More Bristol street art: Cycling around looking at walls

I was cycling through Nelson Street yesterday and took some photos of the street art there. This area has been the site of the 'See No Evil' street art events and there are some pretty spectacular pieces to be seen, even though some buildings have now been demolished.

The area around the demolition site has boards set up, which have also been decorated by some of Bristol's top street artists. They include Andy Council, Sepr, Feek and Inkie.

Larger artworks can be seen by looking up at what used to be the blank, boring walls of buildings nearby:

I have been asked why a woodcarver talks about street art on their blog. Some people I know have said that they just think that this kind of thing is just vandalism. I have to say that most tagging doesn't interest me and I'm not really interested in the 'Keeping it Real' stuff that some people spout about it. I just live in an urban environment and I like a lot of this colourful artwork that brightens up dull walls and has obviously taken a bit of time and thought!

Living in Bristol gives the people who live here access to some of the most interesting street art that you could hope to see. Riding a bicycle around the small city means that there is time to see a lot of it before it is inevitably painted over by another artist. Organised events such as See No Evil and Upfest bring street artists from all over the world to Bristol. There are certain areas that are basically free to paint, where established street artists can execute large, complex pieces without having to worry about being arrested. A lot of house owners will also have their walls painted to brighten them up, or maybe also to discourage tagging and throw-ups. That means it is fairly easy to see really good stuff, often tucked away in hidden corners. Just around the corner from my house is this painted wall:

It was great to wander round one day and see it being painting. I think one of the painters may be Boswell, who is quite a well-known Bristol artist. It beats a boring, plain wall any day:

Here's a couple more pieces from round the area: