ESCIF Reflects Us Back With a Dry Humor in Valencia

March 21, 2016 Artists

Valencia based Escif has many Street Art pieces throughout his city and today we have a survey of some of them for you to look at.

Called a humorist sometimes, or more accurately perhaps a contemporary sociologist, you decode his murals quickly, and then again. He isn’t deliberately obvious but he is our reflector and rather than being explicit, he trusts that you’ll figure it out. With deceptively simple presentations on the street, Escif is content to imagine that the wheels inside your mind are turning and perhaps you will see analogies that are familiar to you, connecting observations with your daily existence.

Escif. Valencia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Take the first one, for example: a currently typical scene of humans slightly bent forward in a marching plod, their attention captivated, even trained, to little devices in their hand. The title translated is “Programmed Obsolescence”, which may refer to the software and hardware designers who know that their income is only replenished when they create things that expire – the precise opposite of a “sustainability” model.

A second interpretation may refer to the humans – not the electronic devices – who are gradually and quickly regarded as superfluous in an automated robotic artificial intelligence-managed modern world. Regarded as no more than “resources” by corporate parlance since the 80s, these humans and their features are less and less impressive or needed for the production of goods and services, slowly programmed to the margins.

“I’m sorry, we don’t support that model anymore, is there anything else we can help you with today?”

Love me, Tinder. Escif. Valencia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

The dry flat linear illustration style may call to mind instruction manuals or clip art and that is the sly normative familiarity that will lead you in one direction with Escif. Free of flourishes, one may question what possible depth can be alluded to when the piece doesn’t clamor or preen for that one second of attention you are willing to part with. With Escif you can be assured that these are considered choices; recomposing symbols, forms, text and their relation to one another, to history, to the present, and to you.

Now breathe. Escif. Valencia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Like a bug on its back. Escif. Valencia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Decapitated history. Escif. Valencia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Escif. Valencia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Something about this one doesn’t bode well for our painter friend… Escif. Valencia, Spain. (photo © Lluis Olive Bulbena)

Our very special thanks to photographer Lluis Olive Bulbena for sharing these recent images with BSA readers.

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