Bio / Artists Statement

Joel R. Johnson’s paintings reveal his concern for the effects of light on form in terms of color, value, and the subtleties of texture and weight. Through the various layers of transparent pigment a sense of luminosity and depth is achieved. The design of space – shape relationships create a personal viewpoint that transports the viewer into the mind’s eye of the artist and hopefully allows the painting to speak and be felt. The works of Edward Hopper, Andrew Wyeth, Anders Zorn, Winslow Homer, and John Singer Sargent, have contributed to his development as an artist.

Joel grew up in Sinclair, Wyoming and began drawing at an early age. He took art classes in junior high school and high school in Rawlins and continued his artistic pursuits in college.

The artist has an M.F.A. degree in painting from Utah State University and a B.A. degree in studio art from Westminster College. There he studied with Don C. Doxey and also with Harrison Groutage, both of whom worked in a representation style of painting. These painters influenced his approach to painting in his chosen medium of watercolor for over thirty years. He has exhibited nationally in the American Watercolor Society, The Transparent Watercolor Society, Watercolor USA, Watercolor West, Taos National Exhibition of American Watercolors, and the Hudson Valley Exhibition in New York. He is a signature member of the National Watercolor Society and the Florida Watercolor Society. His paintings have won numerous awards both nationally and regionally and have been exhibited in various galleries including Joe Wade Fine Art, Sante Fe, the Wildhorse Gallery, Colorado, and currently Darby Fine Art in Vero Beach Florida. He has conducted painting workshops in many states including Washington State, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Idaho, and Florida.

NATIONAL JURIED ART EXHIBITIONS
National Watercolor Society, 2013
Montana Watercolor Society, 2013
Transparent Watercolor Society, 2010, 2012
Florida Watercolor Society, 2009, 2011, 2012
Hudson Valley Art Exhibition, 2011
Watercolor USA, 2010
Tri-State Watercolor Exhibition, 2010
The American Watercolor Society, 2008
Colorado Governors Show, 2003, 2005
Watercolor West, 2005
International Watermedia XIV, 2005
Arizona Watercolor Society, 2005
Taos National Exhibition of American Watercolors, 2000
National Watermedia Exhibition, 1999
Contempory Art of the American West, 1998
Western Colorado Watercolor Society, 1997
Park City Arts Festival, 1994
Art of the 51st State, 1985
National Congress of Art and Design, 1984
Black Hills Invitational Art Exhibition, 1981