House, locally known as the Lloyds building as it was the regional headquarters of Lloyds Bank, which they sold in December 2024. The Grade II listed building (only completed in 1991) is now undergoing a major redevelopment, and you know what that means… hoardings. The shiny white hoardings are not the easiest to paint, and the area is not one much frequented by street/graffiti artists, so finding anything of interest here is unlikely. However, Sub appears to have made himself at home with a couple of pieces, and there is a massive commission by Esme Lower too (coming soon).

Sub, Monarch's Way, Bristol, October 2025
Sub, Monarch’s Way, Bristol, October 2025

Sub has been working hard, and is improving so much with his overall presentation. His fills have been getting a little more intricate with some nice details, and here he has created a wonderful marbled effect on the white background, making good use of the hoarding colour. I do wonder if his enormous letters might be holding him back a little – it is a lot of space to fill, and whether an additional letter, might give him more creative latitude. I’m sure he is happy with what he is doing, but I think he is ready to take a big step forward.

7066. M32 roundabout J3 (697)

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2025

I am rather liking it that Sub is starting to switch things up a little and push his boundaries. Because he has only three letters to play with, his pieces tend to be quite large and impactful, perhaps at the expense of subtlety or detail, but this piece is quite different from his usual fare.

Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2025
Sub, M32 roundabout, Bristol, July 2025

Sub has offered up a scorching scene of burning letters, that meld into one block, set in a nighttime landscape. This is a great creative advance, and probably took him some distance from his comfort zone. One small detail that I’m sure he will have learned is to do the border last, so that it retains the crispness between the letters and the background. All good stuff, and plenty more to come soon.