Friday, October 10, 2025

🥞 How many pancakes is too many? 🥞

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty


🥞 Grandpa's Panny Cakes 🥞
acrylic paint on canvas board
5" x 7" (12.7 cm x 17.8 cm)
202510050
© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.
To purchase for your breakfast table, please visit:

Some of my favorite childhood nights started with the smell of pancakes for dinner. My grandpa would flip them while my sister and I turned his kitchen into a playground. Afterward we’d wander into his workshop, draw pictures, or play with old toys that once belonged to my mom. The TV was usually on something he didn’t care for, but he’d watch anyway, smiling at our chatter. Those evenings felt like sunlight and maple syrup: simple, sweet, and full of warmth.

What small rituals from your childhood still make you smile when you think of them?


My Story
Hi, I’m Mike the artist of Mike Kraus Art Inc.

I’ve been making art since I could hold a crayon. As a kid, I’d fill every notebook, homework margin, and scrap of paper with doodles. I sold my first artwork in junior high, sketching in class and handing off pieces between periods. That early love for making things never faded. I followed it all the way to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and eventually, I decided to stop treating art as a side hustle and make it my life’s work.

My paintings are full of energy, motion, and saturated color. I’m drawn to bold shapes and organic lines—forms that feel alive. I create with the hope that my work brings something beautiful and uplifting into someone’s day. Whether it’s a spark of joy, a moment of calm, or just a splash of color that makes you pause—I want my art to connect with something real.

Now, I’m lucky enough to paint full-time, with collectors across the U.S. and in dozens of countries around the world. But more than anything, I still feel like that kid with a crayon, excited to create. I’m grateful to share this journey with you—and I hope you find something in my work that makes your world a little brighter.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Wednesday, October 8, 2025

🧌 Happily Ever After Starts In the Swamp 🧌

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty


🧌 The Swamp 🧌
acrylic paint on canvas board
5" x 7" (12.7 cm x 17.8 cm)
202509047
© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.

Get ready for some happily ever after. This original painting of Shrek’s swamp, plus other awesome local creations, will be raffled off during Opening Night of Shrek the Musical on Friday, October 10th. You might leave with more than just memories.

The Webster Theatre Guild Proudly Present:

Shrek the Musical is a one-of-a-kind, hilarious fairy tale in which curses are reversed, monsters get the girls, donkeys and dragons find love, and princesses are beautiful in all shapes and sizes.

FRIDAY October 10 @ 7:00
SATURDAY October 11 @ 2:00 & 7:00
FRIDAY October 17 @ 7:00
SATURDAY October 18 @ 2:00 & 7:00


🍂🍁 LAST DAY of the AWESOME AUTUMN ART FESTIVAL! 🍁🍂

If you’re craving something cozy, colorful, and created by real humans, come join us online! It’s a joyful little corner where artists share their newest work, collectors discover hidden gems, and everyone gets to skip the stress of big box shopping.

Grab your favorite fall drink, get comfy, and wander through the festival from home. You might just find a piece that makes you smile every time you see it.

👉 Join us here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1934458910278595

See you there!

My Story
Hi, I’m Mike the artist of Mike Kraus Art Inc.

I’ve been making art since I could hold a crayon. As a kid, I’d fill every notebook, homework margin, and scrap of paper with doodles. I sold my first artwork in junior high, sketching in class and handing off pieces between periods. That early love for making things never faded. I followed it all the way to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and eventually, I decided to stop treating art as a side hustle and make it my life’s work.

My paintings are full of energy, motion, and saturated color. I’m drawn to bold shapes and organic lines—forms that feel alive. I create with the hope that my work brings something beautiful and uplifting into someone’s day. Whether it’s a spark of joy, a moment of calm, or just a splash of color that makes you pause—I want my art to connect with something real.

Now, I’m lucky enough to paint full-time, with collectors across the U.S. and in dozens of countries around the world. But more than anything, I still feel like that kid with a crayon, excited to create. I’m grateful to share this journey with you—and I hope you find something in my work that makes your world a little brighter.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Monday, October 6, 2025

🍂🍁 Autumn Starts Here 🍁🍂

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty


Today is the big day!
The Awesome Autumn Art Festival is officially open and you are invited to step into a season of color, creativity, and connection. It is all happening online at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1934458910278595, which means you can experience it wherever you are.

We all know how easy it is to let days slip by without doing something special for ourselves. Screens fill up with work, errands pile on, and before long the spark of inspiration feels far away. But art has this amazing ability to pull us out of the routine and remind us of beauty, joy, and possibility.

That is exactly why this festival exists. Think of it as a door you can open with a single click. Inside you will find fresh artwork, live moments with artists, and a chance to see the season through new eyes. There is no pressure and no ticket lines, just a vibrant space waiting for you to explore.

The best part is how personal the experience becomes. Every piece you see will spark something a little different in you, whether that is a memory, a new idea, or simply the calm of pausing to take it in. Art is not just something to look at, it is something to feel.

So here is your easy step. Pour yourself a cozy cup of tea or coffee, join us at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1934458910278595, and enjoy the Awesome Autumn Art Festival right now. The community is already gathering and the first artworks are ready for you to see.

This is your chance to make today memorable. Let the art carry you into the season with a sense of wonder and warmth.
Questions!
Your Friend, Mike Kraus MikeKrausArt.etsy.com
P.S. I hope your autumn has started with joy, laughter, and maybe a few crunchy leaves under your feet. When you stop by the festival, share a quick hello and let me know how the season is treating you.

🥞 Grandpa's Panny Cakes 🥞
acrylic paint on canvas board
5" x 7" (12.7 cm x 17.8 cm)
202510050

© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.
To purchase for your home, please visit: 

https://mikekrausart.etsy.com/listing/234445492

💮 Assembly Not Included 💮 
acrylic paint on canvas board
8" x 10" (20.3 cm x 25.4 cm)
202510051
© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.
To purchase for your home, please visit:
https://mikekrausart.etsy.com/listing/242372150

🧌 The Swamp 🧌
acrylic paint on canvas board
5" x 7" (12.7 cm x 17.8 cm)
202509047

© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.
To be raffled off during Opening Night of Shrek the Musical on Friday, October 10th. 
More information at:
https://webstertheatreguild.org/current-show/


My Story
Hi, I’m Mike—the artist of Mike Kraus Art Inc.

I’ve been making art since I could hold a crayon. As a kid, I’d fill every notebook, homework margin, and scrap of paper with doodles. I sold my first artwork in junior high, sketching in class and handing off pieces between periods. That early love for making things never faded. I followed it all the way to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and eventually, I decided to stop treating art as a side hustle and make it my life’s work.

My paintings are full of energy, motion, and saturated color. I’m drawn to bold shapes and organic lines—forms that feel alive. I create with the hope that my work brings something beautiful and uplifting into someone’s day. Whether it’s a spark of joy, a moment of calm, or just a splash of color that makes you pause—I want my art to connect with something real.

Now, I’m lucky enough to paint full-time, with collectors across the U.S. and in dozens of countries around the world. But more than anything, I still feel like that kid with a crayon, excited to create. I’m grateful to share this journey with you—and I hope you find something in my work that makes your world a little brighter.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Friday, October 3, 2025

💜🌻 What if finding beauty was as simple as saying yes?🌻💜

 Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty


💜🌻 Sunflowers and Lavender in Provence 🌻💜
acrylic paint on canvas board
5" x 7" (12.7 cm x 17.8 cm)
202508043
© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.
To purchase for your home, please visit:

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. Every twisting road reveals new rows of lavender stretching endlessly under the sun. I will never forget the fields of France.

This little painting is small, simple, and easy to bring into your life. It fits in almost any room and ships securely to your door, ready to brighten your space. No stress and no extra steps. Just color and memory waiting for you.

Art is more than something pretty on a wall. It carries feelings, memories, and a little bit of hope. If this piece speaks to you, it may be because it already belongs with you.

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


🍁 OPENING SOON! 🍁
🍁 Calling All Art Lovers! 🍁

Get ready for the Awesome Autumn Art Festival—the coziest, craftiest, most joyfully creative online event of the season! Whether you're here to shop unique, sell your amazing work, or just soak in the good vibes, this is THE place to be. Think colorful finds, handmade magic, and a community that actually cares about art.

So grab your pumpkin spice and click that RSVP—because this fall, we’re making art the main event at:  👉 https://www.facebook.com/events/1046518944308485

My Story
Hi, I’m Mike—the artist of Mike Kraus Art Inc.

I’ve been making art since I could hold a crayon. As a kid, I’d fill every notebook, homework margin, and scrap of paper with doodles. I sold my first artwork in junior high, sketching in class and handing off pieces between periods. That early love for making things never faded. I followed it all the way to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and eventually, I decided to stop treating art as a side hustle and make it my life’s work.

My paintings are full of energy, motion, and saturated color. I’m drawn to bold shapes and organic lines—forms that feel alive. I create with the hope that my work brings something beautiful and uplifting into someone’s day. Whether it’s a spark of joy, a moment of calm, or just a splash of color that makes you pause—I want my art to connect with something real.

Now, I’m lucky enough to paint full-time, with collectors across the U.S. and in dozens of countries around the world. But more than anything, I still feel like that kid with a crayon, excited to create. I’m grateful to share this journey with you—and I hope you find something in my work that makes your world a little brighter.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Monday, September 29, 2025

🎲🐶 Think you can outsmart this pup? 🐶🎲

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty


🎲🐶 Game Night #593 🐶🎲
pen, ink, and colored pencil on Bristol paper
2.5" x 3.5" (6.35 cm x 8.89 cm) 
NOT A PRINT OR REPRODUCTION
202509049
© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.
To purchase for your collection, please visit:

There is something magical about gathering around the table for an evening of games, where the roll of the dice can make us cheer or groan in unison. The room fills with laughter when a surprise twist changes everything, and even the most serious faces crack into smiles. By the end of the night, it never really matters who takes the win because what lingers is the joy of time well spent together. 

What board game always brings the most fun to your family nights?

🍁 OPENING SOON!!! 🍁
🍁 Calling All Art Lovers! 🍁

Get ready for the Awesome Autumn Art Festival—the coziest, craftiest, most joyfully creative online event of the season! Whether you're here to shop unique, sell your amazing work, or just soak in the good vibes, this is THE place to be. Think colorful finds, handmade magic, and a community that actually cares about art.

So grab your pumpkin spice and click that RSVP—because this fall, we’re making art the main event at:  👉 https://www.facebook.com/events/1046518944308485

My Story
Hi, I’m Mike the artist of Mike Kraus Art Inc.

I’ve been making art since I could hold a crayon. As a kid, I’d fill every notebook, homework margin, and scrap of paper with doodles. I sold my first artwork in junior high, sketching in class and handing off pieces between periods. That early love for making things never faded. I followed it all the way to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and eventually, I decided to stop treating art as a side hustle and make it my life’s work.

My paintings are full of energy, motion, and saturated color. I’m drawn to bold shapes and organic lines—forms that feel alive. I create with the hope that my work brings something beautiful and uplifting into someone’s day. Whether it’s a spark of joy, a moment of calm, or just a splash of color that makes you pause—I want my art to connect with something real.

Now, I’m lucky enough to paint full-time, with collectors across the U.S. and in dozens of countries around the world. But more than anything, I still feel like that kid with a crayon, excited to create. I’m grateful to share this journey with you—and I hope you find something in my work that makes your world a little brighter.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Thursday, September 18, 2025

💮 Where do you find clarity when the world feels unsettled? 💮

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty


💮 White Lotus 💮 
acrylic paint on canvas board
8" x 10" (20.3 cm x 25.4 cm)
202508042
© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.
To purchase for your home, please visit:

As I hike up a hill, the forest opens allowing the hot Summer sun through.  The croaking of frogs seem to be attracting the attention of a Blue Heron at the pond below.  The mud is deep and thick.  It sticks to everything it comes in contact with a pungent stench.  In the middle of the muck, somehow an immaculate Lotus blooms.  When everything is a mess it manages to open itself up to the light.

How do we keep the sludge from clinging to us?

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


🍁 Calling All Art Lovers! 🍁

Get ready for the Awesome Autumn Art Festival—the coziest, craftiest, most joyfully creative online event of the season! Whether you're here to shop unique, sell your amazing work, or just soak in the good vibes, this is THE place to be. Think colorful finds, handmade magic, and a community that actually cares about art.

So grab your pumpkin spice and click that RSVP—because this fall, we’re making art the main event at:  👉 https://www.facebook.com/events/1046518944308485

My Story
Hi, I’m Mike the artist of Mike Kraus Art Inc.

I’ve been making art since I could hold a crayon. As a kid, I’d fill every notebook, homework margin, and scrap of paper with doodles. I sold my first artwork in junior high, sketching in class and handing off pieces between periods. That early love for making things never faded. I followed it all the way to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and eventually, I decided to stop treating art as a side hustle and make it my life’s work.

My paintings are full of energy, motion, and saturated color. I’m drawn to bold shapes and organic lines—forms that feel alive. I create with the hope that my work brings something beautiful and uplifting into someone’s day. Whether it’s a spark of joy, a moment of calm, or just a splash of color that makes you pause—I want my art to connect with something real.

Now, I’m lucky enough to paint full-time, with collectors across the U.S. and in dozens of countries around the world. But more than anything, I still feel like that kid with a crayon, excited to create. I’m grateful to share this journey with you—and I hope you find something in my work that makes your world a little brighter.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

Tuesday, September 16, 2025

🌸 Which Flower Holds Your Forever Memory? 🌸

Brightscapes: The Way To Beauty


🌸 Pink Gerbera Daisies #591 🌸
pen, ink, and colored pencil on Bristol paper
2.5" x 3.5" (6.35 cm x 8.89 cm) 
NOT A PRINT OR REPRODUCTION
202509046
© copyright Mike Kraus Art Inc.
To purchase for your collection, please visit:

I remember sitting with these gerbera daisies and noticing how their petals shifted from a soft blush to a deeper violet as the light moved across them, almost like they were breathing with the day. The black centers felt like quiet little universes, pulling me in as the petals reached outward in a kind of joyful stretch. I could almost hear the whisper of a warm breeze moving through a summer garden, carrying that sweet earthy scent that lingers on your skin. Flowers always remind me of moments that feel both fleeting and endless at the same time.

Do you have a flower that instantly brings you back to a memory you never want to let go of?

🍁 Calling All Art Lovers! 🍁

Get ready for the Awesome Autumn Art Festival—the coziest, craftiest, most joyfully creative online event of the season! Whether you're here to shop unique, sell your amazing work, or just soak in the good vibes, this is THE place to be. Think colorful finds, handmade magic, and a community that actually cares about art.

So grab your pumpkin spice and click that RSVP—because this fall, we’re making art the main event at:  👉 https://www.facebook.com/events/1046518944308485

My Story
Hi, I’m Mike the artist of Mike Kraus Art Inc.

I’ve been making art since I could hold a crayon. As a kid, I’d fill every notebook, homework margin, and scrap of paper with doodles. I sold my first artwork in junior high, sketching in class and handing off pieces between periods. That early love for making things never faded. I followed it all the way to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and eventually, I decided to stop treating art as a side hustle and make it my life’s work.

My paintings are full of energy, motion, and saturated color. I’m drawn to bold shapes and organic lines—forms that feel alive. I create with the hope that my work brings something beautiful and uplifting into someone’s day. Whether it’s a spark of joy, a moment of calm, or just a splash of color that makes you pause—I want my art to connect with something real.

Now, I’m lucky enough to paint full-time, with collectors across the U.S. and in dozens of countries around the world. But more than anything, I still feel like that kid with a crayon, excited to create. I’m grateful to share this journey with you—and I hope you find something in my work that makes your world a little brighter.

For more information or custom order, please visit:

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