Just two hours’ drive from London is a city in full growth, heart rebellious art button, free from the confines of conventional museums: I’m talking about Bristol.
She is the city that more than any other has contributed to the birth and development of street art in the UK (and the world) and it is attracting more and more attention to itself despite its proximity to the most famous and renowned London.
Our journey on the road in the UK starts right from his native city of Banksy and not only to find an England different, alternatively, out of the ordinary, but above all to experience firsthand what has become an obligatory stop for all the graffiti lovers and street art in general.
Our goal is to find out the street art in the city, admire the graffiti artists whose works have given color and vibrancy to buildings, streets, alleys, anonymous and otherwise insignificant.
To do this we rely on a walking tour of Bristol, 2 hours in which you walk through the narrow streets of the city with a qualified guide that leads us to see the main murals and graffiti, the history and origins. A nice experience, also suitable for those who do not follow this type of art but at the same time want to understand how it was born and has developed this movement in the UK.
An art form often discussed but supported by the municipality of the city that, since 2008, organizes the Upfest, the Festival of Urban Art and many street artist hangout from every corner of the planet.
But back to the works visit during our walking tour: one of the best known is undoubtedly “Mild Mild West” one of the first Banksy which is located on the wall of the building that housed the shop Subway Records. The project took three working days in the first, the artist completely painted the black wall using automotive paint, the second drew the Teddy Bear with Molotov cocktails in hand and the police, while the third day will be devoted to the written parts.
Impressive also The Girl with A Pierced Ear Drum, drenched masterpiece of satire banksiana that reshapes the Girl with a Pearl Earring Dutch Vermeer. This is the latest work of Banksy in its hometown. Well Hung Lover in Frongmore Street, is undoubtedly one of his most famous and popular works.
But not only Banksy: during the tour even The Big Deal JPS and The Spartacus always the same artist, drawn on the outside wall of a nightclub.
Impressive in size and perfection in the details ” Clothed With the Sun ” painted during an event called ” See No Evil ” to revive one of the most “dark” and degraded areas of the city center, as well as Vandal Nick Walker who is always Nelson Street.
The art is everywhere in the city and works to admire are really many, impossible to concentrate them all in one walking tour. Profit for the Google map with all the graffiti and murals of Bristol.
Obligatory stop to throw yourself fully into the new reality of graffiti is Bedminster, south of Bristol neighborhood. There we found the Masonic pub whose side face hosts the murals of the youngest and most talented street artists of the moment.
Bristol is definitely worth more than 2 days to be visited, not only for graffiti but also for its neighborhoods, its streets, the Georgian and Victorian architecture, undergound music, cider, maritime history, and much more.
Our trip to the United Kingdom continues with the town of Bath. Stay tuned to not miss the next post of this fascinating journey on the road between England and Wales.