South by Southsea (part two): My Dog Sighs

Some of the Southsea shop fronts in the last post had bright and cheery murals, fun but not great art.  The sort of thing you see in hippy towns the world over.  But there was some street art which went further.  That crossed the line between decoration and art.  That made you say WOW.  Well, made me say wow anyway.  This was the first one, on the side of a tattoo parlour.  Have a closer look.

Last time I was in Southsea I saw a big piece on a wall down a side street, close to Albert Road.  I didn't have a camera that day but I thought I remembered where it was.  So off I went down the road by the King's Theatre.  There were a couple of white vans there.  One had a picture of Sooty, Sweep and Sue on it (they were playing at the King's).  The other said on the front "I want your antiques" and on the back had this picture:

 

I carried on down the road and found the forecourt I was looking for.

I love this mural.

It had a signature.  I couldn't read it but took a photo so I could figure it out later.

I really love this mural.

Anyways.  Back to the car, off I go, driving home.  Noticed some hoardings, hiding a bit of building work.  With some graffiti on.  There was nowhere to stop on the main road so I took the next left and left and right and left and one way street and cul-de-sac and, quite lost, parked the car.  there were the hoardings. 

Again some good, some bad, some ugly.  But most striking: a pair of eyes.

The eyes definitely have it.  And look, a tag, a signature. My Dog Sighs. I took pictures of the rest (you can see some of them here) including this one.

And hey! That's the guy from the van! But that's the signature from the red Eyes mural.  All of this stuff is by My Dog Sighs (yes that's what it says).  Now I've never heard of My Dog Sighs (my bad) but a little exploration of the interwebs sheds a whole lotta light on the artist.  You should see the cans. 

Here's some words from Bristol Upfest 2103 website:

After working quietly but fervently on the streets for the last ten years, honing his craft with his Free Art Friday project, Portsmouth based urban artist My Dog Sighs has recently stumbled into the international contemporary Art and gallery scene with splash. Sell out solo exhibitions across the UK, US and Israel have brought his unique melancholic yet formidable talent to a new audience who might otherwise miss his subtle, ecologically minded street work. Born from a desire to interact with the urban landscape and its inhabitants without impacting negatively on them, My Dog Sighs’ work forms a narrative based on counterpointed poignancy that resonate with those that have the opportunity to find them. Moments of loss and then being found echo the materials used. Tin cans, once the receptacle of our sustenance, all too quickly rejected, thrown away, abandoned by a materialistic society keen to gorge on the new.

I'm going to write more about My Dog Sighs in the future.  You'll want to know more about Free Art Friday and you really have to see the cans.  Don't wait for me - hit your favourite search engine now.