Kroeger, a retired dentist living in Cincinnati, began his “barn journey” in the early 2000s after staying at a rural bed and breakfast in Licking County. While there, he saw a “lonely deteriorating barn, ‘Granville Gray,’ with the roof sagging, boards missing, corners slightly tilted and in disrepair.
This then started Kroeger’s Ohio Barn Project, which has taken him through the state to paint barns, talk with owners and write stories about each structure that can be found at www.barnart.weebly.com.
Kroeger uses impasto oil in his paintings that’s applied with knives rather than brushes, resulting in many raised ridges. The oil reflects light in different ways because it protrudes from the canvas, and can give a third dimension that traditional oil cannot.
Many of the paintings frames are constructed from the barn in the painting, but all the frames are from old barn wood.
Kroeger’s work was published in the book Historic Barns of Ohio, which is available at the museum for $24, as well as a limited number of the 2023 calendars for $15.
The online auction will end at 12 p.m. on Jan. 20. To bid, visit www.champaigncountyhistoricalmuseum.org.
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