Quick answer: Bill Alexander (1915–1997) was the German-born TV painter who taught Bob Ross the wet-on-wet oil painting method. Long before The Joy of Painting, Alexander was finishing complete landscapes in under half an hour on his show The Magic of Oil Painting.
Want to learn this method in person? I am Mark, a Bill Alexander certified instructor with 20 years of teaching experience. Join a Bob Ross style painting class in Kent, see the next class dates, or try online painting classes for beginners.
Who was Bill Alexander?
Bill Alexander was a German-born painter and television art instructor best known for The Magic of Oil Painting. His energetic teaching style and direct wet-on-wet approach helped make oil painting feel exciting and achievable.
Before Bob Ross became famous for The Joy of Painting, Bill Alexander was already showing viewers how quickly a landscape could appear on canvas using bold brushwork, palette knife highlights and a wet oil base.
From Germany to American television
Born William Alexander in 1915, he grew up in Germany and lived through the upheaval of the Second World War before settling in North America after the war. Painting was his way of making a fresh start, and he became a skilled landscape painter with a fast, confident hand.
In the 1970s he took that confidence to television. On The Magic of Oil Painting, broadcast on American public television, he painted mountains, forests, seascapes and skies from a blank canvas to a finished picture within a single programme, talking viewers through every stroke with huge enthusiasm.
What made the show special was the promise behind it: you didn't need art school or years of practice. With the right brushes, a palette knife and paint that stays wet, anyone could produce a landscape they were proud of in one sitting.
Bill Alexander and Bob Ross
Bill Alexander is often remembered as the man who taught Bob Ross. His influence can be seen in the wet-on-wet method, the fast one-session landscape format and the confident use of big brushes and knives.
Bob Ross studied Alexander's method in the 1970s, became one of his certified instructors and spent time travelling to teach Alexander-style classes. When Ross launched his own series, The Joy of Painting, in 1983, he took the same technique to an even bigger audience.
Bob Ross developed his own calm teaching voice and style, but the foundation of the method sits in the same wet-on-wet oil painting tradition that Bill Alexander helped popularise. Alexander reportedly felt hurt that his former student became the more famous name, but both men shared the same goal: getting ordinary people to pick up a brush.
Bill Alexander vs Bob Ross: what's the difference?
Because they use the same method, their paintings look like close cousins. The differences are in the personality of the brushwork:
- Energy: Alexander painted with big, bold, expressive strokes and lots of movement. Ross was slower, softer and famously relaxing.
- Palette knife: both used the knife for mountains, but Alexander leaned on it more for dramatic highlights and rugged texture.
- Skies and colour: Alexander liked strong contrast and dramatic skies; Ross favoured gentle blends and calm, peaceful scenes.
- Teaching style: Alexander was lively and theatrical; Ross was quiet, encouraging and full of “happy little trees”.
Learning both gives you more control: the softness of Ross with the confidence and punch of Alexander.
What is the wet-on-wet technique?
Wet-on-wet (also called alla prima) means painting into a thin layer of wet base coat, so new colours blend straight onto the canvas instead of waiting days for each layer to dry. Thick paint can sit on top of thin paint, which is how mountains, tree highlights and water reflections appear so quickly. It's why a full landscape can be finished in one day. Read the full wet-on-wet oil painting guide.
Bill Alexander's legacy
Bill Alexander died in 1997, but his method lives on through the instructors he trained, the millions who watched his programmes, and every Bob Ross style painting created since. Certified Alexander and Ross instructors still teach the technique around the world today.
Learning the Alexander and Ross technique
Mark Terrell is a certified Bill Alexander instructor as well as a Bob Ross Certified Instructor. That means students can learn the softer Bob Ross approach while also understanding the stronger brushwork and direct painting principles behind Alexander's method.
To experience the technique yourself, join an oil painting class, watch a free video lesson, read the wet-on-wet oil painting guide, or follow the free step-by-step Bob Ross painting tutorial. You can also read more about who taught Bob Ross to paint and Bob Ross himself.
Learn more about the Alexander Method
If you'd like to explore Bill Alexander's work further, visit the Alexander Art website. It's an online oil painting school that teaches the Alexander Method, and it offers self-paced classes, a free video of his oil painting tips and a book about his life. I'm an Alexander Certified Instructor and often recommend it to students who want to learn more about his approach.
Bill Alexander FAQs
Who taught Bob Ross to paint?
Bill Alexander. Bob Ross studied Alexander's wet-on-wet oil painting method in the 1970s, became one of his certified instructors and travelled teaching it, before launching his own TV series, The Joy of Painting, in 1983.
Who was Bill Alexander?
Bill Alexander (1915–1997) was a German-born landscape painter and television art teacher. He hosted The Magic of Oil Painting on American public television and made the fast wet-on-wet oil painting method popular with home painters.
Was Bill Alexander Bob Ross's teacher?
Yes. Bob Ross learned the method from Bill Alexander and worked as an instructor teaching Alexander's classes before going on to present his own programme.
What is the difference between Bill Alexander and Bob Ross painting?
They use the same wet-on-wet method. Alexander's style is bolder and more energetic, with strong knife work, dramatic skies and expressive brushstrokes. Bob Ross made it calmer and gentler, with softer colours and his famous happy little trees.
Did Bill Alexander and Bob Ross fall out?
Alexander reportedly felt hurt that his former student became more famous using the method he had taught him, and said so in interviews. Whatever the history, both men helped millions of people believe they could paint.
Can I learn the Bill Alexander technique in Kent?
Yes. Mark Terrell is a certified Bill Alexander instructor as well as a Bob Ross Certified Instructor, and teaches one-day wet-on-wet oil painting classes in Whitstable, Kent. All materials are included and no experience is needed.
Related reading: the TV painter who came before Bob Ross, and how Bob Ross learned to paint.