Shelly Johnson is a watercolor artist living in Boise, Idaho. She grew up in Southern California and studied at UCLA and Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. She earned her BFA from Art Center in Advertising Illustration.

She has worked as an illustrator for books and magazines, as a muralist, and as a computer artist doing 3D modeling and animation for video games, but she has always maintained the intention to eventually be a full time painter. She is a member of the Idaho Watercolor Society since 2010, and is a regular participant in their annual Idaho Capitol Building and membership juried shows. She is currently an IWS Signature Member and their delegate to the Western Federation of Watercolor Societies. She has completed multiple watercolor paintings on commission, primarily paintings of children, since 2009.

In 2010, Shelly moved to Boise, Idaho, to live a slower, quieter life in an inspiring landscape. Her favorite painting subject is children, but she found a second love painting Idaho landscapes and wildlife. She primarily works in watercolor, which she has practiced with since she was a teenager. She is inspired by the watercolors of John Singer Sargent and Winslow Homer, the musical qualities in the work of Paul Klee and Wassily Kandinsky, and the use of color and light by the California Impressionists.

She uses a layering technique with her watercolors, which creates luminous skin and rich, deep color. She believes the luminosity of her watercolor technique especially lends itself to portraying children and to recreating Idaho’s unique light. She enjoys playing with color, light, and pattern. 

With her landscapes, she likes to experiment with close compositions that appear abstract from a distance, but are revealed as representational when viewing closer. She likes to create compositions that appear musical. She believes a painting should draw the viewer in from a distance, and that there should be a reward in the details for drawing closer.

Shelly currently resides in Boise, Idaho, with her husband, Bill, and their Pudelpointer, Cooper. Her work and information regarding commissions is available for viewing on her website, shellyjohnsonstudio.com.