I think the prize for the busiest artists of Upfest 2017 goes to Pahnl who were not only the featured Festival artists for the year, but who also painted two walls with their intricate stencil work.
Pahnl, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Actually, it was some days after the festival that they finally managed to finish this wall, but it was worth the wait. Their style of work has the look and feel of corporate identy and logos, with ‘toilet door man’ setting about various tasks and activities.
Pahnl, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
The partnership certainly produced something out of the ordinary with their work, unlike anything else at the festival. there is more about this duo from Birmingham on their fine website.
Some of the collaborations at Upfest 2017 were almost acidental or improvised. Others like this one were calculated and beautifully worked out. The artists, Carleen de Soza (left) and Dreph (right) painted portraits of each other, and in doing so switched colours for the skin tones and background.
Carleen De Sozer and Dreph, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I think both artists, who do a lot of portraits fgound it challenging being the subject of the artwork, but the final collaboration was outstanding and eye-catching.
Carleen De Sozer and Dreph, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
The wall was a difficult one to photograph, because the light managed to shine down the back wall and bleached out the top of the frame. Also there were beams in the way, which didn’t quite fall centrally – probably not the best spot for a collaboration.
Carleen De Sozer and Dreph, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
This piece was definitely one of the more memorable collaborations at the festival and I guess ther artists were relieved at having the partial cover to protect them from the rain showers.
Annika Pixie has a lightness of touch that brings a spot of magic to her pieces. She is a fine artist and lovely warm person. For half the year she spends her time teaching in Thailand, and her Instagram feed is a constant stream of beaches and sunsets.
Annika Pixie, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
This piece for Upfest must have been completed early on the Saturday, because I never got to see her at work, which was a real pity – maybe this year.
This is the last set of Losthills’ Jake the Dog pasteups from Upfest 2017 and what fun they are. Part of the joy of Upfest is finding these little gems attached to urban infrastructure in the Bedminster area, and if you are lucky, other pieces are left in other parts of town too. This was certainly the case with Losthills, and I still have a couple of those to share.
Losthills, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
The Featured image at the top of this post sees Jake holding a ghost from the computer game Pacman. The Jake immediately above is dressed for the Daft Punk single Doin it Right.
Losthills, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I have no idea at all what cultural reference is being made in the wheatpaste above, but Jake appears to be wearing a basket hat and conducting electricity from his hands…if you know more feel free to let me know.
Losthills, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Finally, in the pasteup above, Jake is holdig a heart with the word Hex and is standing in a rather creepy horror-style environment. I am guessing this is a reference to the film Hex, which I will not have seens because horror movies frighten me and I won’t watch them.
It took me a lifetime to get round to finding this collaboration and at last posting it. It is just a little too far from my work to manage in a lunchtime, so I had to make a special trip. It is by the incredible Fanakapan and Insane51.
Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
There is so much to love about this piece (except its location) that I don’t know where to start. I could try to start with the cracked wall, which is cleverly done and lets us into the world of these two artists. It is interesting that the character is both behind the hole (see his head) and in front of it (see his left arm further down). I don’t know if this is intentional, but it adds to the wackiness of the piece.
Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
The flamingo and tin can are the work of Fanakapan and the double image of the baseball caped man is by Insane51. The whole piece is utterly bonkers and brilliant, so beautifully executed and incredible attention to detail.
Insane51 and Fanakapan, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I love the reflections in the sunglasses and in the tin can – these are the things that highlight how talented these artists are. the wall itself is a bugger to photograph, because there is not much room between it and the wall behind, as you can see from the long shot. I’ve been saving some of the really good Upfest pieces until last.
Where do I begin with this piece, a collaboration from Will Barras and Xenz? Not that we knew it at the time, but this is the swan song for this premium wall on the Masonic pub. The second hand car business has sold up and developers will be moving in soon.
Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I spoke to Will Barras Before he started this piece, and he felt rather intimated by the size of the wall, by the previous piece (Pichiavo) and by collaborating on something this large. However, he faced his demons and got on with the job.
Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
My first impression was not favourable – I didn’t like it. I felt the wall was way too big and there was so much going on it was difficult to engage with it. It has taken me several months to change my views, but change they have – I have become a fan.
Will Barras and Xenz, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I’m not sure why I think this, but I think it is called ‘she’s a waterfall’ – a song by The Stone Roses – anyhow I might be wrong about that. The two artists with similar styles, but different subject matter preferences (Xenz – fantasy worlds and birds, Will Barras – bikes and abstract stuff), have combined to create a huge picture story which contains beauty, hope, fantasy and of course a bike. A fitting farewell to this stunning wall.
Luis Seven Martins (L7M), North Street, Bristol, May 2016PichiAvo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2016
This gorgeous piece by Olivier Roubieu was definitely a hit with critics and visitors to Upfest 2017, receiving a lot ov coverage immediately after the event. It is a classy sophisticated piece beautifully painted, and something quite unusual for the walls of Bristol.
Oliver Roubieu, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I note from his excellent website that Olivier Roubieu paints a lot of nudes, and I wonder if he toned this piece down for the conservative British audience. In general, it is rare to see nudes in street art in the UK and yet, it seems to be quite common on the continent. I don’t really know what is at the root of it – is it the people or the authorities?
Oliver Roubieu, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
The dancers caught in an instant are full of movement and poise and stand out from the ethrial background ‘noise’. Difficult to believe that this has been created with spray cans. A fabulous contributiion to Upfest 2017.
Back to some more pieces from Upfest 2017 starting with the third collaboration from Caro Pepe and Age Age. I love the work that these two do together, and their different subject matter and styles complement each other so well and in this piece fuse together perfectly.
Age Age and Caro Pepe, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
At last year’s Upfest they definitely went for this subtle colour scheme of mauves and browns, which is actually very effective. These are not brash ‘in your face’ works, rather they are gentle comforting studies.
Age Age and Caro Pepe, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Age Age’s contribution begins on the left and Caro Pepe’s on the right. The central panel is where they come together creating a robot girl whose right eye is covered over under the face mask. Of their three contributions, this is my favourite. I think they are returning this year and it will be interesting to see if they work together again.
Caro Pepe and Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017Caro Pepe and Age Age, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I have only seen Pelmo’s work a couple of times, but I know that I really love his work. The soft tone and style of his cartoon characters carries with it a light-hearted humour, and his pieces tell complex stories. His work reminds me a little of Gary Larson’s Far Side cartoons, but there is a little more tenderness to Pelmo’s work.
Pelmo, West Street, Bristol, April 2018
I think that this wall was part of Upfest 2016, but I never made it here before as it is really quite a long way from the Upfest main area. This is a highly accomplished piece and in it is a deftness and confidence in the scene that Pelmo has created. It is so easy on the eye, it almost feels that it is just part of the street scenery. It is easy to drift into the world he has created.
Pelmo, West Street, Bristol, April 2018
I love his attention to detail, things like the hand rail that the character on the right is holding and the shadows cast by the bicycle and the street bins. Of course for the cat lovers there is a splendid moggie sprawled out on the wall. I also rather like the way that the rubble sacks in front of the piece almost feel like they are incorporated into the whole experience. I love this and really look forward to seeing his work at Upfest 2018.
There is an interesting story to this collaboration ‘Girl and Death’ in so much as it was not a planned collaboration at all…it just kind of happened. How do I know this? I discovered it on the Instagram feed of one of the artists involved, Nino Werner:
‘After a night of crazy partying, we started this painting with no real direction first & just enjoyed the fun show that is Bristol Streetart Festival called @upfest . What first started as two separate pieces merged together in the process when we got to know the very talented fella (Luke) next to our dedicated painting spot, who was also painting in black and white, but also added gold. We like shiny things so we grabbed some golden paint and made the separate artworks merge together. The painting is either a reference to a sketch of famous Norwegian artist Edvard Munch (also called Girl and Death) or the fun party night and the hangover David had the next day when we painted it.‘
It is always great to get a bit of insight from the artists themselves.
Nino Werner, Javi, David Schermann, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
The girl on the left of the collaboration is by Nino Werner, Javi and David Schermann, who I believe visited Upfest from Austria. And on the right of the piece is an intricate skull in black white and gold by Luke Gray.
Nino Werner, Javi, David Schermann and Luke Gray, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Luke Gray has a fabulous website which is well worth a visit. His biography states that he is from the UK and is a nomadic surrealist symbolist painter. He was born colour blind and works in an almost exclusively black and white pallette, using patterns and textures rather than colours.
Natural adventures 