It was in Lawrence, Kansas that Mike grew up and fell in love with the game of golf. Mike traveled around all over before coming to Branson, MO. Mike was challenged by the idea of building ships and items inside glass bottles, His ability was immediately recognized by a well-respected artist in Branson, MO. It wasn’t long before Peter Engler, one of the premier wood carvers in the country, invited him to join other carvers in Branson. In 1972, after starting his first project with a small pocketknife, he graduated to finer tools of the trade and “caught the fever”. His first carvings were mostly limited to small character figures depicting life and western scenes in art forms. His work is no longer considered as “carvings” but elaborate works of art. It wasn’t many years before Mike Krone had become a famous and respected name among wood carvers. His famous works sold for thousands of dollars, with a list of those waiting to add his items to their collection. He was featured in museums and is considered as one of the best in the world. Krone ventured into clay sculpture and found a new form of art to express his charm and talent. He won the hearts of art collectors all over the world through his unique ability to create whatever he could visualize. The demand for Krone’s works of art became so great that he commissioned a foundry to create several bronze pieces which became treasured as collector pieces in homes and museums across the country. In reflecting back, Krone thinks about key decisions he made back then and wonders if he would have ever recognized his talents and abilities had he not built that first ship in the bottle and if Peter Engler had failed to recognize the special talents of the golfer from the plains of Kansas.
