I just saw a full episode of his show. The fuck? I’m not a painter but I’ve seen my mom paint all my life.
This motherfucker just did in 15 minutes what would take her weeks. Like???
And he did it while talking, in clean fucking strokes. So fucking fast. I saw a literal masterpiece being created in fifteen minutes from nothing. From nothing. It was a blank fucking canvas, man.
I knew of Bob Ross, but I’d never actually seen him paint. Goddamn. How did actual artists react to him? Like, how do you not feel just thoroughly outclassed.
All while this mofo is saying how easy all that he’s doing is while I know for a fact how hard it is. Like, is he just gaslighting everyone?
I’ve legit actually followed along on a couple paintings after getting some basic kit oil. I would have to pause a lot, but following the technique actually helped me get some nice results. I know it’s kitsch, but that’s not the point. He enjoyed what he did and he wanted other people to be able to get in to it, enjoy it, and connect with other’s using art. I had always gotten the impression that he saw himself as a stepping stone to people pursuing artistic expression overall. He was also the original ASMR. As far as his technique, he honed it while in the Air Force and stationed in Alaska (painting what he saw around him of course), and further polished it when he got out and did art full time. If you do stuff like this day in and day out for years, you’ll get fast too. He also did a lot of shortcuts as others have said. Personally, I think he was great for the simplicity and accessibility. I’ve taken what I learned painting with oil and been able to use similar/modified techniques to do some really cool stuff with acrylic, finishing wood, painting houses, pottery painting, arranging composition, color mixing, and even photography. I pay attention to details and it honestly has helped make any of my artistic pursuits more enjoyable.