Thirty original paintings by the beloved television art instructor Bob Ross will go up for auction to help financially struggling public television stations cope with devastating federal funding cuts. The iconic painter, known for his gentle demeanor and soothing voice on "The Joy of Painting," will posthumously continue supporting the medium that made him a household name across America.
"Bob Ross dedicated his life to making art accessible to everyone," said Joan Kowalski, president of Bob Ross Inc. "This auction ensures his legacy continues to support the very medium that brought his joy and creativity into American homes for decades." The collection spans Ross's entire career, with most pieces created live on-air during individual episodes of his beloved PBS show that ran throughout the 1980s and 1990s.
Bonhams auction house in Los Angeles will kick off the sales with three Ross paintings on November 11, followed by additional auctions in London, New York, Boston, and online platforms. The auction house previously demonstrated strong market demand for Ross's work, selling two early 1990s mountain-and-lake scenes for $114,800 and $95,750 in August. The upcoming collection of 30 paintings carries an estimated total value between $850,000 and $1.4 million.
All proceeds from the auctions will directly benefit public television stations that rely on content from distributor American Public Television. The funds will specifically help stations cover licensing fees for popular programming, including "The Best of Joy of Painting" based on Ross's original show, "America's Test Kitchen," "Julia Child's French Chef Classics," and "This Old House." These programs form the backbone of many stations' educational and cultural programming.
The auction initiative comes as public broadcasting faces its most severe financial crisis in decades. Following President Donald Trump's budget priorities, Congress eliminated $1.1 billion in federal funding allocated to public broadcasting, forcing approximately 330 PBS stations and 246 NPR affiliates to scramble for alternative funding sources. The cuts have triggered emergency fundraising campaigns across the country, with mixed results for different markets.
Some stations have exceeded expectations in their emergency appeals. North Carolina public radio station WQHR raised more than $200,000 in just three days, surpassing their $174,000 target to fill the funding gap. Hawaii Public Radio, despite losing $525,000 in federal support, managed to raise $650,000 through donor contributions. However, these success stories haven't been universal across all markets.
NPR has encouraged donors in wealthier metropolitan areas to support stations in underserved regions facing greater financial hardship. Both PBS and NPR have also implemented cost-cutting measures, reducing annual membership dues that stations pay for programming and services. Some stations are exploring collaborative partnerships to share services and reduce operational expenses.
Despite these efforts, the federal funding cuts have already created significant impacts across the public broadcasting landscape. PBS implemented a 21% budget reduction and laid off approximately 100 employees in September. Individual stations have been forced to reduce staff, cut programming, and reassess their long-term viability. While no stations have permanently shut down yet, industry leaders express serious concerns about sustainability.
"I am a realist," PBS president Paula Kerger acknowledged in September. "I have to believe that there are some vulnerable stations that are not going to make it." Her concerns reflect the particular vulnerability of rural and small-market stations that lack access to major metropolitan donor bases and corporate sponsorships.
National Public Radio president and CEO Katherine Maher emphasized the broader public safety implications of defunding public media services during a July interview. "Public media, public radio, public television, are a critical part of the emergency response plans of nearly half of the states in this nation," Maher explained. "If these types of emergency alerting go away, you will have fewer outlets to be able to respond in real time" to future natural disasters.
Bob Ross, who died of cancer complications in 1995, became synonymous with accessible art education through his calm teaching style and encouraging philosophy. His show featured his trademark phrases about "happy little clouds and trees" and his belief that there were no mistakes in art, only "happy accidents." The upcoming auctions represent a fitting continuation of his mission to make art accessible while supporting the public television infrastructure that nurtured educational programming for generations of Americans.
