Wednesday, February 14, 2018

Rue St. Paul Montréal

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty
 Rue St. Paul Montréal #270
Gouache, ink, graphite on Bristol Paper
NOT A PRINT OR REPRODUCTION
2.5" x 3.5" (6.35 cm x 8.89 cm) 
201802023
© copyright Mike Kraus
To purchase, please visit: https://www.etsy.com/listing/213712985/rue-st-paul-montreal-270-artist-trading


This artist trading card or ACEO (Art Card Editions and Originals) is frameable, collectible, enjoyable and can be given as a special gift for a birthday, wedding, new baby, anniversary, thank you or other occasion. It is a one-of-a-kind original work of art, NOT A PRINT OR REPRODUCTION. It is signed on the back and lends itself to framing in a standard trading card frame or book.



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:

Monday, February 12, 2018

Fuji Apple

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty
  Fuji Apple, 2018
acrylic paint on canvas board
8" x 10" (20.3 cm x 25.4 cm)
201801022
© copyright Mike Kraus
To purchase, please visit: https://www.etsy.com/listing/240424277/fuji-apple-original-acrylic-painting-8-x

The weekend before my birthday in mid-October, my wife and I will stop by one of the many orchards near our home in upstate New York.  Some of them are like carnivals with bounce houses, hay rides, and petting zoos.  Others are simply apple farms that grow apples.  We'll roam the grounds selecting a variety of apples to bake into pies, cakes, and other treats.  And, with any luck, it will keep the doctor away...

This painting would look best in a space that is red, yellow, orange, green, dark or light blue, purple, black, white, grey, beige, or wood

LOVING ROCHESTER WITH KAREN LAMBERT INTERVIEWS MIKE KRAUS!

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.


Friday, February 9, 2018

Watch the Loving Rochester Interview With Mike Kraus Now!


LOVING ROCHESTER WITH KAREN LAMBERT
February 9th, 2018
Filmed by Dan Groth

Karen interviews local artist Mike Kraus about the inspiration and creation of his Brightscapes.  Her visit includes Whitman Works Co. Gallery and Kraus' studio in Penfield, New York.  

Be sure to also Check out Loving Rochester at:



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:

Lavender Farm

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty
 Lavender Farm, 2018
acrylic paint on canvas board
16" x 20" (40.6 cm x 50.8 cm)
201801021
© copyright Mike Kraus
To purchase, please visit: https://www.etsy.com/listing/241431471/lavender-farm-original-acrylic-painting

Our bikes race up and down the gentle hills of Provence.  Everything has a distinct texture, the colors are vibrant, and the perfume in the air is intoxicating.  And every twisting road we turn down has countless rows of purple and blue lavender.  The heat of the Mediterranean sun presses against our backs as we pedal back to the village of Sault.  I'll never forget the fields of France.

This painting would look best in a space that is light red, yellow, orange, green, blue, deep purple, black, white, grey, beige, or wood


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.


Wednesday, February 7, 2018

The Birch Forest

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty
  The Birch Forest, 2018
acrylic paint, marker on canvas board
8" x 10" (20.3 cm x 25.4 cm)
201801020
© copyright Mike Kraus
To purchase, please visit: https://www.etsy.com/listing/535452263/the-birch-forest-original-acrylic

Birch trees have always been a meditative source for me. Growing up, there was one outside my window that I would look at while daydreaming. And, when I needed to get away from the world I went to a grove of Birch trees to find refuge. I’ve always found the unique and nearly useless white tree interesting.

This painting would look best in a space that is dark red, yellow, orange, green, light blue, purple, black, white, gray, beige. or wood


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.


Tuesday, February 6, 2018

An Exciting February

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty

How are you?  I hope that your 2018 is off to a great start too.  I've 
been busy painting in my studio, preparing upcoming shows, and
installing my artwork at the Bausch + Lomb Rochester Optics Center. 
 And more is happening every day.  So, expect to hear of more
exciting projects soon.  THANKS AGAIN and please let me know if
you need anything    

Your Friend,
Michael Kraus
MikeKrausArt.etsy.com

PS- My work on view at:
Bausch + Lomb​ Rochester Optics Center
http://mikekraus.blogspot.com/2018/01/bausch-lomb-rotating-art-program.html
and
Whitman Works Company​
www.whitmanworks.com
 


About Michael Kraus
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:

Monday, February 5, 2018

Leaving Donegal, Ireland

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty
Leaving Donegal, Ireland
acrylic paint on canvas board
8" x 10" (20.3 cm x 25.4 cm)
201801019
© copyright Michael Kraus

This is the last time Frank Duff will see his home. A vanishing glimpse of Donegal, Ireland aboard the ship Eliza slowly heading for America.  While he loves his home, he and his wife, Anna, know there is no future for them there.  For generations, Frank and his family farmed the land.  Their hard labor put food on the table, clothes on their backs, and maybe a little extra to barter when times were difficult.

That all changed when the English exiled the Gaelic leaders from Ireland.  The British made it illegal for Catholics to worship, vote, speak their language, and own property.  With their farm stolen from them, English absentee landlords demanded high rents that they could never afford.  The debt became so large that they were forced off their farm to become migrant farmers traveling through Ulster and Scotland.  Their days consisted of walking barefoot to work and fighting wild dogs for food.  And they'd watch each other die from malnutrition only to be buried in mass graves.

This group of religious/political refugees on the ship Eliza were not welcomed to America.  They practiced the "foreign religion" of Catholicism that "pledged allegiance to the Pope."  Fear was purposely spread that these Irish would bring crime to their cities and they were rapists.  These Irish were coming to take away jobs and their many children would drain the welfare budgets with their diseases and laziness.  So, when the boat docked in New Castle, Delaware, Frank and Anna were now afraid of their new home too.

Frank and Anna Duff were my 5th great-grandparents.  They left the east coast to established a farm in the distant wilderness of Butler, Pennsylvania.  Several generations worked the land and eventually became machinists in factories, firefighters, bridge builders, and soldiers in war and peace.
They only wanted a chance at a better life and I remember their story.


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:

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