AKRON, Ohio -- Local artist Micah Kraus's solo exhibition, "All Falling Together," will be on view at 22 High Street in downtown Akron through March 31.

An opening reception will be held at the gallery from 5-9 p.m. Saturday, March 3.

The free event will coincide with Akron Artwalk and is open to the public. The reception will feature live music from local rock band The Dreemers.

Kraus is an Akron-based artist and educator with a background in printmaking. The work in his exhibition highlights deconstructed and uninhabited properties in his local neighborhood.

"I live in a place where ego and artifice don't hold much water," Kraus said in a news release. "There's value in lasting power, sincerity and earnestness, even when it looks like a crumbling building or a weathered face."

Kraus photographed decayed buildings, old weathered billboards, cracked security glass, flaking hand-painted signs and other signs of age in the area.

He developed a technique of processing these photographs as laser-etched images.

The image is textured by painting layers of white, gold or black ink on heavy rag paper. The laser reductively etches the photograph through the ink layers.

The resulting image appears distressed but still relates to the original photo.

Kraus serves as a fine arts department chair at Archbishop Hoban High School. He travels with his wife, ceramic artist Kim Eggleston-Kraus, friends and students to gather inspiration from the people, places and experiences he encounters.

"I'm drawn to these structures and people, admiring their steady dignity even while bare and vulnerable," Kraus said in a news release. "'All Falling Together' is about a slowly collapsing structure that finds potential amongst its disassembled pieces."

The 22 High Street Gallery is attached to Uncorked Wine Bar and High Street Hop House in downtown Akron.

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