Bob Ross is an enduring household name, thanks to his unshakeable, wholesome wit and his pure belief in everyone's ability to paint something beautiful — a message broadcast on public television through 31 seasons of "The Joy of Painting" in the 1980s and '90s.
Recently, dozens of works Ross created for PBS were announced to be auctioned off to raise funds for public broadcasting.
Known for catchphrases like "happy little clouds/trees/accidents" or "because it needs a friend," Ross' legacy has continued for generations — and part of that is due to Twitch.
Launched in 2011 after founder Justin Kan built a platform to stream every minute of his day, Twitch is a haven for gamers and esports, but musicians, home chefs, drag performers and other creatives also stream content.
And then there's the popular Bob Ross channel, filled with episode rewatches and Paint-Alongs.
Ross passed away in 1995, long before most people livestreamed much of anything. But before he died, Ross trained a series of teachers — Certified Ross Instructors, or CRIs — to teach his painting methods to ordinary people.
Around the country, students enroll in special workshops, with all materials provided, to learn Ross' techniques and styles, from his quintessential wet-on-wet blending process to the almost unbelievable way he spreads a mountain shape onto the canvas. But as advanced as Ross' paintings always looked on TV, instructors insist that no talent is required.
"Bob used to say, 'Talent is a pursued interest,'" says instructor Carolyn Saletto.
Saletto has been a CRI since 1991 and became close friends with Ross. But her journey to teaching art began much earlier, at a dark point in her life.
"My dream was always to be an art teacher. I set up all my college classes to become an art teacher. And in my senior year of high school, my art teacher told me I had no talent and to find something else to do," Saletto recalled. "I was devastated, lost, didn't know what I wanted to do. I went to college, dropped out, tried different things. And until I found Bob, I didn't realize what my purpose was. Now I realize my purpose is to show people that you can do it and never ever let someone tell you you can't because I did it."
Saletto will join fellow CRI and Twitch streamer Faye Dasher to guide hundreds of TwitchCon attendees in creating their own happy little works of art.
In 2019, I sat in on Dasher's hugely popular workshop at TwitchCon and was transfixed. Her soothing voice, skillful explanations and earnest joy had a magical effect on the entire room. And all around me, it was actually working — people were painting well.
In some ways, Twitch and Bob Ross are an unlikely pairing — something as tech-forward and modern as Twitch with the analog icon himself. But for CRIs like Saletto and Dasher, it works.
"I didn't know anything about Twitch until three years ago when the Bob Ross Company asked me to do it,” Saletto said. "I had no idea what was going to happen, and it quickly became my favorite event because I felt like we were reaching the young people."
For those young people, Saletto said, Bob Ross was a comforting relic of their parents’ era. Increasingly, they began watching and commenting on episodes of "The Joy of Painting" themselves on Twitch.
"Bob just is so accepting, so kind, and I love how he will just talk about, you know, happy accidents. He just is so, so real and it feels to me like — apart from the art instruction — it's like a hug coming through. I feel like a lot of the young people, and all of us actually, could use that, a warm Bob hug," Dasher said.
Over 50 years ago, Ross was already mastering the type of on-screen, para-social connection and joy people now look for in internet celebrities and streamers.
He used to tell me that when he filmed the show, he used to pretend that he was talking to one person. I think that really comes across on camera — that he's talking to you, not to a mass of people that he's really touching — and people feel that one-on-one connection.Carolyn Saletto, Certified Ross Instructor
"He used to tell me that when he filmed the show, he used to pretend that he was talking to one person. I think that really comes across on camera — that he's talking to you, not to a mass of people that he's really touching — and people feel that one-on-one connection," Saletto added.
At TwitchCon, Dasher, Saletto and a few colleagues will host a big Bob Ross Paint-Along at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Oct. 17. The crew provides all materials for a full room of would-be Bob Ross painters, then walks everyone step by step through painting a landscape.
Each morning, convention-goers can also stop by the Bob Ross booth to sign up for extremely limited small-group classes held throughout the day.
