Brushstrokes & Transformation: An Interview With Mike Kraus

In this interview with Mike Kraus, we delve into the captivating journey of an artist whose work serves as both a canvas of color and a canvas of values — honesty, kindness, and fairness. From his formative years in Muskegon, Michigan, Mike’s artistic voyage has been a dynamic exploration of the intricate interplay between the external world and his inner creativity.  Continue Reading at: https://medium.com/arts-o-magazine/mike-krause-9dd86995d76c

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Mike Kraus was born on the industrial shoreline of Muskegon, Michigan. After earning his Fine Arts Degree from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, he attended Grand Valley State University for his graduate degree. From there, he gained varied experiences from the Chicago Architecture Center, Art Institute of Chicago, Hauenstein Center For Presidential Studies, Lollypop Farm Humane Society, and the Lurie Children's Foundation. And every place he worked, he had his sketchbook with him and found ways to be actively creative. In 2014, Kraus became a full-time artist by establishing Mike Kraus Art. Since then, he has sold thousands of paintings that are displayed in nearly every state and dozens of countries. Currently, Kraus lives in Rochester, New York with his beautiful wife and goofy dog.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Store: MikeKrausArt.etsy.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MikeKrausArt

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/MikeKraus/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/mikekrausart

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mkraus

Five Year Anniversary!

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty

Five years ago, I followed my dreams and became a full-time artist.  I couldn't be more amazed by all the support I've received, humbled by the hundreds of my pieces that are on walls all over the world, and excited for all that is to come.  This has been an incredible journey.  An adventure that you made possible.  Thank you and I can't wait to see what the next five years bring. 

Your Friend,

Michael Kraus

MikeKrausArt.etsy.com

PS - Here are some photos from our vacation to Palma de Mallorca looking for inspiration

https://mikekraus.blogspot.com/2019/03/spanish-expedition-palma-de-mallorca.html

Michael Kraus was born on the industrial shoreline of Muskegon, Michigan. After earning his Fine Arts Degree from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, he attended Grand Valley State University for his graduate degree. From there, he gained varied experiences from the Chicago Architecture Foundation, Art Institute of Chicago, Hauenstein Center For Presidential Studies, Lollypop Farm Humane Society, and the Children's Memorial Foundation. And every place he worked, he had his sketchbook with him and found ways to be actively creative. In 2014, Kraus became a full-time artist by establishing Mike Kraus Art. Since then, he has sold hundreds of paintings that are displayed in nearly every state and dozens of countries. Currently, Kraus lives in Rochester, New York with his beautiful wife and goofy dog.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Store: MikeKrausArt.etsy.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MikeKrausArt
Instagram: https://instagram.com/mikekrausart

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/MikeKraus/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/MikeKrausBlog

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mkraus

Twilight Woods

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty

Twilight Woods #332

gouache paint on bristol paper

NOT A PRINT OR REPRODUCTION

2.5" x 3.5" (6.35 cm x 8.89 cm) 

201901009

© copyright Mike Kraus

To purchase, please visit: https://mikekrausart.etsy.com/listing/236709241

Tune in or stream live WAYO (https://wayofm.org/) 104.3 FM's Graphic Ear tomorrow at 5:30 PM as I will be the guest host.  And we'll have one very special guest as well.

Mike Kraus was born on the industrial shoreline of Muskegon, Michigan. After earning his Fine Arts Degree from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, he attended Grand Valley State University for his graduate degree. From there, he gained varied experiences from the Chicago Architecture Foundation, Art Institute of Chicago, Hauenstein Center For Presidential Studies, Lollypop Farm Humane Society, and the Children's Memorial Foundation. And every place he worked, he had his sketchbook with him and found ways to be actively creative. In 2014, Kraus became a full-time artist by establishing Mike Kraus Art. Since then, he has sold hundreds of paintings that are displayed in nearly every state and dozens of countries. Currently, Kraus lives in Rochester, New York with his beautiful wife and goofy dog.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Store: MikeKrausArt.etsy.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/MikeKrausArt

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/MikeKraus/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/mikekrausart

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/mkraus

Twitter: http://twitter.com/MikeKrausBlog

Google+: http://plus.google.com/111168390406803022323/posts

Just Another Day At the Office

 Just another day at the office.  Scout and I made our commute from the bedroom to the living room.  Light traffic for a Monday.  I'm fortunate to have a window in my office.  It keeps the creative juices flowing.

Time to get to work.  Put on my reading glasses and work on the "to-do" list.  Lots of paper work.  Things to file.  Getting final approvals. 

 Senior Management Meeting.  Scout's the leader of the operation.  Beaker's the brains.  I'm tasked with "gettin' stuff done."

 Coffee Break.  This is where the real business gets done.  The place where the important meetings take place.  It's all about relationships.  And, knowing what you have to do to get rewards.

Five o'clock.  We've earned time to put on our slippers, sit back, and have a nice cold drink.  To enjoy the good life.  Work hard, play hard.    Most importantly, don't take stuff so seriously and remember to have fun.

Also, if you're on Etsy, please visit my new shop at:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/MikeKrausArt

CONGRATS TO ME!!! (A shameless self-congratulations)

CONGRATULATIONS MIKE!!!

I am the new Annual Giving Manager of Lollypop Farm, Humane Society of Greater Rochester (www.Lollypop.org).  It's a great organization that's been helping all kinds of creatures since 1873.  At their wonderful facility, they provide tons of programs and services for dogs, cats, horses, sheep, goats, rabbits, fish, turtles and their owners.  It's a great opportunity for me personally and I'm super excited to be a part of the team.  I have lots of people to thank.  Especially Megan, Jerry, Jennie, Mary, and so many more!


To make a donation to Lollypop Farm, please go to:
How you can help


Enough patting myself on the back.  But, I figure if Hollywood can do it several times a year, I can do it once every five years or so.  ONWARD TO THE REST OF THE BLOG!!!



While I went to volunteer training at Lollypop, Megan went to Bristol Mountain to teach Tachel how to ski.  Here she is with her dad.



She can even pose for pictures on skis.  



Dad towing Tachel down the mountain.  



Megan had a gala for work for Wilson Commencement Park (http://www.wilsoncommencementpark.org/), an inspiring organization helping Rochester families become self-sufficient, held at ArtisanWorks (http://www.artisanworks.net/).  This place is a 40,000 square foot warehouse packed with all kinds of great things.  It's like a much, much, larger version of my childhood bedroom.  



There was so much to look at that I felt like I saw nothing.  I kept finding paintings, sculptures, photos, etc. in areas I frequently walked in.



The Frank Lloyd Wright room.  Not sure if this is a replica an artist made or if this is a salvage from a house that was torn down.  I'll have to check with Katherine, an FLW preservation expert, for more information.



up the narrow staircase



A view of the dining room



Our only purchase is this GIANT eagle.  Really look at the scale of this thing.  The painting in the bottom right corner is huge.  The pedestal it is sitting on is a full bar.  It will look beautiful in our apartment livingroom...



Lots of taxidermy.  This is an alligator eating a zebra, of course!



Lots of people with lots of art!  Plus, good food.  We met a great couple at dinner.  They were pretty fun and interesting.  Hopefully we'll bump into them again at another event.



a painting of Megan with a monkey on her head



Atlas, (http://www.atlasband.com/) rocked the house!



Highlight of the night was our conversation with R. Carlos Carballada, acting mayor for the City of Rochester and neighborhood and business development commissioner (for those not in Rochester, our mayor left for state government and there's been lots of issues in replacing him and multiple mayors and all).  Really nice guy.  Congratulated Megan on her work, gave me some career advice, thanked us for moving to Rochester.  


Well, that's it for now.  But, lots of stuff on my plate these days.  I've got a play tonight, volunteering and school committee meeting tomorrow, Amerks hockey game on Friday, car shopping this weekend, Valentine's Day and probably a lot more I've left out.  

CONGRATS TO MEGAN!!!

CONGRATS!!!

I promise this will be the last congrats to Megan on her job situation.  Promise...  She was the interim executive director of the Marie C. and Joseph C. Wilson Foundation (Xerox Family).  Then, was offered the Event Coordinator position at another great organization on a permanent basis.  Well, she did such a great job at the Wilson Foundation that they decided to not let her go.  She'll be the permanent Executive Director from now on.  So, everyone send Megan your best wishes as this is an opportunity of a lifetime.  I'm proud of you!

The New Barbarian Rochestarian

After nine years in Chicago, Megan and I decided it was time for a change of scenery. We resigned from our jobs, which will take effect September 17th and will be moving to Rochester, New York soon after. I want to thank all the people over the years who have been so good to me-from the Art Institute, Chicago Architecture Foundation, and Children's Memorial Foundation. There are also a bunch of random friends that I've made randomly that we will miss. As usual, I will keep everyone updated on here as we learn what we are doing ourselves.

Thanks again Chicago! We will miss you!

We're Going To Need A Few Drinks If We Actually Do This...

Megan's work, AIAChicago, decided to throw us a Martini Engagement Party last Friday after work. It was very nice of them to do that for us and a lot of fun. Pictured above is my Orange Bitter Martini with Gin. It was damn good.


Here's Steve. He's an interesting guy. Every time I talk with him, some fascinating story or event happens. This Martini event is one of them. I had no idea he was such a Martini artist. He had this whole thing planned out with chilled glasses, ingredients, and crafted each drink to perfection by rubbing various fruit and stuff. It was amazing just to watch.


Here's Megan cutting up some Mango for a few drinks.


Here's the team at work


Here's Steve explaining the fine balance of making a Martini, "Well, it's a lot of alcohol with a small splash of juice." And that is why Megan and I ended up at Gino's East and ate a whole pizza afterwards...

PS - Has anyone else been watching the "THIS" Movie Channel? It's like HBO that you get with an antennae, but only shows really terrible B movies. And, if you know me, I love B movies. They had Charles Blakely's Monster, Species III, and millions of others I've never heard of before. It's pretty awesome. I highly suggest it...

Time of the Feast!

Rich, Megan's brother, was in town for Lollapolooza. By his rockin' devil horns, you can tell he's more of a Rage fan than a Wilco fan.


Just a few of the other people that were there...


Here's where I now work at the Children's Memorial Foundation of the Children's Memorial Hospital. I love my new job. It is so awesome. Here are some things about my first week:

1) everything (ie toilet, sinks, door handles) is reachable at kid's height.
2) there are millions of inspirational stories about sick kids
3) We held a 36-hour Radiothon on 101.9FM the Mix
4) We had a BBQ in the park for lunch on Thursday followed by a Blizzard at Dairy Queen
5) There's a new $1 billion hospital going up in Streeterville (downtown Chicago) that will be complete sometime in 2012.
6) They are constantly feeding us: Since I've been there I've had Panera Bread for breakfast a couple times, Outback Steakhouse, Pizza from a nearby restaurant called Pizanno's or something, Chipotle Burritos, and lots I turned down.
7) All my co-workers are so nice and are overachievers. So, I really have to up my game.
8) On Thursday, we are having a retreat at US Cellular field which includes watching the Sox play against the Royal.

AWESOME!


Stop by my office at B.015 sometime...


It's a little bare right now, BUT IT HAS A WINDOW!


One thing that's great about working at a place "where kids come first," is the fun stuff everywhere. It's great that my job encourages me to "play" because i naturally tend to do that anyway.


Here's the Radiothon in the lobby of the hospital


Here's a "trabby" (sp?). If I remember correctly, these are cars from Russia or Eastern Germany during the time of the USSR. When I was in Germany in 1997, they were all the rage for new kids learning to drive because they were very cheap. I want to say they cost only about 1000 marks, which was about $500 USD at the time.


Megan and Ronan at Ronan's going away party. It's the end of an era as Ronan moves to Houston to be with his lady and his great new job. It's a loss for us personally, but wish him all the luck of Ireland down in the heart of Texas!

I GOT A JOB-Y MC-JOBBERSON!!!

I GOT A JOB!!! I am a DEVELOPMENT FINANCIAL SERVICE SPECIALIST for CHILDREN'S MEMORIAL HOSPITAL FOUNDATION!!! I START AUGUST 4th and it's completely awesome!!! YEAH!!!