3581. M32 roundabout J3 (298)

UPDATE

Thank you, Paul H for correcting my assumption that this piece was by Sled One. It is in fact by 3Dom, and was painted to celebrate Sled One’s birthday paint jam. In terms of the rest of the post, everything I wrote about Sled One is applicable to 3Dom. I will leave the post as originally written, because it is important to recognise how difficult it can be sometimes to get things wrong…

This wonderful piece of writing from Sled One is actually one half of a collaboration with himself, which in retrospect I ought to have posted as one, but without thinking I have split into two. Both elements of his work were part of an ASK painting session a couple of weeks back.

3Dom, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
3Dom, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

Given that Sled One usually freestyles his work, which means he doesn’t paint from a design on a piece of paper in front of him, but with the freedom of his own mind, there is an extraordinary ease, confidence and flow that demonstrates his gift. Sled One is a truly gifted artist whose distinctive surreal creativity puts him in the highest echelons of character artists in Bristol (and beyond), and he is a great writer too. This is a fairly straightforward piece of writing, but often his writing is enhanced with character-like elements. Turning the inanimate into the animate is a speciality.

3579. M32 roundabout J3 (297)

Relatively speaking, Rezwonk has had a quiet twelve months. Prior to the first lockdown a year ago, there was no stopping him and his collaborations with Decay and Nightwayss were a regular occurrence… it felt like barely a week would pass without at least one new ‘REZER’ gracing a Bristol wall somewhere. He has been missed, so seeing that he appears to be ramping things up again is pleasure to my eyes.

Rezwonk, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Rezwonk, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

This recent piece was part of a collaborative wall that was long overdue on this particular site which hadn’t changed for an eternity. This is a beautiful and technically accomplished piece in which he revisits his theme if incorporating rivets in to his letters, as if this were some large metalwork sculpture. The colours work nicely and there is a special something that makes it rather compelling. Great work, keep it up.

3574. M32 roundabout J3 (295)

One of the incredible things about the Bristol street art scene is that it big and growing. The recruitment into the current cohort seems to be much more rapid than the attrition and loss. Some of the artists who started out in the 80s are still painting now, and Teao One is one of them, although I must confess that this is the first time I have posted anything by him, and as is always the way, since I met him just before he painted this, I have met him again and seen more of his work. Perhaps he has come out of dormancy.

Teao One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Teao One, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

Teao One asked my advice about where he could paint this, because he didn’t want to paint over anything new, which I thought was pretty decent. Unfortunately his piece wasn’t shown similar respect and didn’t last long at all, which is a pity because it is a fine piece of writing with some great colours, shading and outlines. Look out for more from this veteran.

3572. Dean Lane skate park (402)

This is a very nice piece from Mr Draws from a couple of weeks back. I was passing by when Mr Draws was painting it and I think I gave him a fright when I told him the Dibz piece underneath it had been dedicated to his mother-in-law. Fortunately it was not a tribute piece, but a birthday celebration… it is not the done thing to go over a tribute.

Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021
Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021

It is great to see Mr Draws looking so well and up-beat these days and he seems to be enjoying his painting a lot. It is always interesting to see a work in progress to get an understanding of how the piece comes together. Here Mr Draws has drawn his outline and is filling it in horizontal rows.

Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021
Mr Draws, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021

The finished product is a bright and colourful ‘DRAW’ in four colour bands and a rather special red 3D shadow. The piece really benefits from good wall prep too which was probably left over from the Dibz predecessor. An uplifting work.

3571. M32 roundabout J3 (293)

It can occasionally be very difficult to write a post, because one feels conflicted or compromised in some way, but I believe truth and integrity are values that are important to me and I have decided to write this post as I have done in my head several times over.

I met Turoe for the first time last week (not while painting this piece) and it was not a pleasant experience. He is surly and made it quite clear that he didn’t want to speak to me or engage in any way, preferring to mock me (and others interested in street art). I got the message pretty quickly so backed off and just took some pictures.

I considered not posting any more of his work, but felt this would be churlish, so in my mind I have separated the artist from his art. I am sure that the world is littered with bad-tempered, unpleasant but nonetheless very talented people and I just have to get over it. Thankfully pretty much everyone else I meet is polite and decent – doing this would be a whole load more difficult if they weren’t.

Turoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Turoe, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

This piece is another in his series of Shyte Year pieces which he has continued with inserting the word ‘still’ in front of it on some pieces. This one in chrome is beautifully bordered with a sharp red line and set on a black and blue bubble backdrop. I wonder if he will keep this theme going after lockdown or whether he will revert entirely to writing Turoe. We’ll see.

3570. L Dub (25)

This is a very special piece from Laic217 because it takes us back to a hallucinogenic theme explored by the artist a few years ago, and I haven’t seen one of these distorted faces in a long while.

Laic217, L Dub, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, L Dub, Bristol, March 2021

This is classic Laic217 at his best… a character and the letters LAIC, but how his work has come on over the last few years. He takes a lot of care with his work and his finessing makes a significant contribution to some brilliant technical work. Here, the double-faced character is spraying the letters, an idea used several times in his work.

Laic217, L Dub, Bristol, March 2021
Laic217, L Dub, Bristol, March 2021

The face has two perspectives looking in slightly different directions, but cleverly, each face seems to work independently. The mouth is large and shared by each face. Confusing and unsettling, this is a challenging work. Nice to see the bucket hat and smiley making a return too. Wonderful trippy work from Laic217.

2568. M32 roundabout J3 (292)

This is another very short-lived piece on the M32 roundabout from Serm, who runs a commercial street art outfit under a different name. He has only recently started writing the letters SERM and this is only the second piece I have found.

Serm, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020
Serm, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2020

Clearly an experienced and accomplished writer, Serm has finished this piece beautifully. The colours work really well on the off-white backwash and the shadows lift the piece really well away from the wall. I look forward to seeing a whole load more from Serm.

3567. Dean Lane skate park (401)

Dibz is turning out new work at an extraordinary rate at the moment which is great to see, although keeping up is proving to be something of a challence. I was lucky enough to catch up with him while he was painting this one and he stopped for a bit of a chat.

Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021
Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021

Even though he didn’t buff the wall to start with, which is something he does more often than not, the quality of this piece shines through. Either deliberately or accidentally, this piece somehow blends in with the Slakarts and Mudra collaboration beneath it, complementing them well.

Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021
Dibz, Dean Lane, Bristol, March 2021

I guess I am labouring the point a bit, but Dibz is right up there with the very best in Bristol in his finishing. Every piece is so clean and tight, which given the intricacy of the writing is nothing short of miraculous. Another outstanding piece.

3565. M32 roundabout J3 (291)

Inkie and his ASK compatriots have been smashing it in recent weeks, and it is a very good thing to see. I can’t remember a time when so many classy pieces have been painted in such a short space of time. 2021 is shaping up to be one hell of a year for street/graffiti art in Bristol.

Inkie, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021
Inkie, M32 roundabout, Bristol, March 2021

This lovely piece is in colours favoured by Inkie and seen many times on Natural Adventures before. It is the intricacy of the piece that I find rather special about this one. There is so much interlocking and cross-over of the letters, it becomes impossible to work it all out in your head… goodness only knows how Inkie manages to do it. Yet another very nice piece from that man Inkie.

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3564. Brunel Way Bridge (95)

Another very nice large piece of graffiti writing from Subtle, one of several recent works after quite a long quiet period. It seems that like many other artists Subtle is painting in bursts of activity, hitting loads of walls in a matter of a few days.

Subtle, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2021
Subtle, Brunel Way, Bristol, March 2021

I also think that Subtle must have bought a job-lot of paint, because his recent works have contained similar colour palettes. The letters here are a little more ornate than usual, and the pink boundary and dark stripes are very nice decorations to the piece. Classy as always.