William Alexander (painter, 1915)

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William "Bill" Alexander (born April 2, 1915 in East Prussia as Wilhelm Alexander ; † January 24, 1997 in Powell River , British Columbia ) was a German painter . He was the founder and presenter of The Magic of Oil Painting series , which aired in the US on PBS .

Life

Alexander was born in East Prussia. He fled to Berlin with his family during World War I and trained as a wheelwright . During the Second World War he was drafted into the Wehrmacht . As a prisoner of war, he painted for Allied officers. He later emigrated to the United States.

The Magic Of Oil Painting

With The Magic of Oil Painting (dt about. The magic of oil painting ), a moderated from him television painting course in 117 parts (9 seasons à 13 episodes, each with about 27 minutes of playing time), Alexander became popular. The programs were broadcast between 1974 and 1982 . In every broadcast he brings his motifs - mostly landscape paintings - onto the canvas using oil paints using the wet-on-wet technique and comments on his work steps.

Protégé Bob Ross

Bob Ross was a student of Alexander. He later hosted the program The Joy Of Painting, which was inspired by The Magic of Oil Painting . Ross dedicated the first episode of the second season of his show to Alexander with the following words:

"Years ago, Bill taught me this fantastic technique, and I feel as though he gave me a precious gift, and I'd like to share that gift with you."

- Bob Ross

"Years ago Bill taught me this amazing technique and I feel like he gave me a precious gift and I want to share that gift with you [the audience]."

- Bob Ross

Alexander, however, felt betrayed by Ross and told the New York Times in 1991 :

"I trained him and he is copying me - what bothers me is not just that he betrayed me, but that he thinks he can do it better."

- William Alexander

"I trained him [Bob Ross] and he copies me - what bothers me is not just that he betrayed me, but that he thinks he can do better."

- William Alexander

Fonts

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Alexxa Gotthardt: Bob Ross Owes His “Happy Little Trees” to This Forgotten Painter . In: Artsy . June 26, 2018 (English, artsy.net [accessed November 30, 2018]).
  2. ↑ Alessandra Stanley: TELEVISION; Bob Ross, the Frugal Gourmet of Painting . (English, nytimes.com [accessed November 30, 2018]).
personal data
SURNAME Alexander, William
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Alexander, Wilhelm (birth name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German painter
DATE OF BIRTH April 2, 1915
PLACE OF BIRTH East Prussia
DATE OF DEATH January 24, 1997
Place of death Powell River , British Columbia