Artist to give painting demonstration

The Hancock Historical Museum, 422 W. Sandusky St., will host its monthly Brown Bag Lecture at noon Thursday. Cincinnati-based artist, Dr. Robert Kroeger, will give a painting demonstration and speak about his most recent book, "Round Barns of America." While staying at a bed and breakfast in Licking County, Ohio in the early 2000s, a deteriorating barn caught the eye of the retired dentist. That first barn would ignite Kroeger's "Ohio Barn Project," which has taken the artist to all of Ohio's 88 counties to paint, research and write about historic barns. In nearly every county, Kroeger has donated the proceeds from the sale of his paintings to a local historical organization. A collection of Kroeger's essays and paintings from every Ohio county was compiled in "Historic Barns of Ohio," published in 2021. More recently, Kroeger's interest has taken him across the country to paint and document rare round barns. In his new book, Kroeger shares the stories and paintings of 75 round barns that represent a cross section of American pioneers, dating from years before the American Revolution to the glory decades of round barn construction, from the 1870s to 1920s. Books will be available to be purchased and signed. The lecture is free for museum members, and $3 for nonmembers.