The short answer: Bob Ross was taught the wet-on-wet oil painting technique by Bill Alexander, a German-born painter who presented The Magic of Oil Painting on American public television (PBS) from 1974 to 1982. Ross studied under Alexander, worked for him as a travelling instructor, and then launched The Joy of Painting in 1983.
It's one of the questions I get asked most at my classes: "Did Bob Ross come up with all this himself?" It's a fair question, because to most people the soft voice, the fan brush and the happy little trees are simply "the Bob Ross style". The real story is more interesting, and as someone certified in both the Bob Ross and the Bill Alexander methods, it's a story that's close to my heart.
Bob Ross before the brushes
Robert Norman Ross was born in Daytona Beach, Florida, in 1942. At 18 he joined the United States Air Force, and he served for 20 years, most of it in Alaska, where he rose to the rank of master sergeant. It was a job that involved a lot of shouting, and Ross later said he promised himself that once he left, he would never raise his voice again.
Alaska gave him more than a quiet voice. The snow-capped mountains, frozen lakes and endless evergreens he saw there became the scenes he painted again and again for the rest of his life. If you've ever wondered why so many Bob Ross paintings feature snowy peaks and log cabins, that's your answer.
Ross took his first painting class at a U.S.O. club in Anchorage. It sparked an interest, but it was a television programme that really changed everything.
Discovering Bill Alexander on television
Everything changed when Ross saw The Magic of Oil Painting. On screen was Bill Alexander, a lively, bearded painter with a strong German accent, who could produce a complete landscape in under half an hour. His secret was painting wet-on-wet: covering the canvas with a thin, liquid white base coat and then blending every layer into wet paint, with no waiting for anything to dry.
For Ross this was a revelation. Here was a way to finish a whole painting in one sitting. He started painting in Alexander's style and was soon selling his Alaskan landscapes to tourists, some of them painted on the inside of gold-mining pans.
Learning from the master
After retiring from the Air Force in 1981, Ross went to study with Bill Alexander. He became one of Alexander's certified instructors and joined his company, Alexander Magic Art Supplies, travelling around the United States teaching the technique and selling paints and brushes.
It was on one of these teaching trips that Ross met Annette Kowalski, a student who was so impressed by him that she persuaded him he could succeed on his own. She and her husband put their savings into what became Bob Ross Inc., and on 11 January 1983 the first episode of The Joy of Painting went out on public television. The series ran until 1994, with 403 episodes in total.
The falling out
In that first episode, Ross generously described Alexander's method as the most fantastic way to paint. But as Ross's fame grew, and began to overshadow the man who had taught him, the relationship soured. Alexander felt his former student was copying him. In a 1991 interview he put it bluntly: "He betrayed me."
It's a sad footnote to a remarkable story. Two men who, between them, introduced millions of people to oil painting ended up estranged. Bob Ross died in 1995, aged just 52. Bill Alexander died in 1997 in British Columbia, Canada, aged 81.
So, did Bob Ross invent his style?
Not really, and I don't think he ever claimed to. Wet-on-wet, or alla prima, painting goes back to the 15th-century Flemish painters. Bill Alexander's contribution was turning it into a fast, practical system for ordinary people, built around a liquid white base coat and a set of big brushes and knives.
What Bob Ross brought was the teaching. Where Alexander was energetic and theatrical, Ross was calm, gentle and endlessly encouraging. "We don't make mistakes, just happy accidents" did more to get nervous beginners painting than any technique ever could.
Alexander vs Ross: how the two methods differ
Because I'm certified in both, students often ask me what the actual difference is. The foundations are the same, but there are real differences in feel:
- Personality: Alexander painted with drama and bold, sweeping strokes. Ross was softer and more measured.
- Base coat: Alexander used his "Magic White". Ross developed his own Liquid White. Both do the same job of keeping the canvas wet and blendable.
- Tools: Both relied on big brushes and palette knives. Alexander designed his own specialised knife, and Ross's range of brushes and knives became the best known.
In my classes I draw on both traditions. You get Ross's gentle, step-by-step approach, with some of Alexander's bolder knife work for mountains and rocks.
"Every time I pick up a 2-inch brush, I'm using something that passed from Bill Alexander to Bob Ross and then to millions of us. It's lovely to be part of that chain." – Mark Terrell
Frequently asked questions
Who taught Bob Ross to paint?
Bob Ross learned the wet-on-wet oil painting technique from Bill Alexander, a German-born painter who presented The Magic of Oil Painting on American public television from 1974 to 1982. Ross studied with Alexander and worked as one of his travelling instructors before starting The Joy of Painting in 1983.
Did Bob Ross invent his style of painting?
No. Wet-on-wet (alla prima) painting goes back centuries. Bill Alexander developed the fast modern version with a liquid white base coat, and Bob Ross learned it from him. Ross made it famous with his calm teaching style and his own Liquid White.
Who was the painter on PBS before Bob Ross?
Bill Alexander. His programme The Magic of Oil Painting ran on PBS from 1974 to 1982, and it was watching Alexander on television that led Bob Ross to take up the wet-on-wet method.
Did Bob Ross and Bill Alexander fall out?
Yes. As Bob Ross became more famous, Alexander felt Ross had copied his method and his show format. In a 1991 interview Alexander said Ross had betrayed him. Ross did credit Alexander in the very first episode of The Joy of Painting.
Can I learn both the Bob Ross and Bill Alexander methods?
Yes. Mark Terrell of Paint with Mark is certified in both the Bob Ross and Bill Alexander methods and teaches one-day classes in Whitstable, Kent, where you finish a complete wet-on-wet landscape in a day.
If this has made you want to try the technique yourself, take a look at my upcoming class dates in Whitstable. No experience is needed, and you'll go home with a finished wet-on-wet landscape of your own.
Related reading: find out how Bob Ross learned to paint, or read about the TV painter who came before Bob Ross. You can also learn the method from home with our online painting classes for beginners.