Tag: Urban

4306. Cumberland Basin

This recent collaboration by Sepr and Acer replaces a Valentines Day piece by this pair last year. I wonder if this piece had been planned to be a repeat to mark the day of lovers, but got delayed for a while. Whatever, it is a truly outstanding collaboration, sharp, clean and tidy.

Sepr, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Sepr, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

On the left is a rather clumsy Cupid figure who has somehow managed to shoot himself in the foot with an arrow. Sepr has an amazing ability to bring his characters to life, and tell big stories. The shadows are supremely well painted and lift the character right off the wall.

Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

To the right, Acer has written LOVE in a lettering style that he appears to be playing with a lot at the moment, judging by recent posts on his Instagram feed. Rainbow colours on nicely designed regular letters… a fabulous font design. Altogether brilliant.

Sepr and Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022
Sepr and Acer One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, March 2022

Crash

.

Accident blackspot

not fifty yards from the house

another write-off

.

by Scooj

4305. Leonard Lane (31)

Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside. Leonard Lane could hardly contrast more with a seaside scene, which helps this gorgeous mural stand out by Billy. Billy Colours, to give her her full name, together with Mr Penfold and Rtiiika, decorated the wall opposite the Centrespace Gallery at which they were exhibiting alongside Zoe Power, Merny and Beth Kirby in mid-February. Regrettably, I never made it to their show, which I am gutted about, but I have a busy life and things like that often fall outside the ‘to do’ list.

Billy, Leonard Lane, Bristol, March 2022
Billy, Leonard Lane, Bristol, March 2022

The naive style and simple captions tell such vibrant stories in a direct and honest way. It might sound patronising to say that her pieces are charming, and I definitely don’t want to be patronising, so to say they have a spellbinding charm about them might be a better way to say it. Lady in a hat as a caption works very well for me, and this piece left me feeling happy.

4304. M32 roundabout J3 (392)

I’m trying to be as contemporary as I possibly can be, but am still a day late – Happy St Patrick’s Day for yesterday. I accelerated this piece through my pipeline, so that I could publish it today, having photographed it only yesterday afternoon. This cheerful and very green piece is, of course, by the brilliant graffiti writer Dibz.

Dibz, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022
Dibz, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022

The star of the show is obviously the character, who takes centre stage, and distracts a little from the squeaky clean lines and seamless fill fades of the letters DIBZ. One of the things I like most about Dibz’ pieces is that they simply ooze confidence and competence, this is someone at the top of his game.

Dibz, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022
Dibz, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2022

The character might be accused of being a little bit stereotypical, but it is a caricature the likes of which will be replicated across the world in places under the sphere of Irish influence. The pointy ears would suggest that this is a leprechaun enjoying a pint of grog. The FUA belt is a rather nice little touch. Superb work from Dibz.

4303. Greenbank (28)

The blue and yellow colours used in this piece give it away as another reference to the war in Ukraine. There is so much to like about this scene, by Sled One, painted alongside Smak, and it is typically full of fine detail and great composition, let alone the outstanding execution.

Sled One, Greenbank, Bristol, March 2022
Sled One, Greenbank, Bristol, March 2022

I have noticed that Sled One does enjoy painting cheese, and he has excelled himself with this cheese character, full of holes and a couple of cheeky mice. His work is always fantastical, combining characters with abstract shapes sprinkled with surrealism and always with outstanding results. I like that this piece references Ukraine, without being in your face, it demonstrates that there are so many ways to support the Ukrainians.

4302. The Carriageworks (43)

I am clinging to every minute that the Carriageworks continues to be a street art spot. This iconic site on the Cheltenham Road has been redeveloped, but the arches of the original Carriageworks have been retained. Before the site was developed, the arches became a fabulous canvass for artists in Bristol and beyond. Two or three years under scaffolding, it seemed like we’d never see the wall again, but recently the scaffolding was removed and the wall returned to artists. I don’t know how long it will be before anti-graffiti paint and CCTV appear, but let’s make hay while the sun shines.

3Dom, The Carriageworks, Bristol, March 2022
3Dom, The Carriageworks, Bristol, March 2022

3Dom is known for his amazing ‘other world’ type pieces where his imaginative characters exist in unusual or surreal settings. This magnificent piece is clearly a reference to the terrible war in Ukraine, but is rather more subtle in its messaging than some anti-war pieces.

3Dom, The Carriageworks, Bristol, March 2022
3Dom, The Carriageworks, Bristol, March 2022

The creativity of 3Dom and his astonishing touch has produced one of the finest pieces in Bristol this year, in one of the finest spots. Long live 3Dom and long live peace.

Thursday doors – 17 March 2022

Doors 177 – Doors for Ukraine

Sweet and simple this week. I am short of time again, so I thought I’d recycle some blue and yellow doors to show my support for the proud and wonderful people of Ukraine. There is little else I can do. A small gesture.

A rather different door at the Cornwall Yoga Centre, Truro, Cornwall, August 2021
A rather different door at the Cornwall Yoga Centre, Truro, Cornwall, August 2021

Light blue door and steps, Lyme Regis, Dorset, August 2021
Bright yellow door with crazy awning, Redland, Bristol, December 2020

Front door in blue, Montpelier, Bristol, May 2020
222 Yellow door and kids go Kart, Redland, Bristol, December 2020

Just a door somewhere in Bristol, March 2019
Rather bright yellow door, River Avon cycle path, Bristol, June 2019

Alex Lucas, Street art door, A Year Outdoors, Bristol, December 2018
Street art door, A Year Outdoors, Bristol, December 2018

Laic217, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, March 2022
Laic217, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, March 2022

So that’s about it for this week, I hope that these doors chime for you and help us all to reflect on the terrible suffering that is happening in Eastern Europe right now.

If you have made it this far, you probably like doors, and you really ought to take a look at the No Facilities blog by Dan Anton who has taken over the hosting of Thursday Doors  from Norm 2.0 blog. Links to more doorscursions can be found in the comments section of Dan Anton’s Thursday Doors post.

by Scooj

4301. Brunel Way (146)

This is another stunning tribute to the honour and bravery of the people and government of Ukraine in the face of an invasion directed by the Russian dictator Putin. Maybe Paints, to give him his full moniker, is without doubt going from strength to strength and is grabbing the attention of the Bristol community, as evidenced in this lovely interview he recently gave to Bristol 24/7 which is well worth a listen.

Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2022
Maybe, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2022

This column piece (he talks about columns a lot in the interview) is in his favoured Brunel Way location, and features two face profiles, in the colours of the Ukrainian flag, looking at each other, with the sun, the earth and the moon between them in an inky black starry sky. His techniques include the use of stencils, and a ‘secret’ method for creating the planets. I have enjoyed following his progress over the last year, and am excited about what he has in store for us in the future.

4300. Sparke Evans Park (35)

Never far from our thoughts is the suffering of a nation at the hands of the dictator Putin. As one might expect, the war in the Ukraine has prompted a great many artists to express their own feelings about the situation in their own way. This is a perfect illustration of how street art and graffiti act as a visual chronicle of our times, marking historic moments through art and interpretation.

Laic217, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, March 2022
Laic217, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, March 2022

This piece is a remarkably powerful one, and quite unlike anything I have seen before from the artist, Laic217. I am guessing that as a Pole, Laic217 feels particularly close to the unfolding events in Eastern Europe. This epic piece illustrating the brave and proud resistance by Ukraine and its citizens simply says ‘Glory to Ukraine’. I will go along with that.

4299. M32 roundabout J3 (391)

Kool Hand is an interesting artist who appears to have returned to Bristol after spending a while in London. I’m not sure if that piece of information is correct, but I base it on where he was posting his work on hisd Instagram account. Whatever, he is definitely now in Bristol and painting like there was no tomorrow.

Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2022
Kool Hand, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2022

Kool Hand has been broadening his portfolio considerably lately, adding to his trademark Orangutan ‘stamp’. I believe this piece is based on an axolotl (a newt-like creature from Mexico, that you can keep as a pet). The six fronds around the head represent the gills of the axolotl. This piece certainly stands out and grabs the attention and continues the development of content for the artist. Pretty in pink.