After just a few minutes of watching and listening to Bob Ross at the easel, anyone with even a passing interest in painting believes they can create their own work of art.
And if you were stressed, Ross’ calming voice and attitude takes the edge off. There were no judgments, only possibilities, when “The Joy of Painting with Bob Ross” aired on PBS from 1982 to 1994.
He made art feel approachable and accessible, and he encouraged viewers to try for themselves.
Now Ross’ work, including 75 original paintings never before seen by the general public, are on display at the Bess Bower Dunn Museum in Libertyville.
“It’s an experience,” said Alyssa Firkus, director of education for the Lake County Forest Preserve District, which operates the museum. “The (television) show does not do these beautiful pictures justice.”
Ross, who died in 1995, started each 30-minute episode with a blank canvas and finished with a soothing landscape scene. Over nearly 400 episodes, he offered homespun tips and encouragement as an image emerged on the canvas in an almost hypnotic process.
“What’s so fantastic about this is that anybody — anybody — can put a little masterpiece on canvas,” Ross counseled while creating a shimmering “Island in the Wilderness” for the premiere of Season 29.
Steve Furnett, exhibits and collections manager at the Bess Bower Dunn Museum in Libertyville, looks around the corner while Alyssa Firkus, director of education, looks closer at one of 75 Bob Ross original paintings on exhibit.
John Starks/jstarks@dailyherald.com
Millions of fans — even those born well after the show’s run — came to know Ross’ work.
What viewers may not have known is Ross often created three versions of the same painting: an off-screen reference version; the version completed in about 26 minutes during the show; and a third, more refined version to be used in his book series.
As part of the Dunn special exhibition, three monitors replaying an episode of the show are positioned next to the actual work Ross painted during it.
There also is a mock TV set where visitors can don a wig reminiscent of Ross’ well-known curly hair for a selfie.
Ross was known for his persistent message that, with practice, anybody could bring a canvas to life. There were no mistakes, only “happy little accidents” in Ross’ world.
“Nobody has inspired people to paint and to have more fun painting than Bob Ross did,” said Steve Furnett, Dunn’s exhibitions and collections manager.
An Air Force veteran, the Florida-born Ross fell in love with rugged landscapes while stationed in Alaska. He took painting classes and discovered a technique that allowed an oil painting to be completed in a single session without waiting for the layers to dry.
He formed Bob Ross Inc. with business partners and launched the now-iconic TV series. Loads of merchandise is still available, including Chia Pet Bob Ross.
A Ross exhibition has been on Furnett’s bucket list. He initially contacted Ross Inc. before the pandemic and doggedly persevered since.
Famed artist Bob Ross often made three versions of his paintings created on his television show. Seventy-five of his originals are on exhibit at The Dunn Museum in Libertyville, including some accompanied by a clip of the show as it is being created.
John Starks/jstarks@dailyherald.com
“It finally lined up,” he said. “It’s almost like American folklore, like Paul Bunyan or Johnny Appleseed.”
The exhibition is on loan at no cost. In turn, Dunn created text panels and graphics and will assist in making it a traveling exhibition, according to Furnett.
Joan Kowalski, president of Bob Ross Inc., recalled Furnett being “over the moon at the prospect of bringing Bob’s paintings to Lake County.”
She said the company has never had to look for venues.
“We get an inquiry, infused with great energy and high enthusiasm regarding Bob Ross and then the rest is easy,” she wrote in an email.
“He brings such magic to things,” she added. “It’s hard to describe, and yet it’s not.”
Ross’ nature-focused paintings are in keeping with the forest preserves’ mission, officials say.
Firkus said attendance has been steady and weekends busy. The exhibition runs through Jan. 20, with big crowds expected over the holidays, she added.
The works of artists who once called Lake County home are also part of the exhibition. Visit www.lcfpd.org for more information.
Brent Howard, web designer at the Dunn Museum in Libertyville, wears a Bob Ross wig while posing in a space set up for social media pictures while touring the exhibit. The room looks like an old television, with the setting on Channel 11, the Chicago PBS station the program aired on. Visitors can wear a wig and pretend to paint.
John Starks/jstarks@dailyherald.com
Steve Furnett, exhibits and collections manager at the Dunn Museum in Libertyville, began lobbying for an exhibition of Bob Ross paintings before the pandemic. “It finally lined up,” he said.
John Starks/jstarks@dailyherald.com
Brent Howard, web designer at the Dunn Museum in Libertyville, wears a Bob Ross wig in an area set up for visitors to take social media pictures while touring the exhibit. The room looks like an old television, with the setting on Channel 11, the Chicago PBS station the program aired on. Visitors can wear a wig and pretend to paint.
John Starks/jstarks@dailyherald.com