Bring the Paint is a street art festival organised by Graff HQ in Leicester. The festival was first launched in 2016 and has since become an annual event which sees international artists take to the streets to paint. I’ve been a part of the festival photographing and interacting with the artist in 2019 and again in 2022
1UP crew is one of the most prolific graffiti crews in Europe painting twice at Bring the Paint. From Berlin is crew is known for their daring efforts to assault with aerosol any wall or train they can get close enough to. This has gained them notoriety in underground graffiti culture. Little is known about the crew or how many members are a part of this due to the illegal nature of their practice.
The festival provides a platform for artists to showcase their work legally and has helped put Leicester on the map within street art. The event takes place over several days and includes talks and exhibitions at Graff Werk.
During the festival, artists are given free rein to paint on walls and buildings throughout the city this creates a vibrant and dynamic outdoor art gallery.
One of the key goals of Bring the Paint is to promote street art as a legitimate form of art and to celebrate the creativity and diversity of the global street art community. Bring the Paint is an important event for the street art community and a great opportunity for artists to showcase their work and connect with other creatives. The festival has helped to promote the importance of street art in contemporary culture and has contributed to the ongoing conversation about the role of art in public spaces.
ACHES is a Dublin-based artist who works on large-scale murals as well as contemporary studio work. Painting graffiti from a young age after getting his degree in Visual Communications, Aches fused his knowledge of Graphic Design and Graffiti. From speaking to him and seeing him paint I can understand his process and how he’s made it achievable for himself to exist in a contemporary artist role while staying true to his origins in graffiti.
Gent 48 prolific graffiti writer to come out of Birmingham. Known for his illustrative graffiti characters and lettering. Highly respected in the UK graffiti scene for his unique style and technique ability. When I first met his he was working on his next commission on his iPad while waiting for a van to move out of the way of his wall, and then proceeded to freestyle some character doodles while I photographed and illustrated the importance of can control when painting.
Inkie is a Bristol-born artist and one of the first wave of graffiti writers to paint in the UK. Began working as part of Crime Incorporated Crew in 1983. He was one of the many artists arrested in 1989 during “Operation Anderson”, the UK’s largest-ever graffiti bust. He arranged 1998’s Walls on Fire event with Banksy. One of the first legal graffiti jams in the UK. He has exhibited globally and is a pioneer in the street art scene. Known for his ‘Ink Nouveau’ style blending the traditional art nouveau with graffiti lettering and characters to create his contemporary works at large scales.
Bring the Paint is an important part of the Uk street art scene helping to legitimise street art and graffiti as key contemporary art forms. By working with artists to commission large-scale artworks instead of criminalisation of their works. This festival helps grow the community and networks of practising street artists furthering their careers as artists and helping them gain a larger audience for their works. It also shows the next generation of artists these are legitimate art forms to practice and develop a career within.
https://www.charliemooney.co.uk/portfolio-collections/my-portfolio/bring-the-paint-2019
https://www.charliemooney.co.uk/portfolio-collections/my-portfolio/bring-the-paint-2022