The most soothing television program that was ever produced. The Joy of Painting was a show made for PBS that went through more than twenty seasons. Theoretically, it's a tutorial on painting landscapes using the wet-on-wet oil technique. But that's not why most people watch it. Bob Ross was never the most talented artist there was, not that he was bad, but it was absolutely clear that he loved what he was doing. And he really and firmly believed that everyone was capable of doing what he did with enough practice. Episodes of the Joy of Painting are like seeing a glimpse into a different, kinder universe. A world where "we don't make mistakes, we just have happy accidents" and you can "find freedom on the canvas". And he tells you over and over that you can do it if you try. His voice was incredibly soothing. He was once a drill sergeant for the US Army, of all things, but eventually left: "I was the guy who makes you scrub the latrine, the guy who makes you make your bed, the guy who screams at you for being late to work. The job requires you to be a mean, tough person. And I was fed up with it." Some people say that when he left the army, he vowed never to swear or scream again. I don't know if that's true, but you could believe that watching the show. Which he produced for PBS for free. Bob Ross died in 1995 from lymphoma and the world is a poorer place for it. If you want to watch the show, there's an official Youtube channel. The full-length episodes are the ones that are a little over 20 minutes long. They can be tricky to find, but it's worth it, keep digging. (Also, I have a bunch of episodes that I could be persuaded to stream if we all wanted to watch together sometime.)
Same. I used to have an art teacher in middle school who loved to put his videos on while we worked. It was soothing and fun and I learned a lot. He made me want to keep at art.
I used to try to get my mom to get us home as quick as she could so we could catch as much of this show as we could. Me and my sister always loved when it showed him cleaning the brushes and banging them on the bottom of the easel to dry them. Him and Mister Rogers brought a lot of comfort into my life.
