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This artist puts the wilderness, and the wildlife who resides there, on a pedestal. It holds an
esteemed place in his heart and his art reflects that reverence. "I paint," he says, "because I
have such a great appreciation for the natural world." That appreciation came early. Living
most of his childhood on the coast of Massachusetts, his family summered in Maine where
Johnson eagerly explored the hills and forests and he would draw what he discovered. The
fascination for all things outdoors didn’t diminish with his teen years. When he was seventeen
he spent seventy days in New Hampshire climbing forty-seven of the White Mountains’ highest
peaks in one continuous, marathon hiking and camping trip. He studied abstract painting and
natural sciences at Cornell University, with a particular appreciation of entomology. Not
surprisingly, graduation saw him continue his wanderlust. He spent the next year and a half
covering ten thousand miles of wild America, on foot, by bicycle and in a rowboat. "I passed
through every kind of natural environment there is," he says. "Mountains, rivers, deserts and
coastlines." Finally he set about to paint full-time, his images communicating the idealized
glow of nature at its best. There is a roundness and perfection in Johnson’s view, reflecting
his feelings for the wild. His work has been exhibited at the Society of Animal Artists annual
exhibition, is in the permanent collection of the esteemed Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum
and has even been shown at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.
esteemed place in his heart and his art reflects that reverence. "I paint," he says, "because I
have such a great appreciation for the natural world." That appreciation came early. Living
most of his childhood on the coast of Massachusetts, his family summered in Maine where
Johnson eagerly explored the hills and forests and he would draw what he discovered. The
fascination for all things outdoors didn’t diminish with his teen years. When he was seventeen
he spent seventy days in New Hampshire climbing forty-seven of the White Mountains’ highest
peaks in one continuous, marathon hiking and camping trip. He studied abstract painting and
natural sciences at Cornell University, with a particular appreciation of entomology. Not
surprisingly, graduation saw him continue his wanderlust. He spent the next year and a half
covering ten thousand miles of wild America, on foot, by bicycle and in a rowboat. "I passed
through every kind of natural environment there is," he says. "Mountains, rivers, deserts and
coastlines." Finally he set about to paint full-time, his images communicating the idealized
glow of nature at its best. There is a roundness and perfection in Johnson’s view, reflecting
his feelings for the wild. His work has been exhibited at the Society of Animal Artists annual
exhibition, is in the permanent collection of the esteemed Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum
and has even been shown at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.
Jay J. Johnson
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