Charity art auction: Paintings by Bull Valley’s Rodger Bechtold to benefit historic Stickney House

Inside the historic Stickney House that is home to Bull Valley Village Hall hangs a colorful landscape painting of the nearby Thompson Road Farm, depicted in vivid strokes of blues, greens and yellows.

The painting is a donation to the village from artist and longtime Bull Valley resident Rodger Bechtold, and it’s a twofold gift: Several of his works also will be featured in an online auction that begins May 4, and funds raised will go to the Stickney House Foundation to support the Living with the Land initiative, Bechtold said. The online auction can be found at givebutter.com/c/bechtoldauction/auction.

Hennie Reynders, a professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, an architect and a Bull Valley resident, helped cultivate the Living with the Land idea last year as a way to develop Bull Valley’s identity as a natural and historic village.

Part of the initiative involves working with the Stickney House Foundation to renovate the 168-year-old building and the nearby barn. Village officials plan to move village offices and the police department into the barn and use the remaining space for community gatherings. With the outdoor space and landscape around the house, the board also wants to link to the horse and walking trails.

The “big dream and vision” is to get Stickney House fully renovated and be open for the public, Reynders said. He envisions the historic mansion will be a “node” for Bull Valley residents.

No budget or timeline is set for the renovations, as the village is taking its time to ensure construction is done properly and resembles how it was when it was built in the 1860s, Bull Valley Trustee Mark Newton said. The next step will be getting a historical assessment done and finding architects and engineers that specialize in historical buildings.

“Think of how grand this must have been,” Stickney House Foundation President Jim Arquilla said. “We will continue to make it as close as possible to its original state.”

Bechtold was inspired to paint the Thompson Road Farm because of the deep connection he has with land and his late wife Glory Bechtold. She died last year and the work is dedicated to her. He always has been drawn to Midwest landscapes because of the simple grandeur of wide-open plains.

“That undisturbed land is beautiful,” Bechtold said. “It’s common but presented in an uncommon way.”

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County purchased the 300-acre Thompson Road Farm in 2022. The $2.25 million acquisition was made to ensure the land would be protected and preserved. Now, as a public park, anyone can come and enjoy the breathtaking scenery of the vast landscape, Reynders said.

“What is here will be here forever,” Newton said.

All of Bechtold’s paintings in the auctions are depictions of the Midwest landscape, many in the Bull Valley area, he said. The art auction not only aims to raise funds for the Living with the Land initiative but also to connect the community with the land, Reynders said.

“Whether it’s through art, trails or parks, that access is critical,” he said. “Through one of those doors, we can make the land visible to people and how important it is.”

The Stickney House Foundation will be hosting future events to further connect the community, including a 5K run in May and a vintage car show in June.

“These are just the seeds we are planting for the future living for generations to come,” Reynders said.