At the Farm end of St Werburghs tunnel a little while ago was this beautifully colourful piece by Corupt, in fact I think it is probably my favourite of his ever. The letter shapes are typical of his style, from the sloping ‘C’ to the ornate stem of the ‘T’, but it is the upbeat fills and childish colours that make this piece stand out from the crowd.
Corupt, St Werburghs, Bristol, October 2019
The whole piece looks like a child’s colouring-in book (in a good way) and has a lightness and joy about it. A magnificent work from this quiet and often overlooked artist. I have so much more of his work to shatre with you.
A stunning piece by Ments on a great wall. This whole area is being redeveloped, and I fear that the wall may have already been demolished, which is a real pity because it has hosted some really spectacular art. The reduction in available walls to paint in this area is going to be a bit of a challenge for street/graffiti artists and is a pattern being replicated all over the city. It will be interesting to see if new areas become popular painting spots in the future.
Ments, Upper York Street, Bristol, October 2019
The piece is so very typical of Ments’ organic style, and this one has a molten metallic feel about it. The letters spell out MENTS (although the T looks like it is missing). I also get a slight sense of the surrealist Yves Tanguy here, or at least the meltinng shapes and shadows reminnd me of his work. A classy and unusual piece.
Within a matter of days of Fiva painting his blockbuster piece in St Werburghs tunnel, Zake gave us this fabulous piece contained within the F. Fiva’s large letters were just too good to resist, and his invitation to ‘paint over me’ was readily taken up by Zake.
Zake, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2019
I am really taken with this curious piece by Zake which reminds me a lot of the incredible work in Winser McCay’s ‘Little Nemo’ cartoon strips. There is something a little creepy and fascinating about this moon character, an I’d like to see more like this.
Rezwonk has had a very busy year, and a particularly busy summer, so it is not really surprising that he has slowed down a little over the last couple of months. In general, the turnover of street/graffiti art slows a little during the winter months, which makes sense really.
Rezwonk, Wilder Street, Bristol, November 2019
This piece at the far west end of Wilder street is on a wall that has been curated by Where the Wall, but I am not so sure if it still is because a few ad hoc pieces seem to be appearing. This whole area though is rapidly being redeveloped, and several walls with some lovely pieces have been knocked down in recent weeks. Of course this is a pity for the street art community, but the buildings were falling into dereliction and perhaps no longer fit for purpose. My issue however is that instead of building affordable housing for the local community, which is far from affluent, all the developments are earmarked for student accommodation.
Back to the Rezer piece which is a thoroughly decent burner and which (I guess intentionally) has an effect of being slightly blurry (around the white accents) – or maybe this is an artefact of my failing eyesight. Always good to see work from Rezwonk.
It took me a little while to find this magnificent piece by Cheo. I knew roughly the area where it had been painted but because it was a new wall in a light industrial area I had to use my intuition to find it. The mural is on a building near the Aardman productions (Wallace and Gromit) Bristol office and was painted to celebrate thirty years of this hapless pair.
Cheo, Gas Ferry Road, Bristol, November 2019
Cheo has shown his extraordinary skill by incorporating the extractor fans on the side of the building into the piece as an integral part of the ‘celebrate o’tron’. You also have to love the idea of old socks feeding the machinery. Cheo has produced many works in Bristol in partnership with Aardman many of which are still alive and kicking.
Cheo, Gas Ferry Road, Bristol, November 2019
There is something very wholesome about this piece and represents the Wallace and Gromit brand beautifully and responsibly. Definitely one for all the family to enjoy, and just around the corner from the SS Great Britain.
I love it when visiting wheatpasters come to town because during their short stay they tend to paste up several pieces, often in locations slightly off the beaten track. This is a magnificent one from qWeRT continuing the theme of love, with our little googly-eyed character standing at a podium and pointing at a chart. Look a little closer and the chart tells us that there is a growth of love on the streets. A wonderful sentiment, but optimistic at best I would say.
qWeRT, Upper York Street, Bristol, November 2019
I often wonder if people who are not interested in street art ever look at things like this, even if only out of curiosity, or whether they simply walk on by without so much as a glimpse. Surely people must wonder what this thing is or why is this here or something, but perhaps not. The next obvious thought is why do wheatpasters do this, as surely they will rarely see the enjoyment/confusion their little contributions make.
Knowing that qWeRT was in the area, I have been looking out for little googly-eye and found five from this session, but there are sure to be more out there. Love this one a lot.
No matter how hard I try, I cannot do this blockbuster by Fiva any justice at all. Stretching abut 30ft into the tunnel and with letters at least 6ft high this is a huge piece, and unlike many blockbusters that are painted with rollers and rough edges, there is real class about the form of the letters and their presentation.
Fiva, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2019
St Werburghs tunnel has been a rich hunting ground for Fiva’s work lately, but this is the loudest piece yet. He gives you a clue about his intentions with the words ‘Go Big’ at the left hand side of the piece. Aside from being awesome, this piece also serves a purpose, which is to help move on from the contraversial painting over of a BUZZ tribute on this wall earlier on in the autumn. His status will give credibility to using this whole length of wall for new works for all artists.
