5181. Cottrell Road (3)

Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023
Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023

This extraordinary piece by Zase is one of the most beautiful pieces in the city right now, if not the most beautiful. It is the third consecutive piece by the artist on this wall that I can remember, and like its predecessors has already become something of a landmark adjacent to the Eastville roundabout.

Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023
Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023

Continuing on today’s insect theme from Sled One’s Burberry bumblebee piece in the previous post, this piece is all about the honey bees. To the left, dandelions in flower and seed dominate the woodland (hinted) scene, while two bees navigate their way through the floating ‘parachute’ seeds.

Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023
Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023

The dandelion is, on its own, a work of art and I find myself utterly confounded as to how Zase painted this with spray paint.The finest detail has been incorporated, and his observational skills are outstanding, with the little marks left on the seed head by departed seeds.

Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023
Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023

The yellow and orange honeycomb letters spell out ZASE in some of the best anamorphic graffiti writing you’ll be lucky enough to see, and a bee has settled on the comb to the right.

Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023
Zase, Cottrell Road, Bristol, April 2023

The whole thing is a masterpiece and a fabulous advert for the artist who paints commissions. If I could afford it…

Zase and Dekor, Cottrell Road, Bristol, September 2017
Zase and Dekor, Cottrell Road, Bristol, September 2017
Zase and Dekor, Cottrell Street, Bristol, August 2015
Zase and Dekor, Cottrell Street, Bristol, August 2015

5179. Sparke Evans Park (68)

Bnie, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2023
Bnie, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2023

There were so many exceptional pieces painted for the ‘Burberry check’ themed paint jam down at Sparke Evans Park, and in the main they were of the highest quality. I might be pushing the boat out here a bit, but this might be one of the best pieces I have seen by Bnie altogether.

Bnie, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2023
Bnie, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2023

Her distinctive letters have been given the Burberry treatment, but it is not only the familiar check patterns that are stunningly presented, but the 3D drop shadow and border are so neat and tidy too. The whole thing is set on a dark blue wall with some cloudy wisps around the edges which help the writing to pop out a bit from the wall. Absolutely stunning work from Bnie.

5178. M32 roundabout J3 (469)

Hire, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2023
Hire, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2023

I was lucky enough to run into Hire and Cort when they were painting alongside each other on a rather lovely afternoon a week or two back. You don’t often get to see Hire’s work on this roundabout wall, so it was a pleasant surprise to see him painting there.

Hire, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2023
Hire, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2023

As I would always expect, his piece oozes quality and class. Set on a wonderful blue background, Hire has spelled out HIRE and added a wonderful angry bunny accompaniment. Just in passing, this photograph illustrates the weight of decades of paint that has been plastered on this wall and which ripples and bubbles – at some point large chunks of paint will tumble off the wall under its own weight.

Hire, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2023
Hire, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2023

The letters are outstanding, and their uniformity of design is touching on calligraffiti. Little puffy clouds are intertwined with the letters. Of course, Hire has given us the extra light of a bunny, that is like a mega-tag for the artist.

5175. Sparke Evans Park (67)

Mena, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2023
Mena, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2023

This stunner by Mena, writing MENAS, is her contribution to the recent Burberry’s themed paint jam, recently held in Sparke Evans Park. It is a clever theme, with each artist incorporating the Burberry check in their own way. It is interesting how a household brand is so instantly recognisable, even if it isn’t necessarily presented in the form that we are used to seeing.

Mena, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2023
Mena, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, April 2023

This is a real quality piece of writing from Mena, whose work is probably underrepresented on Natural Adventures. It might even be the best that I have seen from her. Perfect colours, complex checks and a sound 3D drop-shadow and border combine to make this a most enjoyable piece. A couple more and I will have enough for a gallery.

5172. Elton Street (22)

Fishlock and Fyona Finn, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2022
Fishlock and Fyona Finn, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2022

Following on immediately from the previous post featuring Katie Fishlock, here is a piece that she painted, in collaboration with Fyona Finn back in April 2022, a year ago. Once again we see a bold statement accompanied by a carefully crafted illustration.

Fishlock and Fyona Finn, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2022
Fishlock and Fyona Finn, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2022

Fishlock’s style seems to be very much about the message and arresting imageryto help drive it home. Some clever wordplay is at work here and the phrase can be read as ‘Love is expansive’ or a rather more pessimistic version ‘Love is expensive’. I suspect both are true statements, and that is the point. I don’t know which artist did which bit of this piece, but as a collaboration it works perfectly. Maybe we’ll have another chapter in April 2024.

5171. Elton Street (21)

Fishhlock, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2023
Fishhlock, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2023

I go to great lengths to try and keep my street art/graffiti posts fresh by mixing up the locations and artists each time I post. Today I am making an exception, posting not only the same artist, Katie Fishlock, in two consecutive posts, but also in the same spot, Elton street.

Fishhlock, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2023
Fishhlock, Elton Street, Bristol, April 2023

I am not particularly familiar with Fishlock’s work, although the next post is a piece by her from last year. I think she is mostly a designer and illustrator working in the studio, who from time to time paints murals. Her messages are usually pretty hard-hitting, and this particular phrase is something she has been working on in her designs. Really eye-catching and interesting. A simple message very tidily delivered.

5170. Dean Lane skate park (591)

Slim Pickings (Tes), Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2023
Slim Pickings (Tes), Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2023

There was a time, when turnover was slower and the number of artists was fewer, that I would post every piece by Slim Pickings (TES) that I saw. Now, I have an embarrassingly large number of his pieces sitting in my archive, so I have a feeling that I might have to round them up and do a special post of his work from the last couple of years. This is indicative of the up tick in activity these days.

Slim Pickings (Tes), Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2023
Slim Pickings (Tes), Dean Lane, Bristol, April 2023

This recent TES was painted on a sloping surface, and not the easiest to photograph – at times like this, a little drone would come in very handy. Nicely done in blues with pink splats and drips. The more observant viewer might notice another TES in the background, just beneath the letters DLH (which stands for Dean Lane Hardcore – an annual music/graffiti/skating/booze event held in the skatepark). Sorry for the neglect Slim Pickings.

5169. St Werburghs tunnel (366)

The Mole, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2023
The Mole, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2023

Inca the Mole, or The Mole is an artist who paints reasonably frequently in Bristol, but who I think might live in Gloucestershire. This is a lovely piece of writing in the tunnel, although this time it is not accompanied by the peace-loving mole.

The Mole, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2023
The Mole, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2023

The three nicely chosen colours run horizontally through the letters, which pop out from the wall thanks to the deep 3D drop shadow. Although the mole isn’t there, he is in spirit with all the peace symbols running across the letters. It is always good to see that the Mole has been to visit.

5167. Greenbank (78)

Bnie, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2023
Bnie, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2023

Grrr! it is so annoying when the sun shines on days when I take a stroll to photograph urban art. I am so stupid, and get caught out all too often. This is the only piece that I can post from a wonderful Easter RBF paint jam on the Greenbank hoardings. I will have to return to photograph the rest again on an overcast day, and in the meantime just hope that they haven’t been tagged or bombed.

Bnie, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2023
Bnie, Greenbank, Bristol, April 2023

Bnie is a brilliant writer and artist, and her characteristic pieces are such a joy to find. This clever piece has two separate colour combination elements, one of yellow and pinks and the second is a zig-zag stripe of light blue and lilac colours running through the piece. I have seen this kind of inverse design technique before and it is always a winner. The eggs are a nod to Easter. Great work from Bnie.

5166. M32 roundabout J2 (2)

Logoe, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, April 2023
Logoe, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, April 2023

It would be fair to say that I am struggling to keep up with Logoe’s activity. He may only be a weekend visitor to Bristol, but he certainly crams in the pieces when he comes. I ventured up to the Junction 2 roundabout of the M32 recently, and found several recent pieces by Logoe, a couple of which are featured in this post.

Logoe, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, April 2023
Logoe, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, April 2023

I rather like the colours of this compressed green piece, written in a slightly fatter script than his usual scratchy letters. It would appear that Logoe can slap up his graffiti pieces in no time at all without compromising the quality of design or finishing.

Logoe, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, April 2023
Logoe, M32 roundabout J2, Bristol, April 2023

The second piece is rather wider than the first, but picks up on the slightly fatter letters.  I am guessing that this was the last of a series painted during the day, because it has the message ‘bed time…’. I am guessing he was tired, because there is a distinct lack of horizontal oval spots – perhaps he had run out of paint. I think that Logoe represents the almost obsessive side of graffiti writing married up with the pure joy he would seem to get out of it. Lots more to come from this session.