The Joy of Bob Ross
A new partnership celebrates the TV artist while supporting the public television legacy that helped make Bob Ross a household name.
At Bonhams Skinner’s Americana—Crafting a Nation: Art, History & Legacy auction on January 27, American-made art earned firework-worthy sales. Taking place at the Massachusetts office, over $2.4 million was earned, selling well-known classics like John James Audubon’s Trophy of American Game Birds (1830) for $394,200 and Washington Crossing the Delaware (1851) at $102,100. But there was a collection of artworks by a singular artist that earned even more.
Three of Bob Ross’s paintings garnered $1.27 million in sales. Displaying the artist’s signature Wet-on-Wet Technique® landscape style, these pieces were made on his famed television show, The Joy of Painting, or for one of his many instructional books. This auction of the artist’s work was the second of three sales held by Bonhams. The first event in November 2025 of three of Ross’ paintings earned over $600,000 in sales at Bonhams’ Los Angeles office. The most recent auction in April 2026 at the house’s New York space sold a total of over $900,000, consisting of four artworks, including one made on-air in 1990 during Season 22 and three pieces for his books. More auctions featuring Ross’s art are planned to take place throughout 2026.
These auctions of paintings by the famed American television personality are far more than normal sales. This is a planned collaboration between Bonhams, Bob Ross, Inc., and American Public Television (APT), which has been airing The Joy of Painting since the show’s 1983 debut. The brainchild of Bob Ross, Inc President Joan Kowalski, this is the first time Bob Ross paintings have been sold in such an initiative, with all proceeds going to APT.
“We (Bob Ross, Inc) were very nervous between the first and second auctions because we aren’t really in the auction world, so we don’t know what to expect. There was a time when I started worrying, what if the peak has happened?” explains Joan. But her fears proved to be wrong. “They’re (Ross’s paintings) doing great. (People are) very happy to see a lot of money go towards these paintings… I’m so proud that people understand that it is going to public television.”
“Bob Ross has been a part of the content that we’ve distributed to stations for years,” says CEO/President of APT Jim Dunford. “And it was through that partnership that this began. This (is a) unique marriage of Bob’s art, the world of auctions, the world of collecting, and the public media.” Proceeds will go to the Create® channel on APT, which has had its budget and programming reduced by recent federal funding cuts. “When there was the announcement of the cuts…. I decided we should do this,” says Joan.
Beginning in 2006 in association with WGBH Boston and The WNET Group, the Create® channel airs lifestyle and educational content, including This Old House, America’s Test Kitchen, and Rick Steves’ Europe. The funds from the sales are used to waive licensing fees for stations, some of which could not previously afford to air the channel. “Create® is an interesting opportunity for us because it’s all that programming I mentioned, and Bob Ross is a cornerstone of that,” says Jim. “The ability to work together for something like this, I think is just an amazing opportunity.”
For information about Bob Ross, Inc, visit bobross.com. The Bonhams Skinner’s auction schedule can be found at skinner.bonhams.com. For your local American Public Television station, go here.
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