Meet Michael Francis | Visual Development Artist and Illustrator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michael Francis and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michael, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
When I was a kid, one of the things I thought I was good at was drawing. I would draw things like doodles of little characters on my homework or whatever I could think of inside my sketchbooks. The other thing I was into back then (and even now honestly) was video games and movies. In high school I looked at what jobs and careers there were and I combined my love of drawing with entertainment and I found concept artists and visual development artists. At that moment I knew what direction I wanted to take and decided to pursue my creative career and become a visual development artist.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My personal work is about the experience of being a Native American artist in 2023. I love telling stories that everyone can enjoy while also highlighting what Native stories and legends can bring to the modern era. I want my work to inspire and give hope. I’ve studied at prestigious art schools to hone my craft to be able to bring these stories to life.

It wasn’t easy to achieve the level of skill I have now but it was worth it in my opinion. I studied at The Savannah College of Art and Design first then transferred to The Academy of Art University. These schools on on the opposite side of the United States from each other. It took me over 5 years of dedicated hard work and study to wrap up my Bachelors of Fine Art in Visual Development. The first big thing I had to learn a lot about was time management and balance.

I had a part time job basically every single semester/term that I had to balance between studying and working at a retail store or a restaurant. I didn’t like doing these jobs but I didn’t like the idea of being the stereotypical idea of the “starving artist”. I wanted to support myself as much as I could and a big part of that was pushing through the late night and getting up for the early mornings. I also consumed a lot of coffee haha.

I also needed to understanding how the art was made so I could translate my thoughts onto the paper (or digital tablet). I studied many master artists and looked in depth how they created their work of art. I was attracted to the work of the Impressionists movement and that can be seen in my personal art style. I also trained my brain to take what I see so I can draw it fairly accurately and timely. I didn’t focus on speed but I got faster as I gained confidence in my skills.

I also learned how to research and respectfully incorporate real life references into my personal work, which I use to add my Native American flair to the content of my personal projects. That was the final bit of knowledge thatI needed to achieve my goal of telling Native stories the way I wanted to.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Admittedly I’m not the best tour guide. My work requires me to be in the studio a lot so I haven’t gotten to fully explore Austin as I’d like to. When I had my friend come over for a week we basically did a lot of the hikes and trails around the Austin area and ate a restaurants we found along the way. That’s probably what I would recommend for someone who wanted to visit Austin, just explore around and see what you find! You may be surprised with what you’ll find!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Shoutout to all of my professors in school for pushing me to be the best artist and creative I can be.

Website: www.michaelfrancis.art

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michael.fran/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-francis-570785152/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/michael_fran17