What can you do in less than 30 minutes? You can cook a very simple recipe, or do part of your workout routine, or even meditate! However, what Bob Ross can do in less than 30 minutes is incredible to watch and astounding to listen to.
The Joy of Painting
The heart-warming, tranquil and incredibly creative Bob Ross is one of those figures whose life was unfortunately cut short and who did not experience and absorb the complete love and fame directed from their audience. His television series, “The Joy of Painting,” originally ran from 1983 to 1994, is still repeated all over the world.
What mistakes?
Bob Ross managed to both encourage and inspire his fans in his episodes. What about mistakes? They don’t exist. Bob Ross called them just happy mistakes. That’s how it is. There is always something to be made out of a splash or dripping blob of paint.
“You can do anything you want. This is your world”
“Ever make mistakes in life? Let’s make them birds. Yeah, they’re birds now.
“Just let it happen, don’t fight it.”
Zen
If the soothing, almost hypnotic voice didn’t calm you down, then the end result did. You can almost hear the trees rustling, the water rippling and the birds chirping.
Where are Bob’s paintings?
During his lifetime, Bob Ross has painted approximately 1,143 paintings — three of the same painting per episode. However, these paintings have been hidden for years, until the New York Times made an investigation and publicly revealed that most of them were at the Virginia headquarters of Bob Ross Inc. The president of the company, daughter of Ross’ previous business partner, declared that they had no intention to sell them, as that “wasn’t really Bob’s thing.”
Exhibition: from Washington DC to Gorssel
Nevertheless, in September 2019 they decided to donate part of the collection to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, where it is now part of a permanent exhibition.
Today, the Happy Painting exhibition is on view from November 8, 2020 to April 11, 2021 in Museum MORE in Gorssel.