Tag: Urban

952. The Bearpit (83)

I think that NEVERGIVEUP is taking on the mantle of most prolific graffiti artist in Bristol at the moment. Hardly a day goes by without a new piece by him, and he is starting to branch out a little from his buck toothed bunnies, although there is some incorporation of them in this piece.

NEVERGIVEUP, The Bearpit, Bristol, July 2017
NEVERGIVEUP, The Bearpit, Bristol, July 2017

I’m not sure what is happening in this piece, a pyramid, an all seeing eye and I have no idea what the swirly things are. The piece as a whole has presence though and is really well executed. His work is getting better and more diverse with each outing.

NEVERGIVEUP, The Bearpit, Bristol, July 2017
NEVERGIVEUP, The Bearpit, Bristol, July 2017

Interestingly he would seem to be gaining respect in an area that gets very heavily tagged…this piece has survived intact for a couple of weeks.

951. New Stadium Road (3)

In a little pedestrian tunnel, under the M32 motorway are a couple of really great walls. Great for spraying that is…less great for photographing.  This is yet another wonderful collaboration piece from Deamze and Voyder, who always seem to work with Deamze on the left and Voyder on the right. I don’t know if this is a deliberate or subconscious thing, but it is pretty much always the case.

Deamze, New Stadium Road, Bristol, July 2017
Deamze, New Stadium Road, Bristol, July 2017

What is particularly captivating about these pieces is the white subject on a pillarbox red background. Deamze has worked a particularly nice bit of wildstyle writing with an interesting cartoon character who looks a little like Captain Klutz from MAD magazine, but isn’t.

Deamze, New Stadium Road, Bristol, July 2017
Deamze, New Stadium Road, Bristol, July 2017

Someone out there probably knows who it is. I love the angular style of this piece and the limited colour range. It is a fine piece.

Voyder, New Stadium Road, Bristol, July 2017
Voyder, New Stadium Road, Bristol, July 2017

It is becoming very difficult to describe Voyder’s work these days, as I feel he has hit such a high level, and that veach work pushes boundaries and demonstrates his command of his craft.

Voyder, New Stadium Road, Bristol, July 2017
Voyder, New Stadium Road, Bristol, July 2017

This is such a beautifully constructed piece and resembles a paper cut out. It is such a pity the photograph just doesn’t do it justice. That red just sets the piece off perfectly.

950. Upfest 2017 (20)

This is a wonderful and photogenic piece by Karl Read, a stencil artist from the south coast who produced another lovely piece at Upfest 2016. A boy dressed as superman wearing converses and flying on a swing is a winning idea, and this piece has movement, tenderness and nostalgia combined in equal measure.

Karl Read, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Karl Read, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I don’t know how he put up with the tiny space he had to work in and the crowds stepping over his kit to get photographs of his work and the adjacent work of Lemak.

Karl Read, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Karl Read, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This was another really striking piece from the festival and has been shared a lot on Instagram over the last week or two. I really rather like it and feel that perhaps it deserved a permanent wall rather than a board, but then I could say that about pretty much everything at the festival. Note for next year…more permanent walls please.

Karl Read, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Karl Read, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

949. Upfest 2017 (19)

Many will instantly recognise the wonderful abstract work of Decay instantly. A Bristol-based graffiti artist who has appeared in numerous posts on this blog, with his characteristic concentric shapes of black, white, grey and red. He was very smart this year – he is a quick worker, and he sprayed his piece early on the Saturday morning before the rain came, and was then free to enjoy the festival with the rest of us punters.

Decay, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Decay, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

I met up with him in one of the venues, I think it was the Rising Sun, by chance which was lucky, because I had told him via Instagram that I wanted to buy one of his lovely new T-shirts and would do so if I met him. The shirt is great, and a nice souvenir of the day. I also had another little souvenir in the shape of one of the spray cans Decay used to spray this piece (the one on the left of the feature image).

Mrs Scooj was not impressed and said that I was behaving like a groupie and should grow up a bit. I prefer to think of myself working alongside these artists, and whilst I admire them I don’t think I idolise them. Without archivists and rapporteurs, our world would be transient and ‘in the moment’ but there would be little in the way of context.

Another fine Decay piece.

Evening drift

 

Evening silence

interrupted only by

the roar of burners.

 

by Scooj

 

  • last evening flight of the Bristol Balloon Fiesta 2017

948. Upfest 2017 (18)

Regular viewers of this blog will be familiar with the talents of Georgie, a Bristol artist who uses many different techniques for her street art work. This time she has selected a collage and spray piece with a nice big smiley face. She has incorporated other pieces of her work in the surrounding collage, including the ‘Citizen of Nowhere’ stencil.

Georgie, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Georgie, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
It was all pretty busy in North Street Green where she was working when I passed through, so I decided not to bother her, especially with the showery weather which made things tricky for artists and visitors alike. This was a wonderfully cheerful piece which really embodied the spirit of Upfest. Keep on Smiling.

947. Upfest (17)

Upfest this year hosted so many talented artists and they produced a plethora of really striking pieces. This one by graffiti artist Sonic Oner is a real eye-catcher, and a quick look at his Facebook page shows you what an extremely talented artist he is.

Sonic Oner, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Sonic Oner, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

It was a real challenge to take good pictures at Upfest this year, because of the very changeable weather conditions, and these pictures just don’t do justice to the amazing contrasts between the black background, the bright green and wispy white.

Sonic Oner, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017
Sonic Oner, Upfest, Bristol, July 2017

This wasn’t the only Upfest piece that Sonic Oner did…he managed to find a permanent wall as well which I will feature in a future post. This really is an outstanding piece.

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.

945. Stokes Croft, the Carriageworks (27)

The work of Face F1st continues to develop and improve. Recently he has moved much more into pastel shades for much of his work, which gives his pieces an unassuming quality. They blend in more with the walls with modesty.

Face F1st, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
Face F1st, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
In this particular piece, Face F1st has become more elaborate with his wildstyle writing, and it is lees obvious that it says ‘face’. Also the face itself has less expression on it that in previous work, giving nothing away to the viewer.

Face F1st, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
Face F1st, Stokes Croft, Bristol, July 2017
The colours and the paisley patterning make this a really interesting piece. It is one that few stop to look at, even taggers, because, I would assert, of its subtlety. (whoah – slow down on the commas).

944. The Bearpit (82)

I am always struck by the work of Sirens. He seems to create stark images in which he contrasts the beauty of the world with utilitarianism. Rural versus urban. Or at least this is how his pieces come across to me.

Sirens, The Bearpit, Bristol, July 2017
Sirens, The Bearpit, Bristol, July 2017

In this one he gives us a gorgeous sunrise appearing over Aylesbury estate, where, reading from his Instagram feed, it would appear Sirens comes from. I keep bumping into Sirens when I go for my lunchtime walks. We always stop for a quick catch up, and every time it is a pleasure. He is unconventional in his approach to street art, and his work is all the better for it. I Love this piece.