Travel bucket list idea:
Bristol, United Kingdom (UK)
Credit Shutterstock.com/pjhpix
Bristol is synonymous with vibrant street art. We aren’t talking graffiti daubs here – hundreds of beautiful and thought-provoking illustrations are painted on walls throughout the city, and what’s on display is ever-changing. From Stokes Croft to Montpelier to Bedminster, the walls tell stories of the history and culture of the city.
Bristol’s most notorious export is the elusive graffiti artist known only as Banksy. His work has been lauded as the beginning of a revival of ‘intelligent graffiti’, and his anti-establishment cartoons and slogans have popped up all over Bristol and the world.
Bristol is also home to an annual celebration of all things graffiti when the (free) Upfest Festival of Street Art takes place for two weeks each summer. Painting demos, live music and food stalls crowd together along North Street in Bedminster, bringing together international artists. Most of the artwork is here for a good time, not a long time, and there’s always something fresh to see every time you visit.
Bristol, United Kingdom (UK)
Experience
An annual celebration of all things graffiti, Upfest takes place for two weeks each summer, transforming the neighbourhood of Bedminster and bringing together international artists.
Good for age: 10+
Duration: 2 weeks
When: August
Freq: annually
The largest selections of art are to be found in the city centre and the neighbourhoods of Stokes Croft, Montpelier and Bedminster. Seek them out on your own with help from Visit Bristol’s Street Art Map, or download the Banksy Bristol Trail app for a Banksy-specific art-spotting adventure. Or cheat and visit them from home on Google Street View.
Alternatively, join a guided walking tour – Where the Wall, Graft and Upfest all offer regular walking tours of different neighbourhoods, a great way to learn more about Bristol’s creative underbelly.
The glory of Bristol’s street art scene is that it’s free and open to everyone, but a tour of the artworks is definitely best enjoyed on a clear dry day. You can easily go walking or cycling around the artworks alone, but a guided tour makes it easier to find the most tucked-away gems.
The Upfest Festival of Street Art is usually held over two weeks in August.
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