Tag: Urban

262. Dean Lane skate park (8)

Now I am back in the UK, after a wonderful trip across ‘the pond’, I can resume my posts on Bristol street art/graffiti (with maybe a couple of guest entries from New York).

This is a truly brilliant collaboration from a few weeks ago in Dean Lane between Zesk and Hemper. Zesk has appeared in these pages a couple of times, and his writing is becoming much more familiar, especially his choice of colours (purples and golds) combined with spheres. Hemper I haven’t come across before, which is a little surprising as he has been writing in Bristol since 2009. There is a lovely profile on Hemper here – from the great ‘Weapon of Choice‘ website.

Zesk and Hemper, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016
Zesk and Hemper (detail), Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016

This collaboration was a bit of fun, and I think was sprayed at the same time as the recent Inkie piece. You will notice that a writer – Suger – has made an appearance. His improving burners are turning up all over the place in Bristol.

Zesk and Hemper, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016
Zesk and Hemper, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016

Now back to the streets, where I have already noticed a whole bunch of new stuff has gone up while I have been away.

Central Park

 

A restful moment

snatched from the frenetic jaws

of the Big Apple.

 

by Scooj

 

 

261. The Bearpit (19)

19When it comes to Deamze pieces, we have come to expect some complex and elaborate wildstyle work. It is not always the case though, and this is an example of a simpler style of piece that he produces from time to time.

Deamze, The Bearpit, Bristol, April 2016
Deamze, The Bearpit, Bristol, April 2016

More like a throw up (a rapidly produced and usually spontaneous work), this clean and simple piece demonstrates the full range of talent springing from the incredibly prolific Deamze. Bristol’s greatest writer?

Deamze, The Bearpit, Bristol, April 2016
Deamze, The Bearpit, Bristol, April 2016

Flight arrival

 

A New World welcome,

overwhelming heat follows

air conditioning.

 

by Scooj

259. North Street, Workout (2)

It recently occurred to me that I am going to have to work through my backlog of Upfest 2015 pieces, because it will not be too long before they get replaced during the 2016 extravaganza and appear a little out of date. July 23-25 will see an influx of 300 artists showing off their talent, and I have to say I can’t wait. Among them will be Louis Masai, a London based artist who is renowned for his beautiful animal works.

Louis Masai, North Street, Bristol, January 2016
Louis Masai, North Street, Bristol, January 2016

Louis Masai gained an art degree from Falmouth in Cornwall, and has been living in London since 2010. More about him from his own website. This is a beautiful picture of two macaws (I seem to have posted a lot of these lately) and a clear and simple message that they belong in the wild and not in cages. I can go with that. His work is outstanding and his presence in Bristol this year will be a real bonus.

 

258. Sydenham Lane

I believe The Krah is only an occasional visitor to Bristol, so I was surprised and rather pleased to find this small stencil on a door in Sydenham Lane. I was not looking for any street art, but simply taking a short cut…or different route down into Stokes Croft. This was my reward.

The Krah, Sydenham Lane, Bristol, May 2016
The Krah, Sydenham Lane, Bristol, May 2016

I wrote a short post about a lovely piece The Krah did in Leonard Lane, which was rather different in technique to this delightful stencil. Sometimes these small pieces can be the most pleasing, and they sit very neatly on the vast spectrum of all that Bristol street art has to offer. As with so many stencils, there is a sinister side to this girl – the grenade and machine gun remind us that we live in a violent and crazy world.

257. Dean Lane skate park (7)

To find an Inkie work is always a pleasure. To find one that is still fresh, and you can almost smell the paint is even better. This piece was obviously a bit of fun, because the walls here at Dean Land skate park are over painted pretty much weekly.

Inkie, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016
Inkie, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016

I have a feeling that a few artists came together to spray these walls together last weekend, because in addition to Inkie, Zesk and Hemper and Mr Draws had all sprayed pieces at the same time. I am finding out that quite often groups of artists will congregate and have graffiti fun together.

Inkie, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016
Inkie, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016

I still stand out as an observer of street art, because that is what I am. Very slowly I am learning a little bit more about the culture, the relationships, the taboos and the protocols of the graffiti community, but I will always be an outsider looking in. It is not a regret, but more of an observation. It also means that my naivety in this landscape is sometimes crushingly obvious.

I do this though because it gives me great pleasure.

Snooze

 

Forty winks snatched high

in the air, hidden from the

wreckless crowd below.

 

by Scooj

256. Moon Street (13)

This is a collaboration, or at least two pieces that were completed simultaneously, between Kid Crayon and Subtle. I have posted a great deal of Kid Crayon’s works, and once again he appears to have dispensed with his trademark crayon in favour of a spray can.

Kid Crayon and Subtle, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2016
Kid Crayon and Subtle, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2016

I know little about Subtle, and can’t think that I have seen his stuff before, or if I have, I haven’t registered it. This is a decent wildstyle burner. Both pieces have been in place for a month, and thus far respected by taggers. This seems to happen a lot with Kid Crayon’s work, it is rarely defaced.

Subtle, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2016
Subtle, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2016

As a combination these work well. I am a big fan of Kid Crayon, so these get a big ‘high-five’ from me.

Kid Crayon, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2016
Kid Crayon, Moon Street, Bristol, April 2016

 

 

255. Dean Lane skate park (6)

Time to introduce another Bristol based street artist whose work I have seen dotted all around Bristol. This is a very recent piece which I found while actually looking for something else, which seems to be de rigueur in hunting down street art.

Mr Draws, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016
Mr Draws, Dean Lane skate park, Bristol, May 2016

The artist is called Mr Draws (Nathaniel Draws) and his various biographies state that he likes 1950’s pin ups, collage and everything old and vintage. He has one of those self-fulfilling names…he could only ever have become an artist. I work in the environmental sector, and have worked with a Wren, a Raven, a Fish, a Waters…the list goes on…I often wonder how much their name shaped a bias for wildlife/the environment. I am straying from the point. I will post more about Mr Draw’s works, which are refreshingly different.