Francis North makes happiness from a warm gun and says it with flowers

There’s something in the water over at Kingston University. The second year contingent of their graphic design course are turning out some of the most impressive student work we’ve seen for a long time, and they’ve still got a year to hone their already impressive skills before graduation. Look out world! The other week we featured the work of photographic wizard Luke Evans, who’d manufactured incredible naturalistic sets on his kitchen table, and now it’s time to profile his classmate, Francis North, an ideas man with significant skill.

Though the majority of Francis’ work definitely isn’t graphic design in the most traditional sense, his canny knack for great ideas and professional execution elevates him above any term that might attempt to pigeonhole him. Among the tidily laid-out print works in his portfolio sit strange pieces of experimental work; a hot water bottle moulded to the shape of a revolver, vacuum-packed flowers for romantic gestures by post and a set of conkers fashioned from glass. Written down these projects don’t sound all that exciting, but visually they’re stunning and demonstrate an enviable understanding of materials, not to mention a quiet wit. Someone give this man his degree now so he can get on with making work that everyone, not just his tutors, can enjoy.