Escif plays with public space in a way that is both original and rare. Street art always had a conceptual art attitude when it was first becomign a genre in the 2000s, and Escif was one of the rare artists who was able to create work that was both playful and seeped in social activism and place in the public realm. In the vein of such artists like Rirkrit Tiravanija, Escif makes the idea and the path to the idea the part of the entire artwork. There is no better example of this than his recent Fallas work in Valencia, Spain.
This past week, the Spanish artist announced his newest publishing project, a 600-page book entitled ́The Foundations of Harmony and Invention, which overviews and details the last decade of his work. Through a crowdfunding campaign, Esci is self-publishing the book "to be able to publish it without depending on publishers and distributors," with an initial first run of 1,000 copies. Supporters in the crowdfunding campaign will receive an early bird price as well as other options to complement the publication: illustrations, personalised drawings, previous books or silkscreen prints. Go support it.
