Tag: Writer

5478. Cheltenham 2023 (10)

Inkie, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
Inkie, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

You can be pretty certain that Inkie will have a presence at the Cheltenham Paint Festival, which is great. What is even better is that although this piece was from the 2022 Festival, I managed to find it this time round… only a year late, but better than nothing I suppose.

Inkie, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
Inkie, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

The character/writing combination is along the lines that you would expect to see. A beautiful girl with long flowing hair alongside some large block writing. I am not too sure what the ‘St Pauls’ refers to. There is a St Paul’s church very near where this was painted, but it could I suppose be a reference to Bristol’s St Paul’s district. Unmistakably Inkie, the piece is still looking fresh as a daisy. Nice Tribute to Julian too.

5477. Cheltenham 2023 (9)

SkyHigh, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
SkyHigh, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

Each time I think that SkyHigh can’t possibly up his game, he manages to do so with what appears to be ease. I can’t imagine he has too much headroom for improvement, but hey, this is SkyHigh we’re talking about (no pun intended).

SkyHigh, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
SkyHigh, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

This large piece is a perfect mash-up of characters, letter fonts and styles, seamlessly joined together to spell out SkyHigh in several combinations. The inclusion of Mickey Mouse, Pluto and Donald Duck add a sense of fun to the piece as well as being a bit weird with some additional eyes thrown in for good measure.

SkyHigh, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
SkyHigh, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

One of the awesome things about the piece is how SkyHigh manages to compartmentalise each element as tight as tight can be, and yet there is a fluidity that makes sense of each of the components into an impressive whole. This is as close to graffiti writing perfection as you can get.

5476. Cheltenham 2023 (8)

Smerk, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
Smerk, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

UPDATE (2 November 2023): On posting this piece on Instagram I am informed by Smak that this piece is not by him and that the content of this post should be ignored. This happens from time to time. The piece is by Smerk, and the letters indeed spell SMERK. A forgivable mistake on my part.

I haven’t seen too much work by Smak in Bristol recently, so it was great to see this piece on the multi-story car park in Cheltenham at this year’s Paint Festival. The first thing to notice about this Smak piece is that it is really rather different from the usual style of his writing. That isn’t to say he isn’t incredibly versatile, simply that this is a small departure, and one I rather like.

Smerk, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023
Smerk, Cheltenham Paint Festival, Cheltenham, July 2023

The letters in this piece have a slight 1920s/30s feel to them, like a modern version of something you might see at a lido or cinema, if you know what I mean. Perhaps it is the colour palette or the deep 3D shadows in red, combined with the letter shapes, I don’t know, but the overall effect is most pleasing and very easy on the eye. Unfortunately, by the time I got to the car park, Smak had already finished, but there were plenty of other artists up there to catch up with.

5473. M32 roundabout J3 (506)

Sled One, M32 roundbout, Bristol, August 2023
Sled One, M32 roundbout, Bristol, August 2023

I would have to say that seeing new artwork pretty much every day of my life fills me with deep pleasure, but there are some artists that max out that feeling and one of them is Sled One. Possibly better known for his wild and surreal character pieces, Sled One is a fantastically accomplished graffiti writer too, as this piece on the roundabout demonstrates.

Sled One, M32 roundbout, Bristol, August 2023
Sled One, M32 roundbout, Bristol, August 2023

I guess the thing that stands out in this beautifully crafted piece is the fill in the letters SLED1. To me the fill looks like an old stone wall with a choppy sea alongside. Whatever it is meant to be, what is remarkable is that it is contiguous throughout the letters, creating a scene to be viewed through the letters. Some mint-green flashes add further interest. This is a masterful piece of writing from one of Bristol’s best.

You can view a gallery of Sled One’s extraordinary work here

5470. Brunel Way (224)

Bean, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2023
Bean, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2023

It was while he was finishing off this writing/character piece that I first met Bean, and what a decent bloke he is too. We chatted for a while, and I was impressed by his knowledge of other artists in the city, which believe me, isn’t always the case with graffiti writers or street artists, who can sometimes be locked into their own work or crew and immediate friends.

Bean, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2023
Bean, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2023

I don’t know where Bean refined his skills before coming to Bristol, but he has definitely hit the ground running with immaculately finished work. This piece combines his character skills with a lovely piece of writing in great colours. The whole thing might have benefited from buffing the wall, to help it stand out a little from the fairly busy wall beneath it. There is an awful lot to like about this piece, and indeed the others that are adjacent to it. For a short while, this stretch of wall was ‘owned’ by Bean. I am definitely enjoying what he has to offer, and look forward to more from him.

Bean, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2023
Bean, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2023

5469. Dean Lane skate park (633)

Noise, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2023
Noise, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2023

Noise has only recently come into my consciousness, but I don’t know whether that is because he is reasonably new to Bristol or whether I simply had a blind spot. Whatever the reason, I seem to see his pieces on a reasonably regular basis, which is great, because I like his rather big brash letters.

Noise, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2023
Noise, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2023

This piece on the recently bricked up wall under one of the large Dean Lane skate park ramps spells out NOISE in great big chunky letters that take no prisoners. There is plenty of room for fills, which are beautifully done in turquoise and white, bounded by tidy black borders and drop shadow and a red outline. This is another attractive piece from Noise.

5468. River Avon (51)

Wxttsart, River Avon, Bristol, August 2023
Wxttsart, River Avon, Bristol, August 2023

With the turnover of art in Bristol being such as it is, I get an awful lot of pieces left behind in my archives, and then I forget whether I have posted them or not. I guess that this is a bit of a first-world problem, but it troubles me a little. I was certain that I had posted this piece by Wxttsart, but it would seem as though I hadn’t. It is still in great condition, so perhaps it is relatively recent, and I am mistaking it for another similar piece. Anyhoo, it is a bit of a blinder.

Wxttsart, River Avon, Bristol, August 2023
Wxttsart, River Avon, Bristol, August 2023

I describe Wxttsart’s work as a bit of a blend of calligraffiti with a touch of anti-style. I’m not too sure how the artist would describe it, but it is unique and always recognisable. The red script letters spelling MILK are nicely proportioned (a feature of calligraffiti) and have been bestowed with a deep 3D drop shadow in lilac shades. The whole thing is set on a fine green cloudy backdrop which contrasts well with the letters. This is another great piece from Wxttsart.

5458. M32 Cycle path (225)

Desi, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, August 2023
Desi, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, August 2023

Ooh! I love this recent piece from Desi, whose work just gets better and better. This time she is writing VEIL, one of her two variants, but with joined up script writing, which is a new and exciting development that works rather well.

Desi, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, August 2023
Desi, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, August 2023

I have often been quite critical of artists who don’t buff walls before they paint, because the underlying graffiti can often be distracting, but Desi, whether by design or luck, has managed to pull it off with this piece. The background somehow complements her writing and helps it to stand out. Beautiful curvy letter shapes are accompanied by great blue and pink fills (that B/P combo again), perfectly blended. I think that this might just be my favourite piece from Desi yet.

5456. East Street

Taboo, East Street, Bristol, August 2023
Taboo, East Street, Bristol, August 2023

I went on a bit of a wild goose chase last week looking for some boards in Bedminster, but was completely unable to find them. The walk, however, took me to East Street after working hours and all the shops were closed, and I was in shutter heaven.

Taboo, East Street, Bristol, August 2023
Taboo, East Street, Bristol, August 2023

This shutter piece by Taboo, which I think is unlikely to be a commission, but you never know, spells out Boser, the significance of which passes me by. The anti-style letters are accompanied by an anti-style cartoon Tom cat from Tom and Jerry, with four ‘echo’ faces adjacent to the first. Typically anarchic and somehow charmingly comforting, this Taboo piece ticks all the right boxes. I am not too sure about the orange figure 8, which isn’t a motif I have seen in his work before, and I believe it to be a subsequent addition by a tagger, although the orange does match the letter ‘B’ in his signature. A mystery.

5454. Greenbank (92)

Evey, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023
Evey, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023

What fun it has been to follow Evey’s progress as a graffiti writer over the last few years. She has come a long way, and this recent RBF paint jam Barbie piece, I suspect, may have stretched her somewhat, and she has carried it off brilliantly.

Evey, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023
Evey, Greenbank, Bristol, August 2023

The font is Barbieish, without conceding too much to the Mattel brand, but also works very well as an Evey piece. Some nice clean lines and solid fills, although some colours are a little bit thin in places. I only recently discovered (a tip from I bee W) that spray cans often have a little graphic on the can describing how thick or thin the paint is – good to know and explains why sometimes you can use twice as much of one colour than another. This is a fine piece from Evey on what looked like it was a super-fun day.