3159. Dean Lane skate park (348)

Soker never disappoints. His graffiti writing is always of the highest possible quality and he sets a very high bar for other writers in Bristol to aspire to. This is a super little piece alongside Inkie in Dean Lane from a week or two back.

Soker, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2020
Soker, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2020

The letters are filled with three slightly different shades of blue with some nice bubbles running through the middle. There is some partial 3D shading in yellow with a vanishing point behind the piece and the whole thing is set off perfectly with some red decorations around the perimeter. Clean and crisp, a great example of great writing.

3156. Dean Lane skate park (346)

This is a real statement piece of graffiti writing from Smak down at Dean Lane and amply demonstrates why he is one of the very best writers in Bristol and probably the country. His pieces are elaborate with so many interlocking parts all seamlessly brought together with clean crisp lines.

Smak, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2020
Smak, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2020

The colour palette is similar to one I have seen him use before and works well on the dark background. There are to many elements in this piece to be able to describe them all, but consistent with several pieces by the artist you get more for your money, with two SMAKs visible in places, most obviously with the A.

Smak, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2020
Smak, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2020

On his Instagram feed, Smak mentioned that a little kid told him he could paint jellyfish, so Smak decided to add one for good measure – that is why it is there. Another monster piece from Smak.

3155. Brunel Way bridge (53)

One of the busiest artists over the summer has been Taboo with his rather unconventional style of writing. Why is it unconventional I hear you ask… tumbleweed… well I’ll give you my perspective. His letters look like they are made of rubber. They have no consistent form or size and don’t seem to follow any formula or rules. Letters may be stretched or condensed and some are replaced with motifs or characters. His pieces are quite anarchic in a graffiti writing world that is surprisingly conventional.

Taboo, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2020
Taboo, Brunel Way, Bristol, August 2020

This one under Brunel Way by the riverside spells out TABOO with a wobbly skull between the T and A. An Ionic column makes a random appearance in the first O. Unusal and interesting ans as I said at the start unconventional.

3154. St Werburghs tunnel (183)

Ooh, I am really enjoying the work of Pl8o at the moment. The letters he uses lend themselves very well to graffiti writing and provide a lot of scope to do great things, like Boogie for example. There are some letters And numbers that just seem to work well together.

Pl8o, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2020
Pl8o, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2020

This one was at the farm end of the tunnel and in daylight that makes it so much easier to photograph. All the elements of this piece come together. The gold letters and grey shadow, the stars and spots and white letter stars. This piece is so very easy on the eye.

3149. Dean Lane skate park (344)

It is always a treat to find an Inkie piece, and to come across two new ones in the space of about month is a great excuse for celebration. This one appeared a week or two back on the long wall at Dean Lane alongside Soker and Zooki (an artist I am unfamilar with).

Inkie, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2020
Inkie, Dean Lane, Bristol, August 2020

The shapes of the letters and the style of 3D fills are so recognisable in his work and it only takes a second to identify his pieces. The colour transitions in the fills are expert an the overall colour selections with the blue 3D shading and red clouds are brave, but work fantasticlly well. A fine piece from a top artist, and a nice tribute to Desire.

3146. St Werburghs tunnel (182)

His is only the third piece I have posted by Benjimagnetic although I have quite a few of his older pieces in my archive. His style is quite unique and more about outlines than solid fills. The sketchy appearance makes it difficult to decipher the letters, but they are there somewhere. It definitely starts with a B.

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

The colours in this piece are nicely thought out and the splashes of light blue and orange add some interest. In a funny way, this style is a bit like an angular version of the abstract writing we see from Mr Klue – there is a wispish, ghostly quality to it. Watch this space for more from Benjimagnetic.

3143. St Werburghs tunnel (181)

I have a feeling that this is the third piece I have posted by Whos and I am rather enjoying what I see. This unconventional writing style feels very ‘New Bristol School’ if there is such a thing, along with Taboo and Alos. I am full of admiration for this piece, because any kind of spraying on a heavily textured wall is not going to be easy.

Whos, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2020
Whos, St Werburghs, Bristol, August 2020

The piece is located at the entrance to St Werburghs tunnel, and I expect it to stay there for a while due to the nature of the wall. The letters are large and bold with a clever shaded ridge down the middle giving a nice 3D effect. The silver/white and green colours work well together. Altogether a nice piece of writing the likes of which I expect to see more of.

Ments

A gallery of extraordinary ‘organic’ graffiti writing from Bristol artist Ments

All photographs by Scooj

Ments, Hen and Chicken, Greville Road, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024
Ments, Hen and Chicken, Greville Road, Upfest 24, Bristol, May 2024

Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2022
Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, May 2022

Paul Monsters and Ments, Clift House Road, Bristol, January 2022
Paul Monsters and Ments, Clift House Road, Bristol, January 2022

Paul Monsters and Ments, Clift House Road, Bristol, January 2022
Paul Monsters and Ments, Clift House Road, Bristol, January 2022

Paul Monsters and Ments, Clift House Road, Bristol, January 2022
Paul Monsters and Ments, Clift House Road, Bristol, January 2022

Ments and Sled One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2021
Ments and Sled One, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2021

Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2021
Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, January 2021

Ments, Dean Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21
Ments, Dean Street, Bristol, September 2021, Upfest 21

Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2021
Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, June 2021

Ments, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021
Ments, Brunel Way, Bristol, April 2021

Ments, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2021
Ments, Brunel Way, Bristol, February 2021

Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2020
Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, December 2020

Ments, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2020
Ments, Brunel Way, Bristol, December 2020

Smak, Curtis Hylton, Ments and Sled One, Clift House Road, Bristol, October 2020
Smak, Curtis Hylton, Ments and Sled One, Clift House Road, Bristol, October 2020

Curtis Hylton, Ments and Sled One, Clift House Road, Bristol, October 2020
Curtis Hylton, Ments and Sled One, Clift House Road, Bristol, October 2020

Ments, Clift House Road, Bristol, October 2020
Ments, Clift House Road, Bristol, October 2020

Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2020
Ments, Cumberland Basin, Bristol, July 2020

Ments, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2020
Ments, Brunel Way, Bristol, July 2020

Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020
Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, June 2020

Ments, Star and Garter, Bristol, March 2020
Ments, Star and Garter, Bristol, March 2020

Ments, Brunel Way bridge, Bristol, January 2020
Ments, Brunel Way bridge, Bristol, January 2020

Ments, Armada Place, Bristol, January 2020
Ments, Armada Place, Bristol, January 2020

Ments, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2020
Ments, St Werburghs, Bristol, January 2020

Ments, Upper York Street, Bristol, October 2019
Ments, Upper York Street, Bristol, October 2019

Ments, Wilder Street, Bristol, December 2018
Ments, Wilder Street, Bristol, December 2018

Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2018
Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, October 2018

Ments, Thomas Street, Bristol, October 2018
Ments, Thomas Street, Bristol, October 2018

Ments, Brunel Way Bridge, Bristol, September 2018
Ments, Brunel Way Bridge, Bristol, September 2018

Ments, Upper York Street, Bristol, October 2016
Ments, Upper York Street, Bristol, October 2016

Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2018
Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, May 2018

Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2017
Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, November 2017

Ments, M32 Roundabout, Bristol, June 2017
Ments, M32 Roundabout, Bristol, June 2017

Ments, M32 Roundabout, Bristol, June 2017
Ments, M32 Roundabout, Bristol, June 2017

Ments, Sled One, Epok, Peal, Meds, Wilder Street, Bristol, February 2017
Ments, Sled One, Epok, Peal, Meds, Wilder Street, Bristol, February 2017

Meds, Peal, Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2017
Meds, Peal, Ments, M32 roundabout, Bristol, February 2017

Ments, M32 cycle path, Bristol, January 2017
Ments, M32 cycle path, Bristol, January 2017

Ments, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2016
Ments, Dean Lane, Bristol, October 2016

Ments, M32, Bristol, September 2016
Ments, M32, Bristol, September 2016

3142. Moon Street (84)

Moon Street still holds an important place in my heart. Although it rarely hosts ‘top end’ pieces it represents, for me anyway, the beating heart of the Bristol graffiti scene. The area around Moon Street is steadily being gentrified, and in time these images of street/graffiti art will be distant memories. I don’t recall seeing a Taboo piece in this street before, so I was thrilled to come across this one recently.

Taboo, Moon Street, Bristol, August 2020
Taboo, Moon Street, Bristol, August 2020

This new piece is beautifully laid out on a blue background that gives it some prominence. In typical fashion, Taboo’s unconventional lettering style spells out TABOO with a long-nosed character on the left and a ghostly face constituting the second O. As is often the case, there is a little shout-out to his girlfriend Amy. I’m really enjoying Taboo’s work at the moment.

3141. M32 Cycle path (74)

It feels like an eternity since I last saw a Biers piece that actually spelled out ‘BIERS’ rather than ‘OhYeah’, and I have to say it makes me very happy. I remember the first piece I ever posted by Biers – it had a piece of toast in it, and shortly after that I met him on several occasions while he was painting and we struck it off really well – it has been a while since I last saw him though.

Biers, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2020
Biers, M32 cycle path, Bristol, August 2020

This is a regulation piece of Biers writing and all the more splendid for it. His irregular sized letters are expertly filled with black and red patterning. This is a most satisfying piece.