UPFEST 2024: artist line-up and final call-out for crowdfunder

This year's Bristol street art festival UPFEST will be expanding into a 17-day cultural programme instead of a weekend festival in the park.

Included in this year's street artists' roaster are Bristol legends and global sensations such as Audrey Kawasaki, Inkie, .EPOD, A L Grime, Aspire, Liam Bononi, Jagung, Artez, Georgie Webster, HazardOne and more to join headline artist, Mister Samo to unleash total creativity on the city. 

Bristolian Inkie is known as one of the most prolific graffiti artists and the world’s original street artists, whilst Bristol-based designer and artist Jody explores themes of emotional depth that lurk below the surface through a darkly glamorous aesthetic. 

Japanese-American and Los Angeles-based painter Audrey Kawasaki's work often constrains contrasting themes of innocence and eroticism which conveys the mysterious intrigue of feminine sensuality, and Venezuela-American, A L Grimes' work is centred on the chaos of overstimulation and the information fatigue of everyday life in a technology-centred world. 

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London-based .EPOD has a distinctive style that encourages a timeless journey into the imagination that creates an alluring glimpse into the visions of the future, while leading Serbian street artist and muralist, Artez's mix of photorealism and illustrations has taken him all over the world, with his murals focusing on the dialogue between the artwork and its viewers.

The Guardian’s Top 5 UK female graffiti artists, and top 25 female street artists by The Huffington Post, HazardOne, who was also one of the first artists to paint for the Upfest 75 Walls in 75 Days, and is also known for her portraits of women, community murals and detailed floral pieces, will also form part of the line-up.

UPFEST PRESENTS will also bring, in partnership with Yuup, creative workshops, artist panels, comedy, theatre and street art tours for the entire community to get involved. 

To raise the essential funds to host this stand-out event, the team behind UPFEST PRESENTS is calling out for any final donations to its Crowdfunder which closes on April 14. 

UPFEST has always been free to attend, and the team behind the cultural programme want this year to be as accessible to everyone as possible; with as little as £5 going towards lunch for one of the incredible volunteers, £10 providing an artist with three cans of spray paint and a £25 contribution rewarded with an exclusive T-shirt from headline artist Mister Samo.

They are aiming to reach a £10,000 target which is complemented by the support already being received from Arts Council England. The more money raised, the more events, murals and activities that will be created as part of the programme. To support the cultural programme, head to https://www.fundsurfer.com/crowdfund/make-upfest24-happen to donate.