You Can Own Bob Ross’ First-Ever Painting From ‘The Joy Of Painting’ — For A Whopping $9 Million

A lucky Bob Ross fan will be able to purchase one of the first pieces the artist created on his hit PBS series …. for the meager price of $9.8 million.

TMZ reports that Ross’ painting “A Walk in the Woods” is being sold on Modern Artifact at a whopping price tag, though buyers who are interested can make their own bids. According to the website’s listing, the piece is signed and includes a certificate of authenticity. The painting will also come with a written statement from the original owner who was present when Ross first painted it on The Joy of Painting.

The painting was created during the pilot episode of the hit series, which debuted in January 1983.

Modern Artifact describes the piece as “museum-worthy” and Ross’ “most historically significant” artwork. They predict it “will set the standard for the continued development of the Bob Ross art market,” according to the description of the painting.

The painting’s description also mentions that it is “exceedingly rare” to come across many pieces from the famed artist. The website only lists one other oil painting from Ross that was also painted on his show, which is available for $250,000.

The Joy of Painting, which Ross created and hosted, ran from 1983 to 1994. He became known for the calm yet positive demeanor he held as he led viewers through his painting process. The instructional series followed the artist as he devoted 30 minutes to creating detailed landscape paintings, discussing nature, and hosting other artists.

In an interview with NPR, his longtime manager Annette Kowalski claimed he painted three of the same paintings for every episode filmed. The first, which was kept off camera, was used by Ross as a reference while painting the second on television. He would then create a third painting for his instructional books.

Kowalski also revealed that Ross would “lay in bed at night” and rehearse “every word” he would say during filming, which is how he came up with some of his most famous phrases, such as: “You know without question that we don’t make mistakes here. We just have happy accidents.”

Ross died in 1995 at the age of 52.

The Joy of Painting is now streaming on Tubi and FreeVee. But the artist’s life is also explored in-depth in the controversial Netflix documentary, Bob Ross: Happy Accidents, Betrayal, and Greed.