A gallery of utterly outstanding artwork from Portsmouth-based artist and national star, My Dog Sighs.
Instagram: @mydogsighs
Website: mydogsighs.co.uk
All photographs by Scooj
My Dog Sighs
Tag: Urban
7457. Cumberland Basin
This piece by Ments came as a real surprise a couple of weeks ago. The wonderful organic writing was painted alongside Smak in a high-class collaboration on this popular wall. It was especially good to see this outstanding work from Ments as he doesn’t paint all that often these days.
Ments has a very individual style to his writing, which creates a whole imaginary universe of its own with shapes and colours blending in unusual, but strangely recognisable ways. For once, his letters MENTS are almost legible. I really like Ments’ work, and see in it something very special. I hope this isn’t a one-off for the year.
7456. Brunel Way (353)
Generally speaking, rounded column pieces are a real pain from a photography point of view. For an artist they offer a large canvass in a small space, but as the piece wraps around the column, it becomes a challenge for the photographer. I have wondered whether the panorama setting on an iPhone would work, I’ll have to give it a try next time, but I doubt it.
Given my reservations about columns, Conrico has done a perfect job here. His vertical piece is of a Japanese style street lantern with its glowing orange light and atmospheric steam rising from the ground.
The piece wraps around the column, but not too far, so it is possible to get a sense of it from the front. Conrico continues to impress with a positive and impactful series of outstanding pieces this year – more to come.
7455. M32 roundabout J3 (754)
December, January and February were very wet months in England, and as a result artists had difficulty getting out to paint. My archives for those months were thin to say the least. I can happily report that the improved weather in March means that I have a host of pieces to share, some of which won’t make it beyond the cutting room floor which is regrettable.
One artist who has emerged from a sleepy winter is Biers, who has reinvented his letters for 2026 which read RABIES. I rather like what he has done here and will be looking out for more from him. This is a really nicely worked and tidy piece of writing, keeping the basics tight – good letter shapes, good drop shadow and lovely consistent thin yellow border. Biers has even set the piece nicely on a green cloud background with spots. A classy piece of graffiti writing.
7454. St Mark’s Avenue (12)
It has been a long time since I last visited St Mark’s Avenue, and it has been a long time since I last discovered a piece of graffiti writing by Sorts. So two long awaited events occurred a week or two back when I made a spontaneous decision to step into Easton.
There were a few pieces in St Mark’s Avenue that I hadn’t seen before, starting with this beauty from Sorts. By the look of it, this combination piece, with a cheeky character on the left, is reasonably recent, or at the very least it looks fresh, and there aren’t any rain and dust splatters along the bottom fringe, which you tend to see on older pieces. The letters are nicely presented and filled in quarters with contrasting colours and patterns. It would be great to see more from Sorts.
7453. Dean Lane skate park (910)
This humorous piece by Nina Raines is making a point, and it is a point perfectly illustrated and reaches the heart of cynical advertising and profiteering, which we see every single day of our lives but don’t necessarily notice.
Two bottles of shower gel/shampoo stand side by side, one for him, and one for her.
For him: £1.99, man up, 17-in-one, scent – man blue.
For her: £6.99, smile! age gracefully (e.g. don’t age), with smile-more serum, special weight loss and boob increase formula, femme lady, be sexy and be the boss – don’t be bossy, extra virgin oil – don’t be a prude though, use before our other 15 products, promotes luxurious growth, unpaid domestic work 60% more, 12.8% gender pay-gap, scent – botanical inequality.
So there you have it, an articulate and powerful illustration of how we treat different genders as a society, and that there is plenty of headroom to make things better for all. Excellent and heartfelt work from Nina Raines.
7452. Easton Road
I have said it many times on these pages, that it is always worth varying routes and going away from the beaten track because once in a while you will find something new in an unexpected place. I only occasionally drive down this road, but was pleased I did due to finding this mural by Mr Penfold.
Mr Penfold’s work is so distinct, his abstract designs incorporating bold colours and great shapes, where the spaces in between the elements are as important as the elements themselves. Bright and precise, this is a beacon of joy on an otherwise mundane stretch of road.
7451. Greenbank (183)
I have noticed that Zeks is having a little bit of a spring surge, perhaps he has some new paint or a bit more free time – whatever it is, I have seen at least three new pieces in as many weeks. Zeks has a rather different take on graffiti writing, which leans towards a sort of rigid antistyle look.
In this piece Zeks has opted for a deep and vibrant drop shadow that goes off to the left, with lilac, orange and yellow stripes. The shadow contrasts with the plain blue surface of the letters. I don’t think that I have ever seen a Zeks piece without a buffed background, and it really works in his favour, creating a clean and fresh look to all of his work. Look out for more.
7539. Dean Lane skate park (909)
The return of Asre at the back end of last year has been most welcome, and his tidy writing has been featured several times on this blog. This comic-style lettering behind the railings on the swimming pool wall is an absolute gem.
What I am enjoying about Asre’s work is the precision and attention to finishing. All the fills are strong and solid, the shadows and borders cleanly presented – even the blue splash is carefully worked. Asre strikes me as being an artist who takes pride in the appearance of his work, as much as he seems to enjoy creating it. I love the subtle yellow fill spots in his letters.
7538. M32 roundabout J3 (753)
Bags really doesn’t get enough attention in Natural Adventures, and I think I have many of his pieces lurking in my archives. I have tried to present more of his pieces lately, and this is a rather nice recent one on the roundabout.
I am not a fan of brown, but there is enough red and black to offset this colour preference (or lack of it) that I have. The letter shapes are easy on the eye, and the white drop shadow and grey cloudy background with spots round the whole piece off nicely. Great stuff from the No Frills crew member.
Natural adventures 