Smug or Smug One (aka Sam Bates) is an Australian born photo-realistic contemporary street artist now residing in Glasgow, Scotland.  Born in 1982, he grew up in a small town in New South Wales about three hours from its capital, Sydney. Always interested in drawing, he began spray can art after graduating from high school. As a teenager, Smug skated and hung around in the streets with his friends, writing their names on the walls and listening to hip-hop music.

Known for his outstanding photo-realism street art murals, Smug uses nothing but spray cans to create amazing highly technical large-scale wall pieces that are often edgy, cheeky, or incredibly playful; whether the subject is flora, fauna, a tribute to his grandparents or a cheeky self-portrait.

• You can discover more about Smug at Widewalls website.

Asked about his artistic name, Smug says that he cannot remember how he received his. Originally he tagged using various names, but somehow Smug stuck. Now he is as Smug as he can be.

Don’t be a mug | Get some Smug!