Keep your weekend free: Upfest is back in Bristol for its 2018 edition!
Posted on: 26 Jul 2018Bristol's relationship with street art is well documented. With a scene that goes back more than thirty years and has birthed a generation of internationally-renowned street artists like Inkie, Cheba, and of course the infamous Banksy, Bristol has no shortage of street art pedigree. You might be thinking: "it sounds like the perfect city to host a huge international street art festival, maybe even the biggest urban arts festival in Europe!" You're right. Upfest is back in Bedminster this weekend for another free celebration of street art, featuring the works of over 400 respected artists from around the world.
.jpg "Upfest has teamed up with the creators of The Simpsons for this year's festival.")
Celebrating a very special 10th birthday this year, the Upfest team have pulled out all the stops to make it their biggest event yet, taking place from Saturday 28th-Monday 30th July. As a result, it was announced recently that festival goers will be treated to three exclusive artists' interpretations of the world's best-loved yellow cartoon family, The Simpsons.
Hong Kong-based freestyle muralist and illustrator Bao, wildstyle Bristol writer Soker and the internationally-renowned Nomad Clan are the three artists chosen personally by Simpsons creator Matt Groening to bring his characters to life like never before at this year's Upfest.
Steve Hayles, Upfest founder, said he was "incredibly pumped" to be celebrating and paying homage to the iconic Simpson family. "It’s a show truly loved by people of all ages. 2018 marks a significant milestone for us. Being our 10th Anniversary we wanted to go big and given the global phenomenon surrounding The Simpsons makes this the perfect collaboration.”
The Upfest team has also announced its Lead Artist lineup for 2018, with Bristol greats Inkie, Cheba, Soker, Voyder and Andy Council joined on the programme by Insane51, Nomad Police, L7m, Paris and Odeith. The 2018 Upfest Festival Artist will be none other than Bristol-based photorealist painter Jody.
Last year's Upfest saw a huge range of immensely talented artists take to the streets of Bedminster and beyond, with pieces produced on shops, houses and more by writers from around the world including the hugely popular Buff Monster from New York, the Brazilian Eduardo Kobra, Belfast-based Leo Boyd and many more.
Continuing along that vein of worldwide popularity, this year's festival has attracted applications from over 1,100 artists from 84 different countries ranging from Denmark to Argentina, Malta to South Africa and even Nepal. We're not envious of the person or people that have to whittle that pile down to just 400, but one thing's for sure - we're going to be left with an incredible collection of work by some of the greatest street artists on the planet.
Upfest 2018 will take place this weekend from Saturday 28th-Monday 30th July 2018. For more information on the festival, including artist profiles and updates on locations, check out their website. Alternatively, for a full view of what's happening where throughout the weekend, download this sitemap for free.
Article by:
Editor - 365Bristol.com & LOUD Magazine
Matt is a Journalism graduate and writer, passionate about supporting Bristol music, art and independent business. Get in touch via email at matt@365bristol.com.
