Three paintings by beloved public television icon Bob Ross sold for more than $600,000 at auction on Tuesday, with proceeds going to help U.S. public TV stations struggling from federal funding cuts.
The first sale in a planned series of auctions, held at Bonhams in Los Angeles, featured 30 Ross paintings. The highlight was “Winter’s Peace” — a serene snow landscape painted during a 1993 episode of “The Joy of Painting” — which fetched $318,000 from a phone bidder.
“For a good cause — and you get the painting,” auctioneer Aaron Bastian said during the sale, pausing to echo Ross’s signature optimism: “Bob would remind you that this is your world, and you can do anything you want.”
Two other works painted during the same year — “Home in the Valley” and “Cliffside” — sold for $229,100 and $114,800 respectively. The prices, which include the buyer’s premium, far exceeded pre-auction estimates that had capped around $50,000 per piece.
Three more Ross paintings will be auctioned in Marlborough, Massachusetts, on January 27, followed by additional sales in New York and London. All proceeds will support public TV stations that air programming from American Public Television, including “America’s Test Kitchen,” “Julia Child’s French Chef Classics,” and “This Old House.”
Joan Kowalski, president of Bob Ross Inc., said the initiative will especially aid smaller and rural PBS affiliates hit hardest by recent federal cuts. “These stations have been the gateway for generations of viewers to discover not just Bob’s gentle teaching, but the transformative power of the arts,” she said.
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Congress recently eliminated $1.1 billion in public broadcasting funds, as proposed by the Trump administration, affecting around 330 PBS and 246 NPR stations nationwide.
Ross, who died in 1995 at age 52 after an 11-year run with “The Joy of Painting,” became a cultural phenomenon for his calm voice, signature hairstyle, and philosophy that there are “no mistakes, only happy accidents.” His popularity soared again during the COVID-19 lockdowns as new audiences rediscovered his soothing art tutorials online.
Source: AP