LOS ANGELES — Bonhams Auction House was a little quiet Tuesday afternoon, with an auction of American landscapes drawing few in-person attendees compared to the interest it had generated online.
But midway through the auction, people in the room began to chatter. Three Bob Ross paintings were about to hit the block, one after another, and a dozen or so auction house professionals were calling bidders across the world who had expressed a desire to purchase these unframed pieces, either because the proceeds of the sale went to American Public Television or just because they were huge Ross-heads.
“There are just two lots left before the Ross paintings come up,” the employees quietly told the callers. A flurry of bids erupted when the paintings hit the block, with phone buyers’ auction cards flashing and those holding out the phones calling out sum after sum.
Fifteen or so minutes later, when all three paintings were finally sold, they gaveled for a collective $662,000 including buyers’ premiums, well over Bonhams’ original estimate of $85,000 to $145,000. “Cliffside,” which Ross created for an instructional book, fetched $114,800, including the buyer’s premium, while “Home In The Valley” and “Winter’s Peace,” created for Ross’ show The Joy of Painting, went for $229,100 and $318,000, respectively.
The sale’s net proceeds “will directly benefit public television stations facing critical funding challenges,” said Joan Kowalski, president of Bob Ross Inc., in an email. “These stations have been the gateway for generation[s] of viewers to discover not just Bob’s gentle teaching, but the transformative power of the arts. We’re profoundly grateful to everyone who participated in making this possible.”
APT CEO Jim Dunford echoed those sentiments, expressing his gratitude to Bob Ross Inc. “Tonight’s auction was a testament to the work of public media stations and producers who every day bring content to communities that entertains, informs, and inspires.” Dunford said.
‘Absolutely thrilled’
The total was even more impressive given that the three paintings were the first of 30 scheduled to hit the auction block at Bonhams over the next three years, all provided by Bob Ross Inc. with proceeds going toward alleviating station licensing fees for APT’s Create channel.
Aaron Bastian, director of fine arts at Bonhams San Francisco, said before the auction that he was “absolutely thrilled” to have the opportunity to show and sell the three Ross pieces. “We know the money is going to a good cause,” he said, “… and not only does [the buyer] get the painting that they wanted, but if they end up paying a premium over what someone might normally for the painting itself, that money still goes to benefit public television, which I would think would give anyone a warm fuzzy feeling inside.”
“These paintings didn’t come out of a vault to buy someone a Ferrari,” he added. “Not that there’s anything wrong with Ferraris, but the sale of these will benefit many, many people.”
While Kowalski and Bastian said that relatively few people came through the Bonhams preview show to see the Ross paintings in person, getting up close and personal with them was surprisingly revelatory. While millions of people saw two of the three paintings created on television in just 26 minutes, only seeing the paintings in person conveys how impressive and confident Ross’ style really was. Bushes that might look dashed off on TV contain endless dimension and radiance, and colors that appeared muted on the decidedly low-def TVs of the ’80s scream off the canvas.
“People are surprised by how much light they have and how bright they are,” Bastian said, adding that he came to appreciate the paintings he had in his possession even more after watching the episodes in which Ross created them. “Intellectually, you know he’s going to do the piece in 26 minutes, because that’s how long an episode is, but it’s just different when you’re standing in front of the finished product and trying to do that sort of reverse time travel.”
Seeing the paintings up close also drove home their provenance, which Bastian calls “literally perfect.” Not only did Ross mark them on the sides and back, but they come direct from Bob Ross Inc., meaning they’ve never been circulated. With the videos showing Ross painting two of the pieces — something you almost never see, even today in the art world — potential buyers (and now current owners) will know not only how they were created, from paint colors to brush techniques, but also what Ross was thinking about at the time of their inception.
Perhaps that’s why buyers flocked to these works, which encapsulate not just Ross’ artistic talent but also his serene but confident persona. Ross isn’t just beloved for his work — on TV and on canvas — but for how he made viewers feel. These are paintings, Bastian says, that people could have watched him create years ago, perhaps while mowing down a bowl of cereal after Saturday-morning cartoons. “And really,” he says, “how do you get more authentic than that?”
Correction: An earlier version of this article and its headline incorrectly said that the auction netted $662,000 for APT. That amount included buyers’ premiums.
