Layne Johnson Studio

Over the years, I've heard a lot of "rules" about oil painting. Some of them are absolutely worth following because they're based on the chemistry of oil paint and help ensure your paintings last for generations. Others? They're really just opinions that have been repeated so often they sound like facts. In my newest blog post, I share three rules I believe every oil painter should understand, along with three common myths that shouldn't hold you back. Whether you're just getting started or...

A couple of weeks ago, I gave you a small peek at something I’d been working on behind the scenes. Today, I can finally show you the whole thing! This is my new Princeton Brush Landscape Set — the one I mentioned, where every brush was chosen for a very specific purpose. These are the brushes I reach for again and again in my own work — from the beginning block-in to the final details. In today's video, I’ll walk you through each brush and explain exactly why it made the cut. If you’ve ever...

Read this post online instead. When you first start painting, there’s so much to learn. Everything is new, and it can be hard to know what’s true, what really matters, and what will actually help you improve. Looking back on all the things I’ve learned about painting over my lifetime, there are a few I really wish I’d known when I first picked up a brush. It would have made the whole experience better and saved me some unnecessary frustration. So let me save you some time. Here are 5 things I...

This course started it all. Over the past seven years, more than 1,800 students have joined me in my very first online course, Painting Dramatic Clouds 1.0. That short course gave students a wonderful starting point—and helped a lot of painters understand the basics of painting a cloudscape. As my art school has grown, though, I’ve learned a lot more about teaching and filming courses… and even more about what adult students really need to improve their painting skills. My newest course,...

Let's face it, water can be tricky to paint. So in my newest YouTube video, I share a few tips on painting water and reflections. If you’ve ever struggled with painting realistic reflections that look believable, this quick demo should help. 👉 Watch the video here As always, the goal isn’t perfection — it’s understanding the concepts well enough that you can relax and enjoy painting. And if you have a question about painting water or reflections, be sure to leave it in the comments below the...

These days, it’s easy to find painting tutorials. A quick search on YouTube and you’ll find thousands of videos on every topic imaginable. And I think it’s great that so many people are sharing their love of painting. But here’s the problem: most of my students come to me after months—or even years—of cobbling together tips and tricks from random videos. And that can lead to a lot of frustration. Why? Because watching bits and pieces never gives you the full picture. One video might show you...

My biggest complaint about my college art experience is that even after taking Painting 101… I didn’t really learn much that I didn't already know. Frankly, I was expecting more. Let me explain. Back then, the “in” thing was expressionism, abstraction, and found-object painting. I walked into class with several years of painting already under my belt. Many classmates didn’t have that—and I watched them struggle. Two assignments have stuck with me: The newspaper clipping. We were handed tiny...

No matter how many times I tell myself “Trust the process!”—I still hesitate sometimes. Especially when I’m trying something completely new or challenging. So let me share how I cope with those fears (since I think this is pretty common for us artists). 1. Understand the real problem. Knowledge is the key to overcoming almost anything. The first step is figuring out what’s really going on. Sometimes we blow small issues out of proportion and make a mountain out of a molehill. (I know I do!)...

So you want to improve your painting skills... But, choosing the right teacher can feel overwhelming—especially when all you have are a few snippets from the internet. How do you know if their teaching style actually matches the way you like to learn? Back when I was starting out, your options were pretty limited: you either found a local class or traveled to a workshop. These days, there are so many options (including online) —which is great, but it can also make it even harder to know which...