Artist: Bob Ross
Title: Untitled, similar to an Arctic Winter Day (season 6)
Medium: Original Oil on Canvas Painting
Size: 18"x 24"
Year: Circa 1983
Inscription: Signed and dated
Condition: Excellent condition overall
Documentation: Includes a Certificate of Authenticity from Bob Ross, Inc.
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Bob Ross was an American painter and television personality whose legacy and popularity continue to live in popular culture. Known for his PBS show The Joy of Painting, Ross remains the painting teacher of the public. His calming instructional demeanor and iconic hairstyle have established him as an art icon.
His effortless painting method embraces the oil painting style alla prima or wet-on-wet. The technique consists of applying oil paint on top of wet paint rather than waiting for it to dry between layers. He typically used a two-inch brush and a palette knife to paint. This method allowed Ross to complete detailed landscapes quickly and effortlessly. What started as simple strokes and blobs of colors would result in intricate nature scenes.
Untitled illustrates an ethereal snowy lake and mountain with a rosy tint. The prominent use of whites and light enhances the shadows and the spare trees and cabin on the outer portion of the composition. Notably, this winter landscape follows the same style of An Arctic Winter Day, which Ross painted in Season 26 Episode 6 of The Joy of Painting. In the episode, he used six colors, Alizarin Crimson, Dark Sienna, Midnight Black, Prussian Blue, Titanium White, and Van Dyke Brown, to paint the winter landscape.
Untitled includes a gallery certificate of authenticity from Bob Ross, Inc. The work is signed and dated. Furthermore, the artwork is in excellent condition overall.
About Bob Ross
As a painter of uniquely soothing voice, who always painted “happy” images, he was watched by millions and eventually reached the status of a living icon.
He started his career in the US Air Force, where he spent 20 years, mostly in Alaska. In 1981, he abandoned the army to pursue painting. In the early years, he was struggling. This is when his signature perm was born, as a way of cutting haircut costs, a style he wore and hated throughout his life.
Ross remained dedicated to landscape throughout his entire body of work, which counts around 30.000 paintings. His works are populated with trees, clouds, lakes and streams, and only an occasional cabin. Known as a sincere environmentalist, he often painted various small animals, bringing them often to the studio. Interestingly, very few of his works ever depicted a human figure. The technique he used is called “wet on wet” or “Alla Prima”, dating back to the Renaissance. Still, it was difficult to define Bob Ross’ style in terms of contemporary art. It was closest to Pop Art, due to his celebrity status and the concept in which it was created. Except for the early gold pans, he distributed while stationed in Alaska, he never really sold his works.
Even today, more than twenty years after his death, he remains an Internet sensation. In 2015, over 400 episodes of his famous TV show “The Joy of Painting” were added to the official Bob Ross Youtube Channel. In 2016, his other painting television series “Beauty is Everywhere” began streaming on Netflix. Furthermore, numerous series have paid homage to Bob Ross in various ways, while Google keeps posting Google Doodle and birthday tributes to the painter every year.
A calm, happy person, Bob Ross kept a democratic, open attitude, claiming that anyone can paint regardless of talent, only if they are ready to practice enough. We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents,” he used to say. And the people loved him for it.
Born as Robert Norman Ross in Daytona Beach, Florida on October 29, 1942, the meticulous painter died of lymphoma on July 4, 1995, at the age of 52.