LOS ANGELES – Class hasn’t started yet, but these ladies are already having fun.
They are hoping to learn how to paint the way Bob Ross taught back in the 80s and 90s. Famous for his big perm and love for animals, Bob Ross showed regular folks how to paint landscapes through a program called “The Joy of Painting.”
“We are here to learn to the Bob Ross wet-on-wet technique,” said David Arquette to the class. “I fell in love with Bob Ross on PBS just like most people of a certain age. And I always just loved it. Just really made painting look easy, magical and fun.”
Actor David Arquette may wear the wig, but he is not acting today. He is a certified Bob Ross instructor and teaches a class at Raw Materials in Downtown Los Angeles. Bob Ross passed away almost 25 years ago, but his legacy lives on through these classes and Arquette is more than happy to pick up the brush.
“I just think it’s fun,” said Arquette. “I love keeping his dream alive. I love painting so it gets me out painting. I like doing it for charity a lot of the time.”
Arquette and Raw Materials are donating their proceeds to Inner City Arts. To Arquette, it’s all about the joy of painting and more than anything, he stresses the importance of not overworking your work.
“Don’t over-mix it, don’t overdo it. You just want a base of this dark color under here,” said Arquette.
Growing up, Arquette was obsessed with Bob Ross so when he found out about a class, he took it. After he finished, he decided to become a certified Bob Ross Instructor and immediately signed up for the three-week course.
“Whatever you do, you have to have a creative outlet,” said Arquette. “Just cause life is so stressful. If you just go around like dealing with the everyday stuff. Just get out there and be creative and then sometimes you’re happy with what you paint.”
Between acting and professional wrestling, Arquette is now teaching how to paint happy trees.
“The really great thing is it just gets you painting and that’s sort of what the whole idea was in the first place that anyone can paint,” said Arquette. “Everyone is an artist. You got to get out there and paint.”
Time to get creative. Talent not necessary.