Robert Norman Ross (October 29, 1942 – July 4, 1995) was an American
painter,
art instructor, and
television host
A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for people who garne ...
. He was the creator and host of ''
The Joy of Painting
''The Joy of Painting'' is an American half-hour instructional television show created and hosted by painter Bob Ross which ran from January 11, 1983 to May 17, 1994. In most episodes, Ross taught techniques for landscape oil painting, completi ...
'', an instructional television program that aired from 1983 to 1994 on
PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
in the United States,
CBC in Canada, and similar channels in Latin America, Europe and elsewhere. Ross would subsequently become widely known through his posthumous internet presence.
Early life
Ross was born in
Daytona Beach, Florida, to Jack and Ollie Ross, a carpenter and a waitress respectively, and raised in
Orlando, Florida.
As an adolescent, Ross cared for injured animals, including
armadillos,
snake
Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more j ...
s,
alligator
An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additiona ...
s and
squirrels, one of which was later featured in several episodes of his television show.
He had a half-brother, Jim, whom he mentioned in passing on his show. Ross dropped out of high school in the 9th grade
Ninth grade, freshman year, or grade 9 is the ninth year of school education in some school systems. Ninth grade is often the first school year of high school in the United States, or the last year of middle/junior high school. In some countries ...
. While working as a carpenter with his father, he lost part of his left index finger
The index finger (also referred to as forefinger, first finger, second finger, pointer finger, trigger finger, digitus secundus, digitus II, and many other terms) is the second digit of a human hand. It is located between the thumb and the mid ...
, which did not affect his ability to later hold a palette while painting.
Military career
In 1961, 18-year-old Ross enlisted in the United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...
and was put into service as a medical records technician.[ He rose to the rank of master sergeant and served as the first sergeant of the clinic at ]Eielson Air Force Base
Eielson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located approximately 26 miles (42 km) southeast of Fairbanks, Alaska and just southeast of Moose Creek, Alaska. It was established in 1943 as Mile 26 Satellite Field and redes ...
in Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
, where he first saw the snow and mountains that later appear as recurring themes in his paintings. He developed his quick painting technique during brief daily work breaks. Having held military positions that required him to act tough and mean, "the guy who makes you scrub the latrine, the guy who makes you make your bed, the guy who screams at you for being late to work", Ross decided he would not raise his voice when he left the military.
Career as a painter
During his 20-year Air Force career, Ross developed an interest in painting after attending an art class at the Anchorage U.S.O.
The United Service Organizations Inc. (USO) is an American nonprofit-charitable corporation that provides live entertainment, such as comedians, actors and musicians, social facilities, and other programs to members of the United States Armed F ...
club. He found himself frequently at odds with many of his painting instructors, who were more interested in abstract painting
Abstract art uses visual language of shape, form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world.
Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19t ...
. Ross said, "They'd tell you what makes a tree, but they wouldn't tell you how to paint a tree."
Ross was working as a part-time bartender when he discovered a TV show called '' The Magic of Oil Painting'', hosted by German painter Bill Alexander. Alexander used a 16th-century painting style called (Italian for 'first attempt'), widely known as "wet-on-wet", that allowed him to create a painting within thirty minutes. Ross studied and mastered the technique, began painting and then successfully selling Alaskan landscapes that he would paint on novelty gold-mining pans. Eventually, Ross's income from sales surpassed his military salary. He retired from the Air Force in 1981 as a master sergeant.
He returned to Florida, studied painting with Alexander, joined his "Alexander Magic Art Supplies Company" and became a traveling salesman and tutor. Annette Kowalski, who had attended one of his sessions in Clearwater, Florida, convinced Ross he could succeed on his own. She, along with Ross and his wife, pooled their savings to create his company, which struggled at first.
Ross was noted for his permed hair, which he ultimately disliked but kept after he had integrated it into the company logo.
The origins of the TV show ''The Joy of Painting
''The Joy of Painting'' is an American half-hour instructional television show created and hosted by painter Bob Ross which ran from January 11, 1983 to May 17, 1994. In most episodes, Ross taught techniques for landscape oil painting, completi ...
'' are unclear.[ It was filmed at the studio of the ]PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
station WIPB in Muncie, Indiana.
The show ran from January 11, 1983, to May 17, 1994, but reruns continue to appear in many broadcast areas and countries, including the non-commercial digital subchannel network Create. In the United Kingdom, the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
at home.
During each half-hour segment, Ross would instruct viewers in the quick, wet-on-wet
technique, painting a scene without sketching it first, but creating the image directly from his imagination, in real time. He explained his limited paint palette, deconstructing the process into simple steps.
Art critic
'', noting that Ross's soft voice and the slow pace of his speech were similar.
With help from Annette and Walt Kowalski, Ross used his television show to promote a line of art supplies and class recordings, building what would become a $15-million businessBob Ross Inc.which would ultimately expand to include classes taught by other artists trained in his methods.