Tag: Upfest

946. Upfest 2017 (16)

First impressions count, and when I was doing my first walk around Upfest on the Saturday, this piece leapt out at me and grabbed my attention. Although I tend to have many favourites much of the time, I think I would have to say that this was the outstanding piece for me at Upfest 2017.

Bisser, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Bisser, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This friendly monster is by Bisser, a 27 year old Belgian artist and according to his Upfest biography notes ‘he’s influenced by graffiti, street art, muralism, cartoons and comics. His visual style is figurative and is very recognisable’.

Bisser, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Bisser, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

The first thought I had when I saw this monster was of the book ‘Where the Wild Things Are’, by Maurice Sendak. So much expression, a simple idea beautifully executed. This piece deserves a permanent wall. Maybe if he comes to Upfest again he’ll get one – he certainly ought to on the back of this.

Bisser, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Bisser, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I chatted for a while with Bisser, and he is such a decent unassuming, modest fellow. He told me that his name in Flemish (I think that’s what he said) means ‘taken twice’ in relation to exams/college work – I think the equivalent in English would be ‘retake’. He adopted the name because he had to do his art exams a second time after first failing them. I like it that he has found strength and even a moniker from facing up to challenges. My favourite piece at Upfest.

941. Upfest 2017 (15)

Oze Arv was a very busy man during his short stay in Bristol for Upfest. This Portuguese artist from Lisbon uses patterns to mix expression and graphics. His style is instantly recognisable, as you will see as I post all of the work he left behind for Bristolians.

Oze Arv, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Oze Arv, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This is a lovely shutter piece on North Street, one of two ‘official’ pieces he sprayed for Upfest. Shutters are always hard, but he has been smart with this one, laying down a white background, which lifts the whole piece really well. I think most of his work tends to include the natural world.

Oze Arv, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Oze Arv, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I like the combination of the abstract and natural, I think it works well. I caught up with him for a few minutes, and he seemed like a really nice guy, happy to chat about his work. Lots more to come.

940. Upfest 2017 (14)

This was one of my favourite pieces of the South Street Park site at Upfest 2017. The picture of a Pirate is beautifully illustrated and has all the nostalgic feel of a children’s picture book. I would willingly pick up and read a book with pictures such as this. It tells its own story, for example, the writing on the pirate’s knuckles spells ‘FREE’…

Rame13, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Rame13, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

The work is by Rame13 an Italian artist born in Pisa. She has been painting from an early age, but has only been producing street art since 2016, so a relative newcomer. Her Facebook page confirms what I already know…that I love her style, and the kind of work she produces, it is well worth a quick look.

Rame13, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Rame13, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Looking at the work in progress, it is interesting to see how she works in blocks, rather than in layers, like spray artists tend to do. Indeed it is refreshing to see street artists working without spray cans – there were a few at Upfest this year.

Rame13, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Rame13, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I think it would be easy for me to become a big fan – I hope she returns next year. Lovely work.

939. Upfest 2017 (13)

You can be pretty sure that when Goin takes to the street, the work he produces will have an edge and political aspect. His piece for Upfest was no exception this year. He has created a large monochrome stencil of a traditional working-class paperboy holding up a newspaper with the words ‘Bullshit’s Tories’.

Goin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Goin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I believe that Goin is French and this might give us a clue to the slightly curious wording. It is obviously an anti-Tory slogan, but doesn’t quite read right. It matters not one jot though, because it is pretty overt either way, and the piece is really powerful.

Goin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Goin, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I like Goin’s work a lot, but was very slack last year, and missed out on his main Upfest piece. It was slightly off the main drag, and by the time I went to photograph it, it had gone. Not this year.

938. Upfest 2017 (12)

I love the whole idea of our beautiful wildlife being a little bit subversive, and nobody creates this edginess between cute and dangerous better than Chinagirl Tile. Her last two visits to Bristol for Upfest have seen her decorate the streets, not only in Bedminster but also in Stokes Croft with her anarchic ceramic creatures.

Chinagirl Tile, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Chinagirl Tile, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This is a rather charming little squirrel claiming to have stolen Banksy. It is nicely located on a wall surrounded with greenery. It rather blends in and will be missed by many passers by. You have to keep your eyes open.

I have several other Chinagirl pieces to post about from this year’s festival.

937. Upfest 2017 (11)

This was a wonderful and carefree piece beautifully painted by the cheerful and smiling Arladiss, an artist I believe to be from Norway. I noticed that this wasn’t the only piece she worked on during Upfest, although I’m not sure it was planned that way. It seems that the weather may have deterred one or two of the artists and that in South Street Park, where Arladiss was painting, there were a few vacant boards.

Arladiss, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Arladiss, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

You can see from her Facebook pages that most of her work features children enjoying and being a part of the local environment. Indeed, her Upfest profile says that ‘she wants children in a neighbourhood to see the importance of their existence, and show them that they are a vital and beautiful part of the community’.

Arladiss, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Arladiss, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Her enthusiasm for her work was infectious, and it was fun watching her paint. The combination of the child striking a child-like pose and the birds swirling around her, give a tremendous sense of innocence and freedom.

Arladiss, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Arladiss, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I think I am a fan.

932. Upfest 2017 (10)

As someone who is interested in street art in Bristol, I really ought to know an awful lot more about Diff than I do. It is all part of learning about the very rich and diverse culture of the Bristol street/graffiti art scene.

Diff, Upfest, Bristol, July 2015
Diff, Upfest, Bristol, July 2015

This is a fabulous bold and humorous piece, conflating the statues from Easter Island with the haircuts of Sideshow Bob and Sideshow Mel from the Simpsons cartoon series. It is a simple theme with some really nice clear lines and shading – really great work.

Diff, Upfest, Bristol, July 2015
Diff, Upfest, Bristol, July 2015

You can find out more about Diff from this 212 Productions website profile.

931. Upfest 2017 (9)

Well it is no surprise that my path should cross with the work of Face the Strange at Upfest. What perhaps was a surprise was witnessing him pasting this piece up, and serendipitously on many levels, putting a face to the name.

Face the Strange, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Face the Strange, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I really should have asked him, what on earth is going on in his head…a man in a suit with a pineapple face and pineapple skin. Is it all just bonkers, funny and off-the-wall or is there some deeper hidden meaning. I expect it is a combination of both. Instead we talked about other wheatpasters and Upfest and the weather.

930. Upfest 2017 (8)

Tucked away in a shady corner of North Street Green was this beautiful piece by Aintzane Crucet, a Spanish Illustrator who was born in Motril (Granada) and now lives in Malaga. There is a fairytale quality to this work which would sit comfortably in any children’s library.

Aintzane Crucet, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Aintzane Crucet, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Other than the Upfest programme notes, there is very little information about this young artist who I would guess is at the beginning of her career. I’m pleased she made the journey to Bristol.

Aintzane Crucet, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Aintzane Crucet, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

929. Upfest 2017 (7)

This is a beautifully worked piece from Bristol-based Bill Giles, an illustrator and designer who occasionally takes to the walls. He specialises in creating grotesque monsters whose flesh melts away and his design work is finely detailed. This monster seems to reflect much more the uplifting atmosphere of Upfest with its bright colours and sunglasses, an altogether fun piece.

Bill Giles, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Bill Giles, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

Bill Giles is part of an artist collective called ‘Cretin‘ based in Bristol that specialises in designs and illustrations of monsters. Membership of Cretin includes SPZero76, Paul Roberts (Monsters), Loch Ness and Dom Williams – there’s a lot of talent there.