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Three original paintings by the distinguished Television artist bob ross Ready to go under the hammer at Bonhams los angeles On Tuesday, American public television stations were supported with sales.
Hosted by American Public Television (APT), the program is part of Ross’s largest release of Originals to date.
A total of thirty paintings will be auctioned, with all proceeds benefiting public broadcasting.
two works were created Ross’s popular PBS show the joy of painting, Which aired for 11 years from January 1983 to May 1994.
A marine scene was also painted by Ross on a vertical canvas for an instructional book.
auction The idea came from Jon Kowalski, president of Bob Ross Inc., which manages the artist’s intellectual property and legacy.
Kowalski was inspired after two privately owned Ross paintings sold for high prices at Bonhams in early 2025. They then approached APT, hoping that a larger sale could help offset recent federal funding losses.
“It was just an idea that came to my mind in the middle of the night,” Kowalski said. “Don’t know if it would work or not, but slowly, I put the pieces together and decided it was a really great idea. And I decided it was probably something Bob would have decided to do if he were still here.”
The auction comes at a time of financial stress for public media.
In July 2025, Congress eliminated $1.1 billion in federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Fulfilling President Donald Trump’s goal of funding public media.
Gabriella Jones-Litchfield, president of GJL Media and advisor to APT, said the auction reflects Ross’s belief that public television should be accessible to all.
He said, “Whether you’re in rural America or a major city … public television is for those people and for us.”
“Now we desperately need to close this gap, this funding gap and really think about the future of public television and how we can survive in the future.”
Aaron Bastian, senior director of California and Western paintings at Bonhams, said his expectations for the auction were very high.
“It’s a risk. You don’t know what’s going to happen,” Bastian said.
“Hopefully, people will open their hearts and their wallets a little bit, knowing the money is going to a good cause and they’ll take a painting home.”
Ross died on July 4, 1995, at the age of 52. His gentle teaching style and optimistic philosophy helped make him a cultural icon. His popularity has recently reached younger audiences as a result of social media and streaming platforms.