FAYETTE, OHIO – On Thursday, Nov. 11 at 7p.m the Bean Creek Valley History Center will sponsor a barn painting demonstration by Robert Kroeger, and a meet the author and book signing for the recently released book, “Historic Barns of Ohio,” from Arcadia Publishing. The event takes place at the Fayette Opera House, 105  E. Main Street, Fayette, Ohio.

Kroeger will be demonstrating his painting technique of using palette knives and impasto to paint an old barn. He will also share stories of some of the barns he has painted, tips on how to tell the age of a barn, and other interesting information.

Kroeger is a native of Youngstown, graduated from Ohio State University’s College of Dentistry, and served active duty in the U.S. Navy. He is a second-generation artist, although unlike his father, he didn’t begin painting full-time until he retired.

He chose the barn architecture of bygone eras. From the glacier-flattened northwest to the Appalachian hills and valleys.

Barns were the center of farms, built with wooden nails and mortise-and-tenon joints and assembled with beams hand-hewn from nearby trees; some of these structures have witnessed three centuries.

Many display the magnificent skill of masterful barn builders including wooden spikes and tongue and grooved two-inch flooring. Unfortunately, many of these barns have crumbled and many more have been replaced with the newer metal barns of today.

Kroeger has traveled all 88 counties of Ohio and even out of state to find beautiful, dilapidated barns so he can write an essay on the barn to preserve Ohio History.

The public is welcomed to visit with the artist, and purchase an autographed book of various old barns of all 88 counties. Light refreshments will be served. Call 419-388-3518 to reserve tickets.