Learning from the Masters, Still-Life and Floral Paintings with Robert Johnson

​We invite you to seize this exclusive opportunity to learn from OPA Master Artist Robert Johnson. There are a few artists that have impacted my artistic life. One of them is Robert Johnson. His book, On Becoming a Painter, inspired me to pursue my passions. He truly is a Master Oil Painter, and I am honored to have him teach at PFA Studio.

Learning from the Masters, Still-Life, and Floral Paintings with Robert Johnson
Three Day Workshop
August 23rd - 25th
9:00 am to 4:00 pm
$485
​SUPPLY LIST

REGISTER HERE

​This oil painting workshop will delve into the profound understanding of the essential elements of painting, a wisdom passed on through the centuries from teacher to student, master to apprentice, and artist to artist. 

Brush strokes will be heavily emphasized as a means to depict form, achieve expressive power, and maintain a painting's feeling of spontaneity and life. Robert will teach the importance of understanding values, edges, light, and color to create a powerful and memorable painting. Still-life and florals will be the workshop's subject matter and the focus of Robert's demonstrations.

About Robert
RobertJohnsonArt.com

​Robert Johnson was born in Hopewell, Virginia. His mother loved to paint, and his older brother, Ben, was also a painter who distinguished himself in the field of art conservation and later established and served as the Director of Conservation for the Los Angeles County Museum. Ben played a significant role as a mentor in Robert's artistic development.

​Robert had an instinctive love for art from an early age. He also loved sports and attended Duke University on a football scholarship. He later graduated from Duke Law School. Even though he focused on academics and athletics, he kept his painting and drawing going in his private time. His love of art and drive to see the best art of Europe caused him to veer from the usual legal career path. He moved to Germany, where he lived for two years in a small German village, learned German, and traveled extensively to see the best European art while working privately on his own painting and drawing skills.

After returning to the US and several years of juggling the demands and conflicts of two diverging careers, he sought the advice of Frank Wright, a prominent painter, and instructor of Art at George Washington University. While Frank Wright critiqued Robert's drawings, Robert asked, " From what you see, can I be a real artist like the ones in books, galleries, and museums?" Wright wisely replied: " I like your drawings. But you must realize that you will never know how good an artist you can be until art gets the very best within you...your primary attention, your highest energies, your best working time." The advice stuck. Soon after that, Robert turned over his law practice to his partner and began an extended period of study at the Art Students League of NY, where he studied painting with David Leffel and drawing with Robert Beverly Hale and Michael Burban. Robert loved the Art Students League painting tradition and the wonderful opportunities to draw at all hours of the day and into the night. He also studied sculpture in the evenings with Barney Hodes. He later taught at the Art Students League and remains a life member.

He topped off his training with study in the studio of Lajos Markos, a Hungarian master who had his studio in Houston, Texas, at the time. The influence of Markos- especially the brushwork- is clearly visible in Robert's paintings today.

Throughout his training, he received constant mentoring and support from his brother, Ben, who encouraged him to... "Learn to draw, and only compare your work to that of the masters." At the same time, Ben tutored him on the materials and techniques of the masters in the paintings he was working on or evaluating for acquisition by the museum. 

Since becoming a full-time painter in 1987, Robert has won first-place national awards in The Artists Magazine and Salmagundi Club(NY) and numerous other awards- including six awards from the Oil Painters of America (OPA), among which is the American Art Collector Magazine Award of Excellence($14000). In 2017, he was awarded the status of "Master" by OPA. He has had twenty-one-man Shows in private galleries throughout the US. He teaches painting workshops throughout the US and Canada and has produced seven instructional videos.

He is the author of On Becoming a Painter(Sunflower Press, 2001), in which he explores his experiences in becoming an artist and his thoughts on the fundamentals of the painting process. His work has also been featured in numerous other books, including the Best of Flower Painting II( North Light Books) and The Simple Secret to Better Painting (North Light Books, 2003). He is a featured artist in a book published in 2014 by North Light Books: Oil Painting with The Masters by Cindy Salaski.

He is represented by Sage Creek Gallery (Santa Fe, NM), Broadmoor Galleries, Colorado Springs, CO), and Anderson Gallery (Saint Simons Island, GA), as well as other private Galleries in the US.

He divides his time between studios in Vienna, VA, and Taos, NM. 

REGISTER HERE