5023. Cumberland Basin

Mommynature and Nugmoose, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2023
Mommynature and Nugmoose, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2023

It has been a pure joy to see the recent collaborative walls from Mommynature and Nugmoose and to see how their contrasting styles sit comfortably side by side. As seems typical when artists paint together, Mommynature is usually on the left and Nugmoose on the right.

Mommynature and Nugmoose, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2023
Mommynature and Nugmoose, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2023

The beautiful pigeon in front of a yellow sun is by Mommynature and clearly demonstrates her growing confidence with painting walls and owning her space. The stencil-effect of the piece is cleverly executed, too. To the right, Nugmoose has painted another avant-garde piece, the explanation of which is deeply rooted in his own imagination. There is some alien writing and alien forms, all presented in a rather trippy fashion. I am loving these two and look forward to their next creative collaboration.

5020. Dean Lane skate park (565)

Acer One, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2023
Acer One, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2023

I just happened to be in Dean Lane skate park as Acer One was starting this piece. It was quite busy down there at the time, with Silver (thank you, Paul H for reminding me) painting opposite, DJ Perks who had just finished a piece on the pool wall (I think) and Peggy was on the sloping wall near the raised skate park, painting a floral piece. I do like it when there are lots of people to chat with.

Acer One, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2023
Acer One, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2023

The wonderful piece, by Acer One, is a tribute to Shimmer, another artist taken away from us far too early in life. It is clear that Shimmer was a popular character, and there are tribute pieces all over the city dedicated to him. There is a lovely sense of order and geometry in this piece, but of course there is, it is by Acer One after all. Acer One uses a long ruler with a handle to achieve his straight lines, but you can see that he has also used the brick course to keep everything flush. A fine tribute.

5019. Brunel Way (192)

Klashwhensober, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2023
Klashwhensober, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2023

Klashwhensober is utterly relentless. I reckon that I only post about one in five of his pieces, and I currently have a lot of catching up to do. This recent piece under Brunel Way is something a little different and special from the artist, and demonstrates his versatility.

Klashwhensober, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2023
Klashwhensober, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2023

Set on a grey background and ‘stitched together’ with a blue line running up and down and across the piece, Klashwhensober’s letters ‘SOBER’ each have their own character and design. I particularly like the E and R at the right hand end. The colours work pretty well together and the 3D drop shadow does a great job in lifting the letters away from the background. An unusual offering from Klashwhensober, but one that works really well. I’d welcome more like this from him.

5017. L Dub (38)

Donz, L Dub, Bristol, February 2023
Donz, L Dub, Bristol, February 2023

I don’t visit L Dub (Lawrence Weston) very often, and so there is always quite a lot of new stuff to look at when I do make the trip. I have heard DJ Perks talk to me about Donz, a painting friend, many times, but this is the first time I have featured him on Natural Adventures – it will not be the last.

Donz, L Dub, Bristol, February 2023
Donz, L Dub, Bristol, February 2023

This fresh piece, spelling DONZ, is rather unusual, having white letters and borders of red , blue, pink and green – some nice original thinking going on here. This might sound strange, but I feel that there are some similarities with Benjimagnetic’s work, although a greatly simplified version of it. Perhaps it is the block patterns or the arrows, but there are several components that both artists use. Anyhow, this is a great piece to introduce Donz to Natural Adventures.

5013. M32 roundabout J3 (450)

Hypo and Hemper, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023
Hypo and Hemper, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023

It has been a joy to watch some recent collaborations from Hypo and Hemper, and this is the most recent on the M32 roundabout. What is immediately apparent is that their styles are quite different, and that this is less a collaboration and more a painting together, and that is part of the gig, knowing that friends paint together having fun.

Hypo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023
Hypo, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023

The Hypo piece is a rhapsody in green, accompanied by four graffiti arrows, adding a bit of dynamism to the letters. Due to the recent burst of activity by Hypo, I feel I now have enough of his pieces to post a gallery of his work, so watch this space.

Hemper, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023
Hemper, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2023

Hemper has absolutely smashed it again with this outstanding HEMS piece, which is technically (and visually) brilliant. The burst of colours cross-faded through the lettering is masterful, and filling in the gaps between the letters with little green spheres in genius. Hemper has a knack of creating perfectly unique graffiti writing pieces every time he splashes paint on a wall. Love it.

5011. St Werburghs Tunnel (351)

Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2023
Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2023

How nice it was to see Mr Klue again, when he was painting a new piece adjacent to this one last week in the tunnel. At first, I didn’t recognise him, as it has been a few years since we last met. During the course of our conversation, I managed to establish that he always writes KLUE in his pieces, and never deviates, which is great to know, because there have been times when I thought he has written something else altogether.

Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2023
Mr Klue, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2023

This, I think, is one of my favourite Mr Klue pieces, Mainly on account of the colour selection. I love the reds, yellows and oranges, which combined with the wispy, smokey style of Mr Klue’s work give the impression of fire. Now that I know it definitely says KLUE, I can see it so much more clearly – funny how the mind can fill the gaps when you have a little bit of information/confirmation. A wonderful piece from a lovely man.

5010. Chatterton Square (7)

Acer One and Andy Council, Chatterton Square, Bristol, December 2023
Acer One and Andy Council, Chatterton Square, Bristol, December 2023

Although I photographed this piece reasonably recently (back in December), it actually dates from October 2022. It is yet another fine combination from painting pals Acer One and Andy Council, and what a productive year they both had in 2022.

Acer One and Andy Council, Chatterton Square, Bristol, December 2023
Acer One and Andy Council, Chatterton Square, Bristol, December 2023

To the left is a rather nice birthday shout out by Acer to fellow graffiti writer Ziml, painted in the stylised font that is by now so familiar on the streets of Bristol. To the right is a Cheech Wizard, by Andy Council, constructed out of buildings and other component parts. It has just occurred to me while writing this column that the way Andy Council composes his work resembles the work of the incredible 16th Century Italian artist Giuseppe Arcimboldo, who painted portraits composed of fruit and vegetables. I never thought I’d be writing that in Natural Adventures, but there you go.

5008. St Werburghs tunnel (350)

Kid Krishna, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2023
Kid Krishna, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2023

I met Kid Krishna for the very first time when he just completed buffing this wall and had begun this large and complex piece. As luck would have it, I met him again in exactly the same spot a couple of days later, it is funny how things like that happen.

Kid Krishna, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2023
Kid Krishna, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2023

This is a magnificent beast, monumentally intricate and bewildering. His letters are so well disguised, that they simply become part of the overall experience – a little bit like Mr Klue’s work. This piece is a real workout for the eyes, in that search to make sense of it. The technique Kid Krishna uses to paint these writing pieces is to lay down the main structure of the letters with a roller, and then to add the borders and details, and it works very effectively. Kid Krishna told me that he is thinking of shifting to a new idea, so I’ll be scouring the streets to see what he does.

5007. Cumberland Basin

Desi, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2023
Desi, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2023

I met Desi earlier this week when she was painting a new piece in Dean Lane with her friend Lupa. I took the opportunity to ask Desi why she had started painting the letters VEIL, and her answer was swift and honest – “no reason, I just wanted to play with some letters”. So there you have it, sometimes there simply isn’t a backstory or meaning.

Desi, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2023
Desi, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2023

This is a very nice piece, simple in structure and well executed. Desi continues to improve, with strong fills and sharper lines, getting better with each new piece. It is interesting that most times (but not always, as I have learned to my deep embarrassment)  you can spot the gender of the artist. For example, it would be a rare thing for a male artist to put a heart instead of a dot on top of the “i” as Desi has done here. It is almost as if handwriting is transposed onto the wall in some way.

5006. St Werburghs tunnel (349)

Lee Roy, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2023
Lee Roy, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2023

Lee Roy is a writer whose work I really rather enjoy. His writing is a little unconventional and always interesting to look at. This recent piece in the tunnel is an immediate attention-grabber on account of its use of orange on a turquoise background.

Lee Roy, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2023
Lee Roy, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2023

The letters are uniform in size, and the letter design is exceptional. The fills and fill patterns are quite subtle, but beautifully worked. This is one of the best Lee Roy pieces that I have seen – a true beauty.