Three original paintings by beloved American artist and television host Bob Ross are expected to generate up to $145,000 at a Bonhams Los Angeles auction scheduled for November. American Public Television (APT), a nonprofit programming syndicator, will donate all proceeds from the sales to support public television stations nationwide. The fundraising initiative comes in response to federal budget cuts that eliminated over $1 billion in funding previously allocated to public broadcasters under the Trump administration and Republican-controlled Congress.
Ross became an American pop culture icon through his instructional art series "The Joy of Painting," which aired on public television from 1983 to 1994 for nearly a decade. His gentle teaching style and encouraging phrases like "We don't make mistakes, just happy little accidents" endeared him to millions of viewers before his death from cancer complications in 1995. The show's success helped establish Ross as one of the most recognizable figures in American art education.
Among the featured works at the upcoming auction is "Winter's Peace" (1993), which Ross painted entirely on camera during an episode from the show's 30th season. Bonhams estimates this piece will sell for between $30,000 and $50,000. Another highlight is "Home in the Valley," also completed in 1993, which Ross remarkably finished in just 26 minutes during filming. This vibrant painting, described as "fresh to market" and stored by Bob Ross Inc., carries the same estimated value range of $30,000 to $50,000.
The third painting, "Cliffside" (1990), was created for Ross's instructional book "The Joy of Painting Volume 20." Unlike his quick on-air demonstrations, Ross spent considerably more time on paintings intended for publication, typically working three to five hours on each piece according to Bonhams. This more detailed work is expected to fetch between $25,000 and $45,000 at auction.
These three paintings represent just the beginning of a larger sales initiative, as Bonhams plans to auction a total of 30 Ross works over the next 14 months. The paintings were donated by Bob Ross Inc., the company that owns nearly all of the approximately 400 paintings Ross created on television across 31 seasons of his show. Ross paintings rarely appear at auction, making these sales particularly significant for collectors and art enthusiasts.
Bonhams currently holds the record for a Bob Ross painting sale, having sold "Lake Below Snow-Capped Peaks and Cloudy Sky" (circa 1990-91) for $114,800 including fees just two months ago. That painting more than doubled its high estimate of $30,000 to $50,000, demonstrating what Bonhams describes as Ross's steadily rising market value. The strong performance indicates growing collector interest in the artist's work.
The initial three works will be featured in Bonhams's California and Western Art sale on November 11 in Los Angeles. The remaining 27 paintings will be offered throughout 2025 at various Bonhams locations including New York, Boston, and Los Angeles. APT has committed to distributing all proceeds to support both APT and Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) stations across the country.
The funding crisis began earlier this year when congressional Republicans, following directives from then-President Trump, voted to slash funding to PBS and National Public Radio (NPR). These cuts were part of a larger $9.4 billion budget rescission package that also targeted foreign aid programs. Throughout his campaign, Trump frequently criticized public broadcasters for what he characterized as biased coverage.
According to White House statements at the time, PBS and NPR were described as "entities that receive tens of millions of dollars in taxpayer funds each year to spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as news." The funding reductions have proven most devastating to smaller stations serving rural and impoverished communities, potentially resulting in reduced local news coverage and staff layoffs across the public broadcasting network.
