Kraut Art Glass, a family architectural legacy that the third generation of Krauts is keeping alive and profitable, is behind the creation of the country’s best stained glass that adorns numerous churches, mausoleums, religious institutions, public landmarks and private residences all over the country. “One memorable project we had in Mindanao was for world champion boxer Manny Pacquiao. He commissioned a portrait of himself done in Kraut stained glass. We finished the project just in time for his homecoming after his third match with the Mexican boxer, Erik Morales.” revealed proudly thirty-year-old Roland, son of Robert Gonzalez Kraut, Sr., the youngest heir to the stained glass business founded by his father in 1912.
Despite its ever growing list of prestigious clientele, Kraut Art Glass has remained a medium-sized company which keeps a busy retinue of thirty well-selected craftsmen running a factory housed in a two-storey, old structure in the rustic prewar Kraut family compound along Dominga Street in Pasay City, Metro Manila. “My brother, Robert, and I prefer it this way. We want to enjoy our work by focusing on high quality products because the art of stain glass making is a special craft. We always aim to offer personalized service to meet our clients’ desires, so we deal with the clients ourselves. I am the one who travels all over the Philippines to inspect our projects. It is something which I love doing while my brother Robert would rather stay put in the office. We have always been hands on in this extraordinary craft my grandfather pioneered in the country nearly a century ago. Continuing the family legacy is definitely more than just making profits for the family,” explained Roland.
“Robert and I are Business Management graduates of the De La Salle University. We are not artists although Robert took an additional course in Interior Design, which I am planning to take someday as well. We collaborate with our studio artists in producing the Kraut Art Glass, which I admit is a product made by many artisans strictly following a standard process. When it comes to the choice of design, we comply with our clients’ choice and wishes. Many would bring us pictures of what they want or we show them our catalogue from which they can choose the design that they like,” Roland maintained as he continued, “There had been famous Filipino artists, like the National Artist Galo Ocampo, who worked for several Kraut Art Glass projects in the past. Our artists’ sketches have to accurately fit the customers’ demands before they are rendered into actual size patterns. And then we choose each piece of glass for the desired color and cut it to suit.”
The increasing demand for the Krauts’ expensive and high-quality stained glass products encouraged the Kraut brothers to open a Kraut Art Glass showroom in Cebu recently. Roland justified the move, saying “We have a good market in the Visayas region. Hopefully someday, we will be establishing a showroom in Davao City for the Mindanao region as well.” Roland is proud to show the Art Nouveau/Art Deco-inspired designs in stained glass made by his late grandfather, Matthias Kraut. The images are interesting because the pioneering Kraut utilized Filipino themes in his 1930’s artworks, which reflect the predominating search by the Filipinos during that period for their own identity in the arts. “In five years, we will be celebrating the 100th founding anniversary of the Kraut Art Glass. We are hoping to produce a book that will best serve as our tribute to our grandfather, Matthias Kraut, and his stained glass works which are truly magnificent paintings with light,” Roland said.
“My German grandfather, Matthias Kraut, who was born in Saarbreuchen, Germany, arrived in the Philippines in 1911 as a representative of Moore Paints which was distributed in Manila by Sprungli and Company. A year later, he was already well-known among the ilustrados of both Central and Southern Luzon as a good housepainter. He then worked for the Standard Paint Company and was known as the ‘Standard Painter’,” narrated the proud grandson Roland, who is three-fourths Filipino by blood but exhibits strong mestizo features.
Matthias Kraut later purchased the equipment of a Japanese businessman who failed in his bid to set up a stained glass business in Manila. In 1912, he established his stained glass studio in Bilibid Viejo in Quiapo, Manila, where he eventually met a Filipina mestiza named Pilar Gonzalez whom he married. In no time, Matthias Kraut was selling a novel decorative concept: interiors planned not just on paints but enhanced with colorful windows as well. He gained prominence through his artistry, relying on his satisfied clients’ word-of-mouth. In 1926, Heinrich Berghof, a nephew from Germany who had professional training in stained glass manufacturing, brought his expertise to the Kraut business in the Philippines. Berghof contributed generously in making Matthias Kraut the number one manufacturer of stained glass in Manila until the outbreak of World War II.
From 1938 to 1967, the eldest of Matthias Kraut’s seven children, Paul, passionately enriched the firm’s artistic productions, while younger brothers Ludwig and Peter efficiently handled the management responsibilities. Robert, Sr. was the last among the brothers to retire and passed on the family business to his wife Molly and their three children namely Robert Jr., Roland and sister Rochelle. “With almost a century of experience behind us in this family business, it is guaranteed that we at Kraut Art Glass still offer the finest, if not the best, stained glass in the country. The Kraut process in stained glass making ensures that the paintings are made permanent to last for centuries; meaning they will not fade when exposed to sunlight or rain,” Roland Kraut assures.
Matthias Kraut definitely deserves his mark in the pages of the history of Philippine architecture. And kudos to the third generation of Krauts for gloriously continuing the priceless family legacy.
