Known for his show the Joy of Painting, Bob Ross was and continues to be one of America's most widely beloved art teachers. While immensely popular on public television during its initial run, his show has experienced a huge posthumous resurgence in popularity with art lovers, ASMR enthusiasts, and devotees of popular Americana at large. Born on October 29, 1942 to carpenter Jack and waitress Ollie Ross, Bob grew up in Florida and took a winding path through the military to arrive at his transformative love of oil painting.

Somewhat unsurprisingly, given his art's subject matter, the outdoors played a big role in Bob's childhood. The Floridian wildlife held a lot to explore, and as an only child, he spent a lot of time playing in the woods. Bob felt a great deal of compassion for animals, befriending squirrels, raccoons—and in one instance, a baby alligator—and nursing them back to health. This love of animals would be lifelong, but as a high schooler, he didn't see a path to make a career out of it. At 16, Bob dropped out of high school and went to work with his dad as a carpenter.

When he turned 18, Bob enlisted in the Air Force and was stationed at the Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska. Starting off as a medical records technician, he would eventually rise to the position of first sergeant of the clinic. It was during this time that Bob discovered painting. Initially intrigued by a painting class offered by the base’s USO office, he was disappointed by the style and found the instruction lacking. “They'd tell you what makes a tree, but they wouldn't tell you how to paint a tree."

Searching for an alternative, Ross happened upon a German artist named William Alexander who had refined a technique called wet-on-wet in order to more quickly create oil paintings, and Ross found that this method allowed him to work on and complete paintings during his lunch break. Ross’ artwork became increasingly popular and he eventually found that he was able to make more money selling his paintings than working as a drill instructor.

After having spent 20 years in the military, Ross moved back to Florida and began an apprenticeship with Bill Alexander, internalizing the style of the artist. Ross continued to sell his artwork and began to teach classes which is where his life collided with fate in the form of the Kowalskis. Having taken one of his painting classes, Annette Kowalski became enamored of Bob and encouraged him to pursue tv. The Joy of Painting was inspired by his mentor’s Emmy-winning tv show The Magic of Oil Painting, but whereas Alexander was an exciting presence, Ross used a soothing style—likely influenced by a resolution not to yell after leaving the military. His name has come to be shorthand for this particular style of teaching: mild, yet still spirited and encouraging.

A few episodes were recorded at a public access tv station close to the Kowalskis’ home in North Virginia, and the production soon found a home filming at a PBS station in Muncie, Indiana. The Joy of Painting would go on to run for 11 years on PBS with Ross driving back and forth between Florida and Indiana to tape the shows. As the show found success, Ross was encouraged to expand into selling art supplies and tapes with the support of the Kowalskis. Not particularly driven by profit, the paintings he made on the show weren’t sold and many were sent to charities or retained by PBS—ultimately becoming a somewhat ambiguous cross between fine art and tv memorabilia.

While problems with the business relationship at the heart of Bob Ross Inc would emerge and have become the subject of several exposes and documentaries over the years, the name has managed to keep its strongest associations with the kindness and patience of the man who founded the company. Many of his personal feelings can’t be known for certain (he was very private), but it seems fitting that his birthday falls right in the middle of autumn. It's likely he would have appreciated the emphasis on gratitude and generosity, and looking for happy accidents as we embrace our creativity and spend time with the ones we love (big and small!).

BOB ROSS

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