A lovely artist who managed to stay under my radar until last year has become rather busy of late. I refer of course to Nightwayss whose pieces seem to focus around a monkey, either as the central character of a work or by reference.
Nightwayss, The Bearpit, Bristol, May 2019
In this piece Nightwayss has painted a wonderful monkey hanging by its tail and gently scooping at what looks like a large flower. The monkey is set on a black ‘NIGHT’, a great way to combine writing with a character. The modest colours and size of the whole thing emphasise its delicateness in the urban bustle of The Bearpit. I love this piece – a little oasis of peace and calm.
Here we have an artist doing what he does best. The passionate and politically active Object… is a champion of all that we should care about; homelessness, fair distribution of wealth and the environment.
Object…, The Bearpit, Bristol, March 2019
This piece in The Bearpit is one of about twenty or so that appeared a week or two back to promote the movement ‘Extinction Rebellion‘. The movement is making three demands of the British government:
The Government must tell the truth about the climate and wider ecological emergency, reverse inconsistent policies and work alongside the media to communicate with citizens.
The Government must enact legally binding policy measures to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by 2025 and to reduce consumption levels.
A national Citizen’s Assembly to oversee the changes, as part of creating a democracy fit for purpose.
I have some sympathy with these demands, but worry that will not land well because of the astonishing mess of Brexit.
We have a divided nation, and broadly speaking environmental activism lands very badly with the Brexit narrative, and we have a Government dominated by the hard right whose interests are never shared with safeguarding the environment. Take for example the ex-Secretary of State for the Environment Owen Patterson who described the environmental movement (and indeed scientists and his own civil servants) as ‘the green blob’ – a derogatory term intended to belittle, mock and bully people who care about their environment, but his words chime for those who are comfortable or self-interested and wish to maintain a status quo (safe middle Britain).
I feel an essay coming on, but I have to make a chocolate panattone bread and butter pudding.
Consistent… a word I would use to describe the work of Decay, and in that I mean consistently good. Of course, this year has seen Decay changing his designs considerably away from his trademark abstract work to writing, and what writing.
Decay, The Bearpit, Bristol, March 2019
This piece is notable for two things: first, it is really neatly done and fits the board perfectly and second, it is something of a rarity in The Bearpit these days and very welcome indeed. A beautifully worked piece with some fabulous attention to detail. Always great to see the instantly recognisable colour palette brightening up the place.
Right, there is some stuff going on in this piece by Bristol artist HAKA, but I’m not too sure I can enlighten you too much. Obviously there is a Banksy reference here to his flower thrower piece, but instead of flowers there is a baguette. I am assuming that this peaceful rioter is a member of the French movement Gilet Jaune. It is good to see a piece that plays with contemporary cultural influences.
Haka, The Bearpit, Bristol, March 2019
I got lucky when I took these pictures, because there were some council workers doing something with the drain immediately in front of the piece. The man in the picture looks as if he has just stepped out of the wall. He needs to be careful he doesn’t get bonked on the head with a baguette. Nice work from Haka who has been very busy lately.
More cubist doodling from Panskaribas in The Bearpit. In this piece we see one of his characters at a record deck on a magnificent red pink and white swirly background. I really like his work, especially as it is quite original and unlike anything else in Bristol at the moment.
Panskaribas, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2019
There is a quirkiness and humour in his pieces and a kind of movement too. Because his characters are not instantly obvious, you have to work quite hard to make out the features which keeps your eyes busy dancing around the whole piece to make sense of it. Loving the work of Panskaribas.
It is not often that you see a piece of work bombed by the artist who originated it, but here we have just such an example from Rezwonk. The original piece in Moon Street survived intact for quite a while before it got a bit tagged, but it seems that Rezwonk decided to go the whole hog with this throw up.
Rezwonk, Moon Street, Bristol, March 2019
It would appear that Rezwonk has quite a spectrum of styles in his work from tags, which are dotted all around Bristol, to characters, such as his big bird, to burners like these to high-end graphic design pieces. A versatile artist.
Rezwonk, The Bearpit, Bristol, March 2019
I have seen this particular ‘REZER’ burner in a number of places including The Bearpit. I think that Rezwonk must have goner on a bit of a spree. All good.
I am really enjoying the work of Panskaribas at the moment and luckily for me it is popping up all over the place. His pieces add to the already remarkable spectrum of styles that we are privileged to witness in Bristol.
Panskaribas, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2019
This one in The Bearpit exemplifies his cubist doodle approach. I’d like to think his work has been influenced by Picasso, Matisse and the like, but it might simply be utterly original. Whatever it is I love it. Right, I’m off to hit the slopes… see ya.
With the incredible weather we have had recently in Bristol, there has been a massive turnover of street art, so what the hell am I doing delving through my archive pictures rather than posting current street/graffiti art? I think that it tends to happen when I am looking for something specific and then stumble upon things that I have squirreled away. Anyhow, I saw this and just had to post it. It is a winter piece (obviously from the subject) by John D’oh.
John D’oh, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2017
The stencil depicts the snowman from Disney’s Frozen, and makes a pun on the name with one of the characters (Olaf = a laugh), but then draws in the incredibly serious matter of climate change. This is a skillful way of blending art, humour and the biggest issue of our time in a typically John D’oh way. I love this piece and am happy that I have now at last liberated it.
Street art is a mysterious beast and manages to catch me out consistently. I don’t know how long Panskaribas has been spraying in Bristol, but having not been aware of his work only a few months ago, I now seem to come across it on a really regular basis. Either there has been a mental block or gap on my part, or Panskaribas has only recently moved to Bristol or started spraying walls.
Panskaribas, The Bearpit, Bristol, February 2019
Whatever the reason for this heightened presence of Panskaribas, in my view, it is a good thing. I like his characters with faces sketched out in a cartoon doodle style. There is a simplicity to his work that is oddly sophisticated and I am looking forward to learning more.
Between Mr Draws and Object… The Bearpit is just about keeping alive, although I did notice some Panskaribas pieces on my way into work earlier this week (to follow). This is a quick one from Mr Draws and draws (no pun intended) on his staple decorated lettering.
Mr Draws, The Bearpit, Bristol, January 2019
The colours and patterns make this writing easy on the eye, but it is not to everyone’s taste, and sometimes those who like to sit in judgement on such things can be a bit rude about his work. I’ll have none of it. He brightens up our streets and has no pretensions at all. Perhaps some would prefer clinical fine art, commissioned and safe, but that does not pick up on the diversity and full spectrum of the discipline.
Natural adventures 