New street art appears in Bristol of ex-Massive Attack member Tricky

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Artist STEWY said the Knowle West musician represents ‘hope and success despite a challenging upbringing'

New street art has appeared in south Bristol of local record producer and rapper Tricky.

The stencil of the ex-Massive Attack member has been painted on the side of the bowls club building in Greville Smyth Park.  

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The artwork was first created by street artist STEWY in 2016 and put up in a shop on North Street in Bedminster.      

Explaining the 2024 piece, STEWY referred to the recent stabbing deaths of teenage boys Mason Rist and Max Dixon in Knowle West - where Tricky is originally from.

The life-size stencil has been painted in Greville Smyth Park The life-size stencil has been painted in Greville Smyth Park
The life-size stencil has been painted in Greville Smyth Park

He told BristolWorld: “Prior to the recent tragic deaths in South Bristol, you couldn't think of Knowle West without Tricky. 

“There’s no hidden message within the artwork of Tricky from 2024 - the location of the doorway seemed a great placing and the fact it’s a white ‘highlighted’ stencil works on a black wall.”

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He added: “If you're searching for a message it could be that Tricky represents hope and success despite a challenging upbringing in Knowle West amongst the darkness.  

“Ultimately, the deaths are linked to historic lack of funding from the central ‘Conservative' government in youth services, housing, mental health, education and bad town planning.” 

STEWY has been painting life-size stencils for almost 20 years. 

His other pieces in Bristol include Tony Benn, DJ Derek, Brunel, Robert Wyatt, Black Beard, Keith Floyd, Elizabeth Blackwell and Sarah Guppy.

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