The Natural Adventures accolade for most improved and diligent artist in 2023 goes to Evey, whose work last year has been nothing short of inspirational. A regular member of RBF paint jams, Evey has gone from strength to strength and appears to be a much more confident artist than she was a couple of years ago. Practice really does make perfect.
Evey, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2023
This superb piece was painted during a paint jam celebrating Pekoe’s birthday back in December. She has painted some solid letters with wonderful fills in three shades of green, and a host of decorations and squiggles. The exclamation mark at the end makes reference to the people of Palestine and their struggles in the face of daily Israeli bombing raids. A great piece to round off her excellent 2023.
Ryder, Inkie and Mr Riks, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2023
When Inkie is in town, he will often get together with friends and paint a collaborative wall, and often it is this one in Dean Lane. On this occasion he got together with Ryder and Mr Riks, which is not a trio of artists that would ordinarily spring to mind, but the street art scene is always full of surprises.
Ryder, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2023
Ryder doesn’t paint at Dean Lane all that often, but he has smashed it with this rather condensed burner painted in orange and grey. The RYDER letters are nicely worked, with the orange bleeding out into the background at the top of some of them. The colour palette which includes a dark blue and black isn’t one that I would instinctively chose, but works incredibly well in this striking piece of graffiti writing.
Inkie, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2023
Most of the time, you pretty much know what you are going to get from Inkie, and this chrome piece delivers in bucket-loads. Great design and precision are trademarks from the gentle giant, who is probably one of Bristol’s most famous street artists after Banksy, alongside Nick Walker and Cheo. Inkie has such a distinctive style, that I reckon he could write any combination of letters and it would be easy to identify.
Mr Riks, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2023
To the right, another artist with a distinctive style, Mr Riks, has gone for this colourful piece, which is full of energy and joy. Although, not the focal point of the piece, the cartoon eyes are irresistible and draw attention. Great fills and a wonderful drop shadow, this is a fine piece of graffiti writing from Mr Riks.
This collaborative wall brings together three graffiti writers, each with very strong and distinctive styles, opting to paint in colours of their choice, making it a loose collaboration – more like three friends painting a wall together, without a theme or agenda. Great stuff.
It has been a while since I last posted a piece by Mena, and in fact, I think that she is rather underrepresented on Natural Adventures overall. I am sure that I have several photographs of her pieces in my archives that I never posted, which feels kind of wrong really and I am minded to do something about it when I find the time.
Mena, River Avon, Bristol, December 2023
It would be quite easy to walk past this piece and dismiss it, but that would be quite wrong. This is classy writing of the highest level. Great letters, with a nicely worked drop shadow and a brilliant and intricate fill pattern that runs throughout. The icing on the cake is the brilliant white accents to the right of the letters helping the piece to pop from the wall. This is great stuff from Mena.
While I know of Mr Devas, the artist who painted this graffiti writing in the tunnel, I have a feeling that this is the first time I have ever posted a piece by him on Natural Adventures. This tells me that he is an occasional visitor to Bristol and not a regular.
Mr Devas, St Werburghs, Bristol, December 2023
The writing spells out DEVAS and reminds me a little of Javiceus’ writing style and colours. The interlocking letters in blue and pink (the memorable colours of 2023) are nicely thought out and beautifully painted, supported by a classy 3D drop shadow in black. Nice work – I’ll have to see if I have other pieces by Mr Devas in my archive.
This piece by Mr Keos, was definitely worthy of inclusion in Natural Adventures, as it is rather different from any writing that we usually see in the city. Looking at his Instagram feed, it looks like Mr Keos paints all over the country and was simply passing through Bristol in December nd dropped a couple of pieces.
Mr Keos, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, December 2023
His letters are big, bold and distinctive, no chance of any confusion here. The work oozes experience from an artist who appears to be very prolific. The chrome letters stand out nicely on the orange background and the subtle black feature patterns at the base of the letters turn this from a good piece of graffiti writing into something rather better. I’ll be looking out for at least one other piece he painted in Bristol.
I walked past this piece by The Mole, when I first saw it, thinking that it was an old one that I had posted before, but I did a double-take and returned to it, because although it was similar to another piece by the artist, it was new and in a different location. It was one that nearly got away.
The Mole, River Avon, Bristol, December 2023
The writing says INCA, referring to the artist’s full name Inca the Mole. Painted in colours that he often uses, the letters are supported by the mole character. The Mole generally paints three forms of his work, The mole alone, the letters INCA or, as in this case, a writing/character combination. The piece is nicely rounded off with peace symbols, which usually accompany The Mole’s work. A fine and rather unexpected piece, from the frequent visitor to Bristol.
I would say that we haven’t seen nearly enough of Stivs’ work in the latter half of this year, so it was particularly gratifying to find this piece on the M32 roundabout, and even though it didn’t last very long, it was noticed.
Stivs, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2023
The calligraffiti writing was painted as a birthday piece for his brother Kelvin, and I can’t really think of a better present than a tribute piece of artwork like this, I know I’d be made up by such a gesture. The beautifully proportioned letters are given an extra lift from the wall by the clever use of the green drop shadow, which itself has a black border. Care and attention was given to the piece, as demonstrated by the sand coloured background and subtle wisps of paint around the letters. Great work from Stivs.
Smak has rounded off his year with some style, producing a string of outstanding pieces over the last six months or so, with this one, a paint jam piece for Pekoe’s birthday being the latest. This is an absolute classic, written in Smak’s distinctive style, where each letter is afforded plenty of space for elaboration.
Smak, M32 roundabout, Bristol, December 2023
The letters are painted in greens and yellows, which is usually a winning combination of colours. The letters SMAK can clearly be seen, and have been stunningly designed. When I see a complex piece of graffiti writing like this, I am left utterly awestruck by the artist’s ability to create such a thing of beauty with spray cans. A triumphant piece from Smak.
Bnie and Vozie, Frome Side, Bristol, November 2023
Two more pieces from the incredible RBF Rugrats paint jam in November celebrating Bnie’s birthday and Vozie’s baby. Here the two combine to give us a glimpse of their awesome artwork. As a combination, these two paint really well together and seem to get the best out of each other.
Bnie, Frome Side, Bristol, November 2023
Both artists have adopted the colour palette used for the paint jam and both have included characters from the to cartoon show, Dil and Tommy Pickles. I was just a little too old to enjoy the show, but my kids used to watch it when they were little. The accomplished piece of writing from Bnie is filled with four horizontal shades of pink/purple, creating depth and interest in the work.
Vozie, Frome Side, Bristol, November 2023
To the right of Bnie’s letters, Vozie has reflected the fills in her own distinct lettering. Both have also created a complex letter border of green with white and yellow highlights, a black drop shadow, completed with an orange outline finishing the piece off beautifully. Great work from this talented duo.
