At Upfest, I am always rather fond of these small square boards that give artists the opportunity to showcase their work. I am guessing that they might also be able to sell these small pieces, but I am not sure. This witty piece is by Mr Bear, who produced this lovely Baloo work at last year’s festival.
Mr Bear, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
There are quite a few fun things going on here, although I really don’t know what the word ‘bacon’ is doing in the ‘Hello my name is’ badge. This is a really goos multi-layered stencil from that nice Mr Bear. Would be great to see him return again next time.
I can see that this abstract piece may or may not be to everyone’s taste, however since seeing his work last year at Upfest I am a fan of the artist Angerami. He had two pieces at Upfest 2016, a fish his official piece and an owl tucked away in an alleyway.
Angerami, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
This abstract piece is what I would call ‘architectural’ although that might not be the correct term. It is a bold work that may have some hint of or not to the animal kingdom, but that might just be my interpretation.
Angerami, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Angerami has a thorough website, and one of the most extensive biographies I have seen for a street artist – he also keeps it up to date – well worth a visit. It would appear, from looking at his artwork series that this piece is one of a series ‘from inside to outside’.
Angerami, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I stopped for a quick chat with Angerami and told him how much I liked his pieces last year, which he appreciated. A gentle and quiet man who appears to be highly thoughtful and I would guess academic. Hope he returns next year for a hat trick.
One of the most striking and rather psychadelic pieces of this year’s Upfest was this portrait incorporating a glitched abstract background in the form of 3D colouring. The work is from the Brisish artist (Dan) Newso.
Newso, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
This is quite a difficult and busy piece to look at. Do you look at the face and get distracted (I do), or look at the abstract surround and get pulled into the face? Either way it is amost impossible to look at the whole. A very clever piece.
Newso, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
On his website, Newso has published a biography, which reads:
‘Throughout 2016 Dan Newso developed his work combining figurative with abstract content in a glitch or implied collage style. This work is often painted on compressed cement board to give the feeling of a painting on a concrete wall.
Since 2008 he has been well known in Birmingham’s post-industrial creative quarter Digbeth, painting murals in public spaces. This work has largely been self funded and has been a process of getting to know the community to open up spaces to paint.
He paints commissioned artwork and murals in varied styles to suit clients needs; he has painted internationally with the latest project of 2016 being a residency in Perth, Western Australia.’
Newso, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I like this piece, even though it confuses my ageing eyes. I hope he makes it back to Upfest next year.
Jay Sharples, a Manchester-based former graphic designer, produced this magnificent bold piece, which I guess is a gorilla or something similar for Upfest. The simple use of only a few colours and thick black outlines makes for a memorable and eye-catchiing piece.
Jay Sharples, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Jay is a leading figure in the Manchester street art community and has a close involvement with the Wellington House Art Jam events and the Outhouse Project.
I don’t know Hypo, but I’m sure that if I met him, I would like him. I say this because his Upfest profile reads: ‘Local Bedminster painter who really should know better…’ and that’s it. Short and sweet.
Hypo’s piece was one that developed in stages as Upfest progressed, and I would guess that this was due to the rain interruptions. It was good to be able to capture the piece at different times.
Hypo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I am really rather fond of this piece, but I can’t quite pin down why. The haunting landscape in the letters looks like a window into another dimension. The shading on the letters is really clever and leads the eye to a vanishing point (you can even see the string attached to the VP in the picture above) and the dripping spheres offer a distraction. I can’t help finding my eyes moving over the piece constantly…it is difficult to kow where to settle.
Hypo, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I can’t think that I have knowingly seen any of his work on the streets of Bristol but will keep my eyes and ears open for any news about him.
One of the real gems from Upfest 2017 was this beautiful depiction of Frida Kahlo by the hugely talented artist Alexander Tadlock. Born in California, Tadlock was raised in Mexico which would explain the choice of subject for his Upfest piece.
Alexander Tadlock, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
There is a wonderful short biography of the artist on the ‘Greatest Paka Photography’ Flickr account which provides some background to his education and inspirations.
Alexander Tadlock, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
For me, and many others, this was a truly outstanding piece, for many reasons. Firstly, the artwork is highly accomplished, secondly, the subject of the piece is iconic and captivation and thirdly, the colours are vibrant and draw you to the piece. As I said, outstanding.
Alexander Tadlock, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
I came away from Upfest with a few ‘eyeworms’ (is there such a thing?) and this beauty from Tadlock was one of them.
Researching this piece has revealed more than I might have expected, which is always most fulfilling. The chimpanzee, so full of expression, was sprayed by Skie One, and the leaves and portrait (to follow) on the right by Nesr both from High Pressure Murals. The discovery was to put names to a piece that I photographed at Upfest 2016, and one which I can post when I do a bit of a catchn up of left-overs from last year.
Skie One, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
This is a fine mural (I guess I can safely call it that) and has a stencil-like look about it, although it is freestyled. I am interested by just how many apes and monkeys are painted by street artists, Parrots have a pretty high head-count too. I guess they are groups of animals/birds that are close to us and therefor of interest.
Skie One and Nesr, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Once again it is great to see the artists at work to see how they create the piece, here it looks like a process of adding layers, maybe in a more conventional fine art way…not that I really have any idea what I’m talking about. I do know I like this piece though.
Tucked away in the garden of The Rising Sun was this rather provocative and surreal piece by EdF*ck. I can’t find out much about the artist, so I include his Upfest programme biography:
‘Hi my name is Edf*ck, my work mainly consists of spray paint and de-collage but extends to illustration and character design, often encapsulating dark imagery captioned with playful slogans and vicious characters.’
EdF*ck, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017So my first impression of this artist and the style is that I rather like it. It reminds me of the kind of magazine cut-out collages I used to make as a kid, creating disturbing distortions of reality from pictures. One major difference…this is considered, cleverly worked and artistic. I’m glad I ventured into this corner of the pub garden, because I missed it on the Saturday of the festival.
This great piece which was located at The Rising Sun pub, is by Mind Control who was probably the youngest artist at Upfest this year at a youthful 16. He has been spraying since he was 12 and has already found himself on the festival circuit. A precocious talent indeed, and one to look out for.
Mind Control, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017Before Upfest this year he was interviewed by Auntie G, you can read what he says on her excellent blog here. The piece itself is ambitious and captivating. I’m not sure I would have guessed it was by a young artist when I first saw it, but now I’m in posession of the facts it does have a naive quality to it. I look forward to seeing more work from Mind Control and hope he returns to Bristol soon.
One of my favourite artists from Upfest 2016 was DinDin who produced this official piece and left a couple of wheatpastes in the Moon Street area of Stokes Croft before she left Bristol. This year she excelled with this beautiful stencil featuring a street dancer in what looks like a fairly stark wasteland.
DinDin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017This piece really stands out and catches the eye. What I found interesting as well was how different the piece looked in the overcast conditions and then in the bright sunlight. Maybe this is an artifact of how cameras work, but the difference is remarkable.
DinDin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017I think that DinDin got her work done quickly this year – I think she must have seen the forecast – so I didn’t get to meet her, which is a pity because I realy do like her work very much.
