Preview: Upfest 2018

“It’s hard to believe that back in 2008 a small group of artists battled the weather on a chilly October Sunday afternoon at the Tobacco Factory – and that this summer 400 artists from 70 countries will paint in front of 50,000 visitors.”

Stephen Hayles, founder of south Bristol’s now world-famous annual street art gathering Upfest, is looking back with pride on the festival’s first decade – and its journey from a small artists’ gathering one autumn afternoon, to a high-profile annual fixture that draws in hundreds of artists, and thousands of visitors, from around the world.

Upfest is now a three-day event spreading across three south Bristol suburbs and featuring – alongside live painting by hundreds of artists on thousands of square metres of walls across the area – a wealth of live music on five stages, street food stalls plying cuisine from around the globe, and much more.

The family focus has also grown year on year, and at this year’s Upfest you’ll find a wealth of children’s and family art activities – including the festival’s first interactive embroidery installation. “It’s been an incredible decade,” Stephen reflects, “and it’s only been made possible by our dedicated volunteers and the willingness of artists to travel from around the globe to our colourful city.”

Once again, there’ll be pkenty on offer for children and families at this year’s Upfest. Pic: Paul Box

This year’s visiting artists include Bristol-based Paris, renowned throughout the world for his large-scale artworks for the likes of Glastonbury Festival and the 2012 London Olympics – and a member of the hugely important 1990s Bristol graffiti crew TCF (Twentieth Century Frescoes), who painted with Banksy at the time.

There’s also a visit from Portugal’s Odeith, globally renowned for his ground-breaking anamorphic style – distorted images that appear normal when viewed from a particular point.

An example of Odeith’s eye-catching anamorphic style

Other big names to watch out for include Brazil’s L7M, whose inspirations include the beauty of life and the disarray of the city, and two Upfest newcomers: Connecticut-based Arcy, known for his large-scale, paint-splashed style, and The London Police, creators of the instantly recognisable ‘LADS’ characters.

The London Police’s LADS with Marilyn in Singapore

Away from the numbers, the globe-trotting artists and the big-name collaborations, what sort of impact does Stephen believe the festival has had on its Bedminster, Southville and Ashton home turf – and on the Bristol street art scene generally? “I would say that the contribution to BS3 has been significant, not just over the festival weekend but also in terms of the year-round legacy – artwork from some of the world’s most amazing artists, the positive impact on local shops, and the many stories we’ve heard about how the artworks have brightened up people’s days,” Stephen asserts.

Upfest 2017. Pic: paulbox© paul@framedogs.com

“As with every positive, there is also a negative: the street art has made the area more popular and contributed to rent and property price increases. We’ve been personally affected by this ourselves – in hindsight, we should have bought a property here ten years ago!”

Upfests past have seen collaborations with (and festival artists painting key characters from) Bristol’s Aardman Studios and the Mr Men books. This year’s headline team-up is with the world-famous animated family sitcom The Simpsons. Creator Matt Groening has hand-picked three of this year’s 400 festival artists to work on Simpsons-inspired artwork across the weekend.

Upfest 2015. Pic: paulbox © paul@framedogs.com

“Our history of working with such great characters obviously appealed to the folks behind The Simpsons,” Stephen explains proudly. “We were approached almost eight months ago, but have had to keep it under wraps until quite recently. It’s a great reflection of the hard work and dedication of our crew and volunteers that such an international phenomenon wants to be part of Upfest, working outside of the US for the first time in six or seven years.”

Upfest 2016. Pic: Neil James Brain

There’s also a strong focus on women artists this year, as Upfest joins up with Bristol Women’s Voice to mark 100 years of women’s suffrage. Again, three artists have been chosen to portray the suffrage movement and commemorate this momentous centenary.

And, in fact, the two themes will themselves be linking up, as Stephen explains. “Nomad Clan is quite possibly the biggest female duo in world street art, having completed some incredible feats including the UK’s largest mural last year. Their challenge this year is a unique one: to honour and celebrate the suffrage movement using The Simpsons’ very own post-modern feminist, Lisa!”

And does Stephen foresee many changes to Upfest over the next ten years? “Our main challenge over the next ten years will be managing the ever-increasing crowds, and this is where you might see changes. It’s a nice problem to have, though – we are now one of the south-west’s major free festivals.”

Upfest, we wish you another decade – or more – of being able to make that claim.

Upfest 2018 takes place at venues and public spaces across Bedminster, Southville and Ashton from July 28-30. For more info, visit www.upfest.co.uk/page/upfest-festival

Top pic: paulbox© paul@framedogs.com