Chris Francis (born 1976,

Kokomo, Indiana Kokomo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Indiana, United States. Its population was 60,093 according to the U.S. Census Bureau 2024 estimate. It is the principal city of the Kokomo, Indiana metropolitan area, Kokomo metropol ...

) is an American artist, living and working in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Beginning as an artist and carpenter, Francis eventually started creating leather wear worn by Mötley Crüe's

Mick Mars Robert Alan Deal (born May 4, 1951), known professionally as Mick Mars, is an American musician best known as the former lead guitarist and co-founder of the Heavy metal music, heavy metal band Mötley Crüe, being the oldest of the four origin ...

Steve Jones Steve or Steven Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Steve Jones (English presenter) (born 1945), English musician, disk jockey, television presenter, and voice-over artist *Steve Jones (musician) (born 1955), English rock and roll guitar ...

of the Sex Pistols, and former Runaways guitarist

Lita Ford Lita Rossana Ford (born September 19, 1958) is an American guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. She was the lead guitarist for the all-female rock band the Runaways in the late 1970s, and then embarked on a successful glam metal solo career tha ...

. Francis gained acclaim as a high-concept shoe designer creating wearable art.

Education

Francis attended the

Maryland Institute College of Art The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is a Private university, private art school, art and design college in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1826 as the Maryland Institute for the Promotion of the Mechanic Arts, it is regarded as one of ...

for over a year but did not complete the program. He traveled the United States on freight trains for five years and worked as a tree topper, street-side shoe shiner, worked on fishing ships, washed windows, worked on film sets, and finally was a carpenter. Francis is a self-taught shoe designer and began creating wearable art in 2011 after seeing a guest shoemaker hand stitch shoes at a

Louis Vuitton Louis Vuitton Malletier SAS, commonly known as Louis Vuitton (, ), is a French Luxury goods, luxury fashion house and company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton (designer), Louis Vuitton. The label's LV monogram appears on most of its products, ...

event in Los Angeles. Without a proper leather sewing machine Francis did all the work by hand, and in the beginning he did not have proper shoe lasts, so he carved them himself in a park. He picked up shoe making tools from other shoemakers in the Hollywood area.

Art

Francis creates shoes as an artist, finding inspiration in his favorite books, architecture, music, vintage machines, and flea market finds. Francis cites architects

Walter Gropius Walter Adolph Georg Gropius (; 18 May 1883 – 5 July 1969) was a German-born American architect and founder of the Bauhaus, Bauhaus School, who is widely regarded as one of the pioneering masters of modernist architecture. He was a founder of ...

Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect, academic, and interior designer. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. He is regarded as one of the pionee ...

, Terry de Havilland, and artist

Josef Albers Josef Albers ( , , ; March 19, 1888March 25, 1976) was a German-born American artist and Visual arts education, educator who is considered one of the most influential 20th-century art teachers in the United States. Born in 1888 in Bottrop, Westp ...

as his inspiration.

Selected works

For his exhibition at the

Craft and Folk Art Museum Craft Contemporary, formerly the Craft and Folk Art Museum, is a non-profit, non-collecting arts museum dedicated to showcasing contemporary craft in Los Angeles, California. The museum is located on Los Angeles' Museum Row on Wilshire Boulevard, ...

, ''Chris Francis: Shoe Designer'', his entire studio was transported to the storefront of the museum, taking residency for the remaining show.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, Chris 1976 births Living people American artists Maryland Institute College of Art alumni People from Kokomo, Indiana