Biography
Johnson was born in 1978 in Rexburg, Idaho, and grew up in Preston. In 2005, he received a BFA in Painting and Printmaking from Pacific Northwest College of Art, and in 2011 he earned an MFA from the University of Idaho.
Growing up in rural Idaho, the outdoors have profoundly shaped both his work and his perception of the world. Johnson works primarily from life, painting on site and immersing himself in my surroundings—listening, feeling, and observing. These direct experiences are the catalyst for his practice, as he searches for the essential sensation of a place.
As of 2025, Johnson lives in Moscow, Idaho with his family, where he teaches as an Associate Professor of Painting and Drawing at the University of Idaho.