Mr Geoffrey Grandfield

Contact

Email: g.grandfield@kingston.ac.uk
Location: Kingston School of Art, Knights Park
Faculty: Kingston School of Art
School: School of Design
Department: Department of Illustration Animation

About

I was appointed Head of Department of Illustration Animation in 2016, having previously been Course Director of BA Illustration Animation for 12 years at Kingston and previously BA Illustration Programme Leader for 12 years at Middlesex University.

I lead the Department's undergraduate and postgraduate taught provision, teaching across the programmes, and supervise illustration practice-based PhD students.

My academic career has been shaped by my own illustration practice and my keen interest in the subject, its role and future potential. I am co-founder of the Illustration think-tank ‘Mokita' and have contributed to a number of subject events and conferences in the UK and internationally. The understanding and development of the subject within education and its ability to prototype effective and innovative forms of communication forms the basis of the Departmental strategy of outward-facing audience engagement.

Academic responsibilities

Associate Professor Head of Illustration Animation Department

Qualifications

Illustration MA (Royal College of Art)
Illustration BA (first) Maidstone College of Art

Teaching and learning

Undergraduate courses taught

Illustration Animation BA(Hons)

Postgraduate courses taught

Communication Design: Illustration MA

Research

My practice as an illustrator commissioned for over 30 years has shaped my understanding and approach to both pedagogy and research in the discipline.

The interpretation of film into a static visual form has been a preoccupation and currently I am interested in how to understand advanced practice as a means to represent the application of visual research.

My process uses illustration methodology as a synthesis of visual forms derived from the specific content, the period when the work to be interpreted was authored, and the contemporaneous. As part of my research strategy, I aim to use my practice to explore the reflective dialogue with materials of a design situation and through iteration to frame and reframe the design problem and solution.

Outputs have ranged from illustrated book series of particular authors, covers of DVD film editions, narrative application to environment and objects.