Talking To: Upfest
Upfest has been a Bristol staple since it began over a decade ago and it is now Europe’s largest Street Art and Graffiti in Bristol. Since it was founded back in 2008, Upfest has grown and grown with artists from around the world coming to decorate spaces in Bedminster.
Like many events in the past year and a half, the organisers have had to cancel the festival two years in a row but their new project, 75 walls in 75 days has been ongoing as a way of highlighting street art and continuing the tradition, despite the pandemic. We sat down with them to discuss the impact of street art and their new project.
Were you disappointed to have to postpone this year’s festival again?
Yes absolutely, but it was the right thing to do on a number of levels and we feel we've made the most of 2021 with the completion of the #SixSisters and our current #75walls project. We didn't take the decision lightly but with the continued uncertainty and thing about our volunteers and the community it really was the best decision and we look forward to 2022
How far in advance do you prepare for the festival?
In normal times planning starts around 10 months before the festival, although fundraising seems to be a year round task, the closer to the festival the greater the greater the activity and more people become involved.
The VR technology to virtually see the street art is such a good idea – was it difficult to execute?
We worked with a great company called ZubrVR who went above and beyond, they dealt with all the techie stuff which was a great weight from our shoulders. We undertook the normal artist liaison and curation of the spaces, we were just lucky to have Zubr onboard for the project.
What do you think makes Bristol so special with regards to its street art?
The history, depth of artists and general acceptance of the community who live with the artworks.
Your current project, 75 walls in 75 days, what made you decide to come up with the idea?
At the beginning of the year we knew we were going to have to adapt to varying restrictions, the 75 walls was a safe way to continue to bring new colour to our streets and as has happened even if the main festival couldn't take place we were confident in delivering the 75 walls.
How’s the project looking so far? Do you have a favourite piece of art that’s been designed?
Well we've just past the 50 walls completed and whilst the product has been quite relentless we're super pleased with all the artists who are delivering outstanding new pieces, I'm not allowed to give my favourites as I see them all as my children and just the fact the artists are willing to sharing their work with us then that's enough for me.
Over the years, what piece of street art has been the most impactful, on social media but also people coming to view it?
There have been many popular pieces including the collaboration between Inkie, Tom Lane & Ged Palmer who produced the piece called Ship Shape & Bristol Fashion, as well as the John Lenin artwork by South American artist Kobra, however the artwork featuring Greta Thunberg titled Sea Change by Jody Thomas i'ld suggest received the greatest worldwide exposure after the image was taken and used as the young activists profile image across social media.
What’s your process for choosing the artists and the spaces they can create their work on?
In brief, we look to have as wide a diverse artist base as possible, from both geographical backgrounds to styles of artwork, we try not to assess artist work to deeply as that would give a polarized view on what is deemed as 'good art', inclusivity is at the heart of our selection process. With regards to walls, we're always offered more than we can afford to paint so we look for ones that are most prominent initially, but then there are production and health and safety requirements to also take into account. .
Do you believe there to be an imbalance of equality when it comes to street art in general?
There has been, but our goal is to put various artists in visible positions in order to inspire others to come forward to participate in future events, for example at our first festival in 2008 we had one female artist out of 45, our 75walls project has seen pretty much 50/50 split.
Do you have any plans for other projects before next year’s festival?
Yes indeed, shortly we're off to Weston Super Mare to deliver ten new mural for the seaside town and create their own street art trail, many town and cities now realize the benefit of street art not just on local communities but also the benefit to the economy.
Do you hope to be continuing Upfest for the foreseeable future or do you have any changes in mind?
Upfest is here to stay, of course we have to adapt along the way but our core ethos will remain the same