David Johnson was from the Hudson river school of painters. We might refer to them as the Hudson River 2.0 group. This was the second wave of great plein air artists to come from the area. He painted spectacular sunsets and was known for painting luminosity. This is the effect of lighting the landscape.
Some key characteristics of this style were to use aerial perspective. This means that objects get lighter in tone and more blue in color as viewer looks further into the painting. Also the end result is that very little brushwork remains. Johnson was trying to keep brushwork to a minimum and tried to blend all edges similar to Leonardo Da Vinci.
He was born in 1827 in New York city.
For his collegiate education Johnson attended the National Academy of Design for two years. He then studied with such noted Hudson River painters such as Jasper Crosby.
David Johnson passed away in 1908 at age of eighty years old.
Price range information: David Johnson worked in oils and they range from $500 to $722,500.
The artist was also known for his paintings of rocks. I love to look at the various ways and end results artists use in depicting rocks. I would like to share some of my favorite painters of rocks. First off is Braldt Bralds. He was born and raised in the Netherlands. He has built a superb collector following for his paintings of cats. But I first admired the artist for his wonderful portrayal of rocks. Bralds is great at depicting different textures. Below is an example of his rocks .
Another artist painting wonderful rocks would be Albert Handell. Handell enjoys painting forests. He has some DVDs out about painting the landscape in pastels or in oils. He makes wonderful trees and rocks using a variety of brushes and painting knives. Handell is a member of the Oil Painters of America and I have seen his work in person more than 10 times and love looking at his portrayal of foliage and rocks. A great example of Handell’s style is below. The work is a pastel and check out his wonderful layering of complimentary colors on his rocks.
Another artist painting great rocks is Lynn Boggess. This artist is well known for his large canvas sized landcapes. He uses cement painting trowels rather than brushes and his works have great texture to them. Boggess paints plein air and his rocks also have great textures. Here is an example of Lynn Boggess and his painting style of highly textured and colored rocks.
Another great artist who paints wonderful rocks would be Stephen Stavast. This artist enjoys painting rocks and riverbed objects. Sticks, leaves, water, and many varieties of rocks are found in his still life paintings. This rtist really brings color and variety to his rocks.
Hope these artists get you inspired to try a landscape or even a small painting of a rock!
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