Happy Accidents!

‘Time and tide wait for none’, if there's one thing I could ask for, it’s more time. There is so much to do and so little time!. I started painting as a hobby when I was little and it was only in the recent past that I started pursuing it again and squeezing time to spend it with my childhood dream.

Browsing through my old paintings, I found these first few oil paintings that I worked on, which are a few years old. A look at them and I see various places of improvement. But it brought me those happy memories of painting them and the creator of this technique – Bob Ross himself with his words echoing ‘we don’t make mistakes, we only have happy accidents’. These works are based on Bob Ross’ wet-on-wet technique. For those of you who haven’t heard his name, he was an American painter known for his calm, patient nature. He came to prominence as the creator and host of The Joy of Painting.

oil on oil paper - 18"x12"

The way he would create his happy world in half an hour is mesmerising. Unlike some of the works over which people fret over and still not get a clue what they are, these are simple and fun. Some may call this a laid-back approach of painting, however in his own words, Bob ross would say " I paint, because I can create the kind of world that I want, and I can make this world as happy as I want it. Shoot, if you want bad stuff, watch the news."

oil on canvas board - 18"x12"

Especially for those with not much time in their hands, but would want to make the most of it, or for those beginners, I would say this may well be a technique to follow. I might not have been able to hit the half-hour target with these paintings, but I must admit I had absolute fun painting them!

oil on oil paper - 18"x12"

Many artists and art universities might not regard this technique with respect, art investors might claim this is not an investment art, according to Bob ross they do sell as hot cakes and this method of painting has received lot of appreciation around the globe. In my opinion, the important point to note here is believe it or not, this technique of painting has brought a ray of hope to many of those who never thought they would paint one day!, be it due to lack of confidence, time or enthusiasm!!!

oil on oil paper - 12"x18"

Happy painting!