6227. Upfest 2024 (42)

Rob Lee, Upfest 2024, West Street, Bristol, July 2024
Rob Lee, Upfest 2024, West Street, Bristol, July 2024

Some murals can only really work at scale, and this is one of them. The relatively simple design by Rob Lee becomes something utterly awesome when plastered on the side of an entire building. I don’t think that visitors to the occupiers of the building would have any difficulty in finding the address… “err, it’s the one with the big pink, yellow, green, blue and lilac stripes on it – you can’t miss it”.

Rob Lee, Upfest 2024, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Rob Lee, Upfest 2024, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

Although the design might be reasonably straightforward, there is a lot of technical subtlety in it, especially with the transition of shades of colour marking the bends in the stripes. The piece would be somewhat bland without the rippling of the stripes and the depth it gives the whole piece. Painting the colours on a black background is a master-stroke, and rounds things off perfectly.

Rob Lee, Upfest 2024, West Street, Bristol, July 2024
Rob Lee, Upfest 2024, West Street, Bristol, July 2024

I have come across a piece by Rob Lee once before, last autumn in Sheffield, and some of you might remember the post. I like the Sheffield piece, but this Upfest one definitely trumps it!

Rob Lee, Sheffield, November 2023
Rob Lee, Sheffield, November 2023

6156. Upfest 2024 (35)

Jagung, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Jagung, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

Lots going on this morning getting in the way of writing posts. The General Election results are in and we will have a labour Government, having seen off the Conservatives… at last. In my constituency a Green candidate won, which is great news, bringing the total of Green MPs up to 4 from 1 before – the start of something exciting perhaps. I am also not feeling too bright – I have tested negative for Covid, so it must be some other stoopid summer bug that I have.

Jagung, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Jagung, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

There were so many outstanding Upfest murals this year, but this was one of the most eye-catching. Painted by Jagung, a young Malaysian artist, who loves to use colour, talking in his profile about playing with colour inversion, although I don’t see any evidence of it here.

Jagung, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Jagung, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

The day I photographed this piece, it was surprisingly busy, and I had to wait a while before I could hog the space. The portrait piece is notable for the large amount of the wall taken up by the orange yellow and red figurative flames, and relatively small portrait – a clever device to create tons of movement and energy.

Jagung, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Jagung, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

A close up of the face and hand of our hero shows that Jagung hasn’t shirked or dodged doing an incredible job with creating the realism of the face within the abstract frame of swirling flames. A hot mural in all senses of the word.

6155. Upfest 2024 (34)

Fesa, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Fesa, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

It looks like Fesa got lucky and managed to paint in two different spots for Upfest this year. I have already posted his Dalmatian dog at the Redpoint Climbing Centre, and this is a four (8) panelled landscape piece that is absolutely wonderful.

Fesa, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Fesa, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

Once again I am reminded of Cezanne-like landscapes of a continental European type, that conjures up a feeling of warmth and vacations. The piece used the window frames really well, reversing our viewpoint, and rather than looking into the building, we are looking out towards this landscape. The gull on the windowsill adds another layer of perspective. I am very drawn to Fesa’s work, and the calmness it gives off – I do hope he returns to Bristol sometime.

Fesa, Redpoint Climbing Centre, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
Fesa, Redpoint Climbing Centre, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024

6131. Upfest 2024 (28)

Luke Smile, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Luke Smile, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

Life in full colour! This outstanding Upfest piece, by Luke Smile in a way reflects the previous two posts (Shane O’ Malley and Paul Monsters) in its joyful use of colour and specific reference to colour in the words. Although this is not the first time I have seen Luke Smile’s work in Bristol, he is not a regular visitor, so it felt especially good to see this piece.

Luke Smile, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024
Luke Smile, Upfest 24, West Street, Bristol, May 2024

Luke Smile is a British artist and designer and has been concentrating on his ‘Smile sans’ font which we see here in this mural. I have lifted Luke Smile’s description of the font from his website, because I am sure his explanation is far better than anything I could write:

‘The bespoke font has a hollow-like quality where the 3D areas of the letterforms leave space for bold colour and texture whilst casting interesting shadows’

I have to say that this piece really struck me when I first saw it and it remains one of my favourites from this year’s festival.

Luke Smile, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2017
Luke Smile, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2017

6092. Upfest 2024 (19)

Karl Read, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
Karl Read, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024

Karl Read is something of a regular at Upfest, which is a great thing, and with each passing festival his work gets better and better. Painted over a stunning piece by Irony (one of my favourite of all time) cannot have been easy, but what Karl Read has replaced it with is worthy of this spot.

Karl Read, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
Karl Read, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024

Karl Read uses large stencils for his work, and certainly in the past I have seen him struggle in windy conditions, but he has absolutely nailed his technique in this piece. The contrast between the black and white figures and the colourful peace sign made out of ‘Lego’ building blocks is a clever mechanism to bring focus to different parts of the work. The message is a poignant one in a troubled landscape of conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine. This is a stunning stencil from a great artist.

Irony, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21
Irony, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21

6076. Upfest 2024 (13)

Artez, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
Artez, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024

This extraordinary mural by Serbian artist Artez is one of the most iconic pieces to emerge from the incredible Upfest 2024, which was staged over three weekends in May and June. Although there wasn’t a street ‘festival’ this year in one of the south Bristol Parks, the organisers triumphed with finding a host of new walls to feature some of the best artists in the world.

Artez, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
Artez, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024

I was not familiar with Artez, as I don’t believe he has visited Bristol before, but after seeing this piece I will most definitely be keeping an eye on him. There is a wonderful connection in this piece with the space it is painted on and the subject, whose tummy aligns with the vertical wall and bent knees reflect the pitch of the roof. Clever stuff.

Artez, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
Artez, West Street, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024

I could spend hours looking at this piece, which gives off an incredible sense of calm and peacefulness. The unusual position that the woman is in adds interest, and the large empty spaces around her draw attention to her face, her body and the folds of material in her clothes. A masterpiece from Artez.

5461. Weston-super-Mare

TEAone, Westonwallz, Weston-super-Mare, May 2023
TEAone, Westonwallz, Weston-super-Mare, May 2023

Sometimes things are just meant to be, and this outstanding piece by TEAone for Westonwallz simply couldn’t be more at home than within this framed spot on the side of a building in West Street, Weston-super-Mare. I am guessing that the frame once played host so some kind of advertising hoarding, or something along those lines.

TEAone, Westonwallz, Weston-super-Mare, May 2023
TEAone, Westonwallz, Weston-super-Mare, May 2023

TEAone is an exceptional artist and painted one of my favourite pieces at Upfest 2022 (below). Everything about this piece is perfect, and it captures a typical traditional beach-front scene perfectly, with colourful awning, donkeys and a boy on a bicycle. Packed full of atmosphere alongside serenity. This is a magical piece by TEAone… it would make a perfect jigsaw puzzle too.

TEAone, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
TEAone, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

4519. Upfest 2022 (16)

I have met Goin only once and it was at an Upfest a few years ago. He had just finished a stencil piece in a spot that was not a recognised Upfest wall (let’s call it) and was looking rather sheepish. I tried to strike up a conversation with him, but he wished to keep his anonymity intact and was backwards in coming forwards (and who can blame him). Things have moved on since then, and Goin has created this magnificent wall for Upfest 2022.

Goin, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022
Goin, Upfest 22, Bristol, May 2022

I had to have a couple of goes at photographing this piece, because there were shadows running across the wall in my first attempts. This was one of the first walls to be completed at this year’s Upfest, and is a real statement piece. Big, bold and simple the girl in greyscale is wearing a beret, but the only revolution here is for love. The only colour is a red badge on her beret and the heart cushion she is clasping to her chest. The piece feels important and significant and is a strong message in these uncertain and troubling times.

4035. Upfest 2021 75×75 (72)

On the wall adjacent to the recent Irony piece that I posted last week is this Upfest 21 contribution from John Curtis, a well-known Bristol artist who seems to be as comfortable painting large walls as he is with his canvasses.

John Curtis, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21
John Curtis, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21

John Curtis’s USP is recreating Bristol urban landscapes, full of movement and light and chiming with locals because the subjects are usually familiar landmarks. This piece beautifully captures the M Shed and the old cranes that stand to attention on the harbourside.

John Curtis, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21
John Curtis, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21

This sight would warm the hearts of any native of the city and is beautifully captured. A fine contribution to the 75 walls in 75 days event.

This leaves me with only three more pieces to post from Upfest’s 75×75. Two of them I know about, but haven’t yet been able to photograph, but the last one evades me, so I am going to have to do some detective work before I can complete the whole set.

4027. Upfest 2021 75×75 (71)

We have been so spoiled this year with the Upfest 75 walls in 75 days event, and in particular with some extraordinary pieces by Irony. This is the second Irony piece from the event, and is an absolutely extraordinary portrait.

Irony, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21
Irony, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21

Irony is known for his female portraits that it is difficult to keep your eyes off. The photorealistic detail and depth is beyond astonishing, and puts this artist right up into the world top league alongside other artists like Bubblegum in Barcelona.

Irony, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21
Irony, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21

Looking deep into those eyes, it is impossible to know what the girl is thinking, and as with many of his portraits, her emotions are not easy to read, inert almost, and yet she is wonderfully animated. I think the blue hair is a touch of genius that works so well with this wall and this spot.

Irony, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21
Irony, West Street, Bristol, October 2021, Upfest 21

I made several attempts at photographing this wall, but it is not easy as the immediate front yard has become a bit of a building site and there are two rather unhelpful black wheely bins that are totally in the way most of the time.

In my view, this is one of the best pieces to appear in Bristol in 2021.