Bristol is renowned for its vibrant street art scene, which colours the city’s buildings with dynamic and diverse artworks. The city holds a distinguished place globally for street art, with a recent study by Slingo identifying over 250 street artworks in Bristol. This has earned the city a position among the world’s top 10 cities for street art, based on the number of artworks and graffiti, along with social media activity across platforms like Instagram and TikTok between February 2024 and January 2025.
Central to Bristol’s reputation is its world-famous anonymous street artist, Banksy, whose work continues to attract significant interest. Despite some pieces being lost over time, nine original Banksy artworks remain in the city, each reflecting different eras of his career and themes. One iconic Banksy mural, ‘Well Hung Lover,’ created in 2006, is located on the side of a sexual health clinic on Park Street. This piece is notable for being the first legal street art mural in the UK, as it was officially granted permission and protection by Bristol City Council. Although it has faced vandalism on multiple occasions, it remains a prominent sight in the city centre.
Other Banksy works include ‘You Don’t Need Planning Permission to Build Castles in the Sky,’ painted in 2011 on Lower Lamb Road behind the library and Cathedral Primary School. While building renovations in 2015 partially disrupted the original wall, the artwork has been restored, adapting to its surroundings. Additionally, Banksy’s ‘Aachoo!!’, depicting a woman sneezing, appeared in 2020 on Vale Street in Totterdown, an area known as England’s steepest residential street. This piece stands among his latest contributions to Bristol’s street art.
Besides Banksy, Bristol is home to a rich array of other talented street artists both local and international. Names such as Inkie, HazardOne, Jody, Aryz, Nick Walker, Connor Harrington, and Cheba have made significant marks around the city. Connor Harrington’s ‘The Duel of Bristol’ on Broad Street, created for the 2012 See No Evil Festival, is a well-known example. The Old City’s Leonard Lane is a compact area transformed by vibrant murals, encouraged by the Bristol Mural Collective.
Stokes Croft, including Moon Street and Picton Lane, is a borough famed for a high density of street art, with numerous murals spanning its walls. Among them is Banksy’s early work ‘Mild Mild West’ from the 1990s, showing a teddy bear throwing a Molotov cocktail at riot police. This striking piece is interpreted as a comment on police crackdowns of illegal raves at that time.
Bedminster’s art scene has grown through festivals such as the See No Evil Festival in 2012 and the annual Upfest, held every May. Nelson Street and North Street in this area are hotspots for urban art, showcasing work by artists such as Nick Walker (‘The Vandal’), Pixel Pancho, Aryz, and Stik. In 2024, Lime Road in Southville featured a mural by Liam Bononi, depicting Yorkshire street violinist Rupert Engeldow. Bononi’s work earned international recognition through a nomination in the ‘experts spotlight’ category at the Inspiring City’s Street Art Cities awards.
Moreover, a new festival called Paint Fest is scheduled for May 10 and 11, 2024, at Spring Street’s Help Bristol’s Homeless headquarters. This event will feature some of Bristol’s leading street artists painting converted shipping containers, adding to the city’s ongoing evolving art landscape.
Several other Banksy works, some altered or relocated, remain notable. ‘The Girl with the Pierced Eardrum’ (a 2014 parody of Vermeer’s ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’) is visible at Hanover Place in Spike Island. ‘The Grim Reaper,’ originally painted on the side of the Thekla in 2005, now resides within the M Shed Museum for preservation. Early Banksy pieces such as ‘Cat and Dog’ on Robertson Road in Easton carry textual elements exploring themes of crime and morality. ‘The Rose Trap,’ located on Thomas Street North in Cotham, is preserved under a protective casing to prevent vandalism.
Walking through Bristol, these artworks offer a continually changing tapestry reflecting both street art’s rebellious spirit and its integration into the city’s cultural identity. Each location and piece provides a glimpse into the creativity and histories embedded within the urban fabric of this vibrant city.
Source: Noah Wire Services