A shoe designed by Product Design Program student Stefan Cristobal will be produced for shoe brand Android Homme in 2015 after Cristobal won the 2014 Pensole World Sneaker Championship.

Cristobal’s victory was the culmination of a month-long footwear design competition at the Pensole Footwear Design Academy, an innovative footwear design program in Portland, Oregon, established by former UO in Portland Adjunct Instructor D'Wayne Edwards. Cristobal’s sneaker design was the top vote-getter through an on-line tally.

It’s not the first time Cristobal’s work has come to the attention of professional shoe designers. In 2013, he was one of just two semifinalists in the “Made in USA” category in the international Future of Footwear Awards.

“He imagines, draws, makes and sells his fun, futuristic visions in true American style. He's a modern Norman Bel Geddes, had Bel Geddes been from Portland,” said Product Design Program Director Kiersten Muenchinger.

Cristobal said the Pensol academy has helped him move beyond his initial design ideas. “I came into Future of Footwear only wanting to design basketball or men's dress shoes,” he says. “D'Wayne taught us that you can only become a great designer when you stop designing for yourself. He inspired me to try things that I am unfamiliar with.”

Read more about the 2014 competition in The Oregonian.

Above: Cristobal’s shoe will be produced by shoe brand Android Homme in 2014.