Sherron Francis

Art Brokerage: Sherron Francis American Artist: b. 1940. Sherron Francis was born in the Chicago suburb of Downers Grove, Illinois in 1940. She studied fine art at the University of Oklahoma from 1958 to 1960 before transferring to the Kansas City Art Institute. She ultimately graduated from the Institute in 1963. In Missouri, Francis met Dan Christensen (Class of 1964), an artist friend, who would play a key role in her career throughout the next two decades. Francis then received her MFA from the University of Indiana before assuming a teaching position at Eastern Michigan University. By 1971, Christensen, who was exhibiting with Andre Emmerich, introduced Francis to the legendary gallerist. There was no better gallery to be showcasing Abstract Expressionism and Color Field painting during this decade for an artist. For context, in 1972, Emmerich held solo exhibitions by art titans, such as Hans Hofmann, Al Held, Esteban Vicente, David Hockney and Morris Louis. In 1973 alone, Emmerich gave one-person exhibitions to Helen Frankenthaler, Kenneth Noland, Hofmann, Jack Bush and a new discovery: 32-year-old Sherron Francis. The exhibition for Francis was a great success with Peter Schjeldahl positively reviewing it in the New York Times. In the late 1970s, Francis became more interested in utilizing new acrylic and gel mediums that were becoming available. By 1980, she was also creating clay works and exhibiting them alongside Kikuo Saito and Betty Woodman. In 1983, art historian Jack Flam selected one of Francis's paintings in his "Artists Choose Artists II" exhibition, consisting of works by Carl Andre, Jim Dine, Brice Marden, Richard Serra and Frank Stella. Listings wanted.