Urban – Page 115 – Natural adventures

6348. Purdown (78)

Mr Crawls, Purdown, Bristol, August 2024

When I first encountered Mr Crawls, it was his pieces of birds that first caught my eye, and although he has come on quite a way from his early Bristol pieces, with the encouragement of his painting partner Mote, this particular piece up at Purdown is a bit of a throwback.

The particular type of bird is a little difficult to nail down. The colour of the beak and head would suggest a gull, but the shape of the beak is far more raptor-like. I guess it doesn’t actually matter, because the joy of creative art is that you can conjure up imaginary things and situations. This is a fun piece from the productive Mr Crawls.

6347. St Werburghs tunnel (441)

Kid Crayon, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2024

Following on from the last post, a wheatpaste by Abbie Laura Smith, it perhaps ought to be remembered that Kid Crayon began his foray into street art with magnificent wheatpastes dotted around central Bristol, before moving on to spray-painting, a transition he managed almost seamlessly.

This is a magnificent piece of composition writing from Kid Crayon, where each letter is telling its own story, with the ‘Y’ shaped like a catapult and the ‘N’ is a burning candle. Magnificent and creative stuff from Kid Crayon, nicely executed. It is so good to see the artist out there painting more this summer, as he has been a little quiet on the streets since Covid, being busy with his work.

6346. Cumberland Basin

Abbie Laura Smith, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2024

In my view, wheatpasting is a much underrated branch of street art, perhaps because the artwork itself is usually created in a studio and the street art bit comes into the placement of the piece. I, however, embrace the art form because it is often quite meaningful or challenging, and the skill of placement is as significant as the art itself.

Abbie Laura Smith is Bristol’s only active wheatpaster at present, so when she releases a batch of her work, it is always an exciting time trying to track them down. This is classic Abbie Laura Smith… a black and white portrait of a woman (slightly moody) with long, flowing hair. The piece almost looks like a woodcut, although I think it is an ink drawing. I’ll need to find out more about her technique. I can comment on the composition, though, which I think is wonderful. More from this batch to come.

6345. Cumberland Basin

Foksymoron, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2024

Having been largely overlooked but not unnoticed by me over the last few years, Foksymoron has been ‘going large’ recently, growing his fox character from a small mega-tag to a fully fledged adult adorning walls that wouldn’t have been conceivable only a short time ago.

This piece has the rather laid back cool fox reclining and accompanied by a speech bubble with the unromantic words “Straight in, no kissin”. Foksymoron’s foxes have long been a part of the furniture in the Bristol hot spots, but now they are moving centre stage, and deservedly so. Who doesn’t love a fox?

And here is another little extra from Foksymoron with one of his mega-tag foxes.

6344. St Werburghs tunnel (440)

Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2024

It is fortunate that I am a big fan of Mr Klue’s abstract pieces, because if I were not, then it is unlikely that I would share much of his work, or at least not in anything like the quantity that I do. Mr Klue is another of those artists who represents the consistency and beating heart of the Bristol street art scene, never looking to be the star of the show, but rather, modestly getting on with what he loves doing.

This KLUE writing has a rather nice emerald tint to it, contrasting well with the darker shadows of the piece. To the untrained eye, it might be difficult to make out the letters, but I think that this is one of the easier ones to read, especially if you know the letters you are looking for. Fine work from the very busy Mr Klue.

6343. Brunel Way (286)

Sait Bare, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2024

Sait Bare appears to be painting more often, or maybe I am simply seeing his pieces more often, either way, it is great to find his work. This piece took a couple of trips to record, because the first time I saw it, it was incomplete, and I had to return a few days later to see the final rendition.

It is interesing to see, from the work in progress, the layering and sequencing that Sait Bare undertakes in producing his work. This is not the first time that Sait Bare has used this particular design idea of presenting two entirely different colour schemes mashed up together in sections, and thee final effect is stunning, if not a little confusing.

The letters spell SAIT, and while the font is consistent through the piece, the background and fills most definitely are not. So the overall appearance is that one piece has been painted over the other and then half of it ripped down. You need to ask yourself which one was painted over the other? An interesting illusion.

6342. Cumberland Basin

#DFTE, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, August 2024

There is a charm and a simplicity to #DFTE’s philosophical musings, which have grown from small framed installation art pieces to these large full-scale wall street art graffiti writing pieces. Throughout, he has never lost or compromised his ‘house font’, which identifies his work so specifically.

Black and white pieces always make an impact, and this one is no exception. The words spell out the phrase “You are already perfect”. Kindness at its simplest and best. Often less is more when composing messages, and this one lands with grace and impact. The drips from the letters create an accidental (or intentional) 3D drop shadow. Another wonderful piece to enjoy from #DFTE

6340. Montpelier Park

Butch, Montpelier Park, Bristol, August 2024

Here we have yet another artist making a debut on Natural Adventures, in a year notable for the number of artists coming onto my radar for the first time. There is something very appealing about the simplicity and modesty of this piece, which reminds me a lot of Biers’ work, when I first came across him almost a decade ago.

Butch is a member of the PLB stable, and although I have probably seen his work before, this piece has elevated him in my consciousness. I like the letter shapes and the way that they are stacked over one another, casting shadows. The colour works well on quite a messy background, and the whole thing, although a ‘quick one’, made me smile. Look out for more from Butch.

6339. Muriel Alleyway (12)

Esme Lower, Muriel Alleyway, Bristol, August 2024

The mini street art festival in Muriel Alleyway, organised by Rtiiika at the end of July was a triumph, giving exposure to artists whose work is rarely seen in some of the regular graffiti spots around town. Most of the artists present belong to the Bristol Mural Collective who primarily work in studios, so this event is a great opportunity for them to paint in a safe environment and for us to see their work.

This colourful shutter piece is by Esme Lower who has been doing some interesting street work this summer, not least her collaboration with Bloem a couple of weeks back. This is a bright and cheerful abstract piece with some character eyes breaking cover from the kind of flowery vista. I look forward to seeing where Esme Lower’s journey takes us.

6338. Dean Lane skate park (745)

Dibz and Fade, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2024

Fade and Dibz need no introduction here given that I have posted dozens of their collaborations already on Natural Adventures this year. Their productivity is admirable and the quality of their work, awesome.

This collaboration centres on the theme of 1980s arcade game Pac-Man, but adopts a modern version of the little yellow character. The yellow dots in the maze are reproduced, although I am a little surprised not to see the incorporation of the four ghosts. Fade has split his letters into two colour assemblages, perhaps adding a little variety.

Dibz has also incorporated the maze element as his background and cleverly incorporated an ‘on-brand’ Pac-Man FUA (From up above). The transition of colour fill in Dibz’ letters is outstanding, and the fine yellow highlights help the letters to pop. Magnificent work from the duo.

	hitandrun1964 on 7422. Stapleton Road
	hitandrun1964 on Cocoon
	cjsmissionaryministe… on 7421. Boiling Wells Lane …
	cjsmissionaryministe… on 7418. Belle Vue Road
	Eterea on 7429. M32 roundabout J3 (…

	hitandrun1964 on 7422. Stapleton Road
	hitandrun1964 on Cocoon
	cjsmissionaryministe… on 7421. Boiling Wells Lane …
	cjsmissionaryministe… on 7418. Belle Vue Road
	Eterea on 7429. M32 roundabout J3 (…

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: