4102. Cumberland Basin

Different artists have different creative patterns or routines. Some paint the same thing over and over again, tweaking and perfecting it (for example Slim Pickings – TES), others create something extraordinary and different every time (Sled One, Tom Miller, 3Dom). Some only write, some only create characters and some combine the two. Mudra too has a modus operandi, which is either to create a character portrait or to write MUDRA cryptically incorporating characters and symbols. This piece falls into the latter category.

Mudra, Cumberland Basin, September 2021
Mudra, Cumberland Basin, September 2021

This lovely piece from a little while back on the long wall at Cumberland Basin spells out the artist’s name, where the ‘d’ in a little breakout star at the bottom is replaced with a wonderful stylised portrait of a pink-faced, purple-nosed lady with shocking yellow hair. A wonderful and creative piece beautifully worked nice clean lines and fills.

4101. Dean Lane skate park (442)

Dibz is an immensely talented graffiti writer and whose status is in the highest echelons of writers in Bristol and, I dare say, the UK. He manages to turn out beautifully designed piece after piece, never letting his standards drop, and the creativity of his designs and outstanding colour palettes is of the highest order.

Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2021
Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, September 2021

This piece in Dean Lane is extra special because it is a birthday celebration for his mother, which is really touching. For this piece, he has really gone to town, with all the elements coming together perfectly. Great design, superb colours, tight lines, beautifully crafted fills and 3D shadows. In short this is an outstanding piece, and about as good as it gets.

4098. M32 Cycle path (149)

Regulars will know that I really like Bnie’s work. She fits into a school of writers whose letters are not cryptic… what you see is what you get, and the magic is created in the colour schemes and in the fills and patterns. Some, for example Mena in yesterday’s post, try something a little different from time to time, but it is in perfecting what you enjoy that shines through the most.

Bnie, M32 Cycl path, Bristol, November 2021
Bnie, M32 Cycl path, Bristol, November 2021

This newish piece on the cycle path, part of an RBF paint jam, does incorporate some slightly new letter shapes and the horizontal fade from purple through to green in four shades is beautifully worked, but it is her distinctive patterned (in red and black this time) 3D depth that is truly masterful. Great piece.

4097. Sparke Evans Park (21)

There is something very enjoyable when an artist adds to their repertoire with something quite different. Mena is a writer who up until recently worked with uniform soft blocky letters, but recently she has gone on a spate of beautiful script writing, which has taken her work to a new level in my opinion.

Mena, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, November 2021
Mena, Sparke Evans Park, Bristol, November 2021

This piece in Sparke Evans Park is an absolute belter. The script is beautifully designed and the horizontal blend of colours in the fill are masterfully done. A really lovely piece and a great new direction for the artist.

4093. Greenbank (19)

Just because I haven’t posted anything by Turoe for a while, doesn’t mean he hasn’t been decorating Bristol’s walls, it is more a reflection of the sheer number of new pieces appearing every week in the city, and I don’t have the capacity to feature them all in Natural Adventures.

Turoe, Greenbank, Bristol, November 2021
Turoe, Greenbank, Bristol, November 2021

On the long hoarding at Greenbank, this is a rather luscious (or lush as we say in Bristol) chrome burner with a gorgeous red 3D shadow giving the letters real depth and lifting them away from the hoarding surface. This is a lovely piece of graffiti writing from a very accomplished artist.

4092. Dean Lane skate park (441)

I met Hire in Dean Lane the day before he painted this beauty, and he was basically sizing up the wall looking where would be best to paint his new work. I hadn’t seen him for quite some time, but he remembered me and even remembered my name, which felt good, and we chewed the fat for a little while, before I had to dash.

Hire, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2021
Hire, Dean Lane, Bristol, November 2021

I like, and have always liked, Hire’s work. His graffiti writing has a distinctive jagged appearance of edges and shapes that remind me of medieval weapons and blades. The letters are sophisticated, spelling HIRE, and the colour transitions beautifully worked, with a bright band running horizontally through the piece. So good to see both the artist and his new piece.

4089. Peel Street Green (2)

There are so many artists in Bristol whose work has never appeared in Natural Adventures before. The reasons for this are complex, but are not related to a quality or standard that needs to be met, rather to a familiarity with the work and the ‘right time’ for me to embrace them in these pages.

Krops, Peel Street Green, Bristol, November 2021
Krops, Peel Street Green, Bristol, November 2021

The latest debutant is Krops whose work is all over Bristol, with this lovely chrome piece featuring a Mario Bros. Mario in the middle. Typically, Krops uses the letters/character combination to great effect usually with the character in the middle. I have plenty of his pieces in my archives and hope to share them with you in time.

4088. Greenbank (18)

Somehow, this piece got left behind in my ‘conveyor belt’ publication system of new pieces on Natural Adventures. I spotted the error and have corrected it. Bnie is one of the most consistent writers around. Her uniform and recognisable letters are always beautifully turned out, and her 3D shading designs part of her USP.

Bnie, Greenbank, September, 2021
Bnie, Greenbank, September, 2021

This piece, on the long Greenbank hoarding, is a joyful and colourful work. The bold letters and individual colours are perfectly set off with white highlights that give the letters a little bit of a lift. This is a tight and accomplished piece of writing.

Benjimagnetic

A gallery of superb graffiti writing from Bristol’s Benjimagnetic.

Instagram: @benjimagnetic

All photographs by Scooj

Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2023
Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2023
Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2023
Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2023
Benjimagnetic and Hemper, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023
Benjimagnetic and Hemper, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2023
Benjimagnetic, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, December 2022
Benjimagnetic, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, December 2022
Benjimagnetic, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2022
Benjimagnetic, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, October 2022
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2022
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2022
Hemper and Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2022
Hemper and Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2022
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2022
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, April 2022
Benjimagnetic, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, January 2022
Benjimagnetic, M32 Cycle path, Bristol, January 2022
Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2021
Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2021
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2021
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2021
Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2021
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, July 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2021
Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2021

 

Hemper and Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2021
Hemper and Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, April 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, M32 cycle path, Bristol, April 2021
Benjimagnetic, M32 cycle path, Bristol, April 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2021
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, March 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2021
Benjimagnetic, Dean Lane, Bristol, February 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, M32 cycle pth, Bristol, February 2021
Benjimagnetic, M32 cycle pth, Bristol, February 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2021
Benjimagnetic, Brunel Way, Bristol, January 2021

 

Benjimagnetic, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2020
Benjimagnetic, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2020

 

Benjimagnetic, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2020
Benjimagnetic, Dean Lane, Bristol, December 2020

 

Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2020
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, November 2020

 

Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2020
Benjimagnetic, M32 roundabout, Bristol, September 2020

 

Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2020
Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2020

 

Benjimagnetic, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020
Benjimagnetic, Brunel Way, Bristol, June 2020

 

Awkward and Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2020
Awkward and Benjimagnetic, St Werburghs, Bristol, February 2020

 

 

4086. M32 Spot (126)

You know that thing where you hear a word for the first time, and then start hearing it again and again, and realise that you have been blind to that word for no explicable reason? Well it is a bit like that with me and Dopes. I met the artist a couple of months ago, and although I have seen and probably photographed his work in the past, I just didn’t post any of it. After meeting him, I am seeing his work everywhere, and it is really good. This is a nice little burner recently painted in the M32 Spot.

Dopes, M32 Spot,Bristol November 2021
Dopes, M32 Spot,Bristol November 2021

The colours are really nicely selected and work well, and he has fitted his letters to this awkward space really well. Super nice that this is a birthday piece for his son Jack. Great work.