4 ms·

I know a lot of people who have just painted along with Bob Ross. Maybe that's an option?

by Jemaclus 8y ago

bovermyer 8y ago
Besides being a fun way to paint, this is also a relaxing, almost meditative exercise.
- tabtab 8y ago
  Not when I screw up :-)
  - bovermyer 8y ago
    Haha, yeah maybe, but aren't those "happy accidents?"
tabtab 8y ago
Ross's approach is probably closest to instant gratification: the scenes are intentionally designed to be easy, quick, and striking. Water color can also be instant gratification, but you can't really paint over mistakes, unlike oils (if you wait for them to dry). Looking online, people's early Ross-clone works are not so hot, but practice makes perfect. I would suggest picking one segment of a scene, such as part of mountain, and keep trying until you perfect it. Take a break from the sub-scene for a few days so that you revisit it with a fresh viewpoint. Maybe rotate sub-scenes to rework. Staring at the same thing too long in one sitting can dampen one's objectivity, I've found. This applies to writing also. Keep in mind that Ross used to crank out such paintings for Alaskan tourist shops en masse. He has the experience of many thousands of paintings, making it look easier than it is. I'm sure his first dozen were clunkers or took a while.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
- tjr 8y ago
  I would suggest picking one segment of a scene, such as part of mountain, and keep trying until you perfect it. I remember Ross doing a training video along these lines... the resulting painting at the end was not one whole scene, but a bunch of discrete components: trees, mountains, water, etc. I did a few paintings in his technique years ago. I was surprised at how easy it was to produce something decent.
- StavrosK 8y ago
  > Staring at the same thing too long in one sitting can dampen one's objectivity, I've found. This applies to writing also. This definitely applies to photography. I'll spend two hours processing a photo, think it looks great, leave it and come back the next day. I'm invariably horrified at how overdone it looks and turn everything down to 50%. Then it's ready.
ryan-allen 8y ago
And a heap of his videos are on YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxcnsr1R5Ge_fbTu5ajt8DQ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxcnsr1R5Ge_fbTu5ajt8DQ
bonniemuffin 8y ago
Painting along with Bob Ross is totally awesome. Even if it comes out badly (which it will, the first dozen times you try it), it's still super fun. He makes art accessible, unpretentious, and un-scary -- and meanwhile the skills can totally carry over into anything you could possibly want to paint.

I know a lot of people who have just painted along with Bob Ross. Maybe that's an option?

bovermyer 8y ago

Besides being a fun way to paint, this is also a relaxing, almost meditative exercise.

tabtab 8y ago
Not when I screw up :-)
- bovermyer 8y ago
  Haha, yeah maybe, but aren't those "happy accidents?"

tabtab 8y ago

Ross's approach is probably closest to instant gratification: the scenes are intentionally designed to be easy, quick, and striking. Water color can also be instant gratification, but you can't really paint over mistakes, unlike oils (if you wait for them to dry). Looking online, people's early Ross-clone works are not so hot, but practice makes perfect. I would suggest picking one segment of a scene, such as part of mountain, and keep trying until you perfect it. Take a break from the sub-scene for a few days so that you revisit it with a fresh viewpoint. Maybe rotate sub-scenes to rework. Staring at the same thing too long in one sitting can dampen one's objectivity, I've found. This applies to writing also. Keep in mind that Ross used to crank out such paintings for Alaskan tourist shops en masse. He has the experience of many thousands of paintings, making it look easier than it is. I'm sure his first dozen were clunkers or took a while.

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
tjr 8y ago
I would suggest picking one segment of a scene, such as part of mountain, and keep trying until you perfect it. I remember Ross doing a training video along these lines... the resulting painting at the end was not one whole scene, but a bunch of discrete components: trees, mountains, water, etc. I did a few paintings in his technique years ago. I was surprised at how easy it was to produce something decent.
StavrosK 8y ago
> Staring at the same thing too long in one sitting can dampen one's objectivity, I've found. This applies to writing also. This definitely applies to photography. I'll spend two hours processing a photo, think it looks great, leave it and come back the next day. I'm invariably horrified at how overdone it looks and turn everything down to 50%. Then it's ready.

ryan-allen 8y ago

And a heap of his videos are on YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxcnsr1R5Ge_fbTu5ajt8DQ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxcnsr1R5Ge_fbTu5ajt8DQ

bonniemuffin 8y ago

Painting along with Bob Ross is totally awesome. Even if it comes out badly (which it will, the first dozen times you try it), it's still super fun. He makes art accessible, unpretentious, and un-scary -- and meanwhile the skills can totally carry over into anything you could possibly want to paint.