Can the average person paint like Bob Ross?

Question

I've been watching alot of bob ross videos. He makes painting landscapes look so easy. I want to do one and he makes me beleive that i can.

Answer 1

The question is asking whether or not the "average" person can paint like Bob Ross, or so it seems to me... I don't see how this question can be interpreted as asking whether Bob Ross was or was not good or great or anything... the question has to do with the average person's ability to learn a style developed for average peopel who would like to pursue a hobby or have an artistic outlet or the expression thereof.

First of all, Bob Ross WAS a trained artist, and a very kind gentleman, too. He made his paintings look easy was because of his many years of experience, and the light touch and expert manipulation of the palette knife and brush strokes came as a result of the many years he spent honing his skills and developing his talents.

NOT everyone can become a Da Vinci or Michelangelo or Cezanne or whatever... but almost everyone can improve his/her skills with practice. Yes, the first few attempts will look "grim," as one person stated above, but if you continue practicing you're sure to improve your skills, and the more you practice by painting, the more you will improve your skills and talents and enjoy the experience.

Some of those detractors of Bob Ross seem to feel that he churned out many quick mediocre paintings... but, they're all done in a half-hour for a telecast, which is the remarkable thing (see Morris Katz, "World's Most Prolific Painter" and "World's Fastest Painter"). It was HIS personal style, and he gladly shared it with the public. The joy this remarkable man brought to millions and the inspiration he fostered is beyond description. He encouraged many, many people all around the world to enjoy art by showing a few techniques over and over again... something that would ordinarily take anyone MUCH longer to learn, maybe years, and once those techniques are mastered, the individual can proceed on his/her own and create their own paintings, good, bad or indifferent but... they would be that person's OWN creation, his "own world," as Bob Ross would often say.

Some painters feel that painting is a sacred secret that must not be shared or must be kept amongst a select few... that it is not for the public masses, or for the "proletariat" but for the "select few"... Bob Ross thought that painting was for the everyone to enjoy. He would have made a remarkable Therapeutic Recreation Therapist! He presented painting as a means of personal enjoyment, as a personal means of expression, as a means of relieving stress and tension, an activity to be enjoyed... and he was correct.

But, back to your question; YES, you CAN do a painting if you put some efforts into learning the techniques and work to improve your skills, and moreso with some guidance from some of the trained instructors in his technique. There's no telling what you can accomplish; the idea is for you to enjoy yourself... that's the most important aspect of painting Wet-on-Wet.

Remember, he MADE it look easy but that was because of the many years of practice he had... if you are passionate about learning, your skills and talents will improve in proportion to your efforts and practice. Each painting you do will be a subtle improvement of the previous one. Don't be discouraged by mistakes; learn to work around them. "They're not mistakes, they're 'happy accidents' " as Bob Ross would often say.

EDITED: (Oh, boy... ask a simple question about Bob Ross and they come out of the woodwork in droves... pretty soon some of these self-righteous, high-brow artsy-fartsy snobbish "artists" ---self-appointed art moolahs or maybe art terrorists?--- are going to get tired of debunking the late Bob Ross and start picking on dear Donna Dewberry... and if I'm not careful, they might even start in on me UNLESS I stop doodling on scrap paper... should I be frightened? Hey, guys... let people enjoy art and do your own stuff... no one is trying to steal a grain of rice from your rice bowl Who are you guys going to start picking on next, children using coloring books? SHEEEESH, GIVE IT A BREAK! Oh, "kitsch," yeah, I haven't heard that term in a couple of years... funny) (Kitsch is a German term that has been used to categorize art that is considered an inferior copy of an existing style. The term is also used more loosely in referring to any art that is pretentious or in bad taste, and also commercially produced items that are considered trite or crass by snotty SNOBS).

Good luck and best wishes.

Answer 2

Michaels actually sells Bob Ross painting kits and videos. If you want to learn how to paint a Bob Ross painting, try there. =)

Answer 3

People do so many jokes on poor ol' Bob.
From what I understand he was a kind soul.
-- I mean that sincerely.
Yes, the "average person" was his target market. Yes, just grab a brush, lay some ground on your canvas, and go for it!

"Progurt Djin"
I like what you said about Ross, but don't discourge Nick, let him have some fun!
.

Answer 4

I must add, I have seen a lot of ordinary folks trying to create "Bobs" on their own. The results are often grim. What's missing is the charm and lightness of touch his work had. His work was always fun and light, and most attempts to emulate it try too hard, and wind up looking kind of heavy-handed and like the product of a mind that is terribly worried about staying inside the lines. That, Bob never was. He was a free spirit, and you see it in his art.

Answer 5

Oh my GOD I can't believe there are people out there that believe Bob Ross was an admired artist...OK HE may HAVE HAD A GREAT personality and been a great human being but he was a gimmick painter...an applicator of tricks and techniques that are used in everyday painting of cheap furniture house sofa paintings....equivalent to that done by several magicians to create an illusion...Bob Ross would have been of the the first to admit he taught a gimmick on teaching any novice how to create an illusion.. You won't find bob Rosa's work in any art history books or in any Art Museums of merit...he was good at what he did but he wasn't a master painter...so yes if you want to learn gimmick anyone can achieve that and they do everyday in craft instruction books ...let's give him the kind of credit he earned...HE was a vaudeville artist who's medium was a canvas...You honestly can't place him in the same breath with Michelangelo or Picasso ! That's like calling a coloring book a historical reference of art! So if you want to be a great painter practice and study the masters and take great classes from local artist...If you want to give the illusion of being an artist by his instruction DVDs

Answer 6

Bob Ross is pretty average so my answer to your question is: Yes, an average person can paint like Bob Ross. Incidentally Bob Ross didn't make art he made kitsch.

Answer 7

Yes, the late Bob Ross was expert at turning out lots of very pretty, very mediocre landscapes very fast. If you want to be an artist, take classes. If you want to paint lots of pretty, shallow, decorative schlock landscapes, study Ross.

Answer 8

Sure, why not? As I recall, he tells you exactly what to do at each step.