Malcolm Le Grice (1940–2024), Professor Emeritus at University of the Arts London (UAL) and with a long association with Central Saint Martins, was a highly esteemed artist and academic. He made significant contributions to the development of artists’ moving image in the UK and beyond through his experimental and innovative work in film and other moving image media, his teaching, organising and advocacy.
Born in Plymouth, Le Grice initially studied painting at the Slade School of Art (1960-64) with Harold Cohen. In 1964, he began teaching at Ealing, and later, in late 1965, while pursuing a postgraduate degree at the Slade School of Art, he started teaching part-time at Saint Martins School of Art. This period coincided with his growing interest in experimenting with film which he introduced to his students. He jointly established a Film Unit at Saint Martins, with resources in Graphics and Fine Art, which was the first such unit attached to a fine art course in the UK. This pivotal step paved the way for the recognition of film and video as legitimate artistic media and pedagogical disciplines.
The proximity of the London Filmmakers Co-operative, founded in 1966, further fuelled this development. Le Grice’s involvement with the Co-op at the Robert Street Arts Lab transformed it into a hub for the production and exhibition of artists’ film, leading to a surge in the practice in the UK. He was also a member of the pioneering Computer Arts Society and participated in its first exhibition ‘Event One’ at the Royal College of Art in 1969. He actively connected students with these organisations.
A tireless advocate for film’s equal status to other fine art practices like painting and sculpture at the college, Le Grice’s efforts eventually led to the establishment of the BA (Hons) in Film, Audiovisual, and Video course in 1982. This course was dedicated to educating students as film artists, emphasising creativity, experimentation, and originality while also acknowledging the importance of technical skill. Le Grice’s influence directly contributed to the erosion of traditional media boundaries, which has since become widely accepted and integrated into fine art contexts in art education and beyond.
In the mid-nineties, as Dean of the University of Westminster, and then in the late 1990s and early 2000s, as the Head of Research at Central Saint Martins, he played a pivotal role in consolidating the potential for research in arts Higher Education, particularly in establishing practice-based research degrees. In 2000, he was instrumental in establishing the British Artists’ Film and Video Study Collection with David Curtis at the college. Central Saint Martins continues to be at the forefront of scholarship on artists’ moving image, across the programmes from Foundation to Doctoral levels, including the MRes in Moving Image programme and the ongoing support for film and video art in the BA (Hons) Fine Art course, which is a testament to his legacy.
Le Grice’s art practice involved early experimentation with optical film printing, found footage, and performance-based expanded cinema. While rooted in ‘materialist’ experimentation, he was not a film ‘purist’ and enthusiastically embraced early computer-generated work, video manipulation, digital abstraction, multi-screen video projection, and 3D imaging. His work often reflected personal experiences, sometimes evoking impressionistic, poetic, and visually striking qualities. He extensively exhibited and performed his work internationally. His work is included in many major collections, including Tate.
Beyond his artistic endeavours, Le Grice was also a theorist whose publications include the influential book Abstract Film and Beyond (1977) and a regular column in Studio International during the 1970s. His numerous other published articles were collected in Experimental Cinema in the Digital Age (2011).
Steven Ball, Research Fellow, Central Saint Martins, UALDecember 2024
"Malcolm Le Grice was an extremely important figure to both Central Saint Martins and to the emerging field of Arts Research, bringing his vast expertise to bear as both an artist filmmaker and educator. Hearing him speak you sensed his keen intellectual curiosity which often showed itself in the ways he supported other, often younger, artists in their work and careers. "
Rebecca Fortnum, Professor of Fine Art Acting Dean of C School, Central Saint Martins
Malcolm's works in the CSM Museum & Study CollectionBritish Artists' Film and Video Study Collection