About California Watercolor

California Watercolor Gallery

The California Watercolor gallery specializes in 20th and 21st century California and American paintings. The gallery features famous California artists that painted from the 1920s through the early 2000s  (i.e. Millard SheetsEmil Kosa Jr.Dong KingmanHardie GramatkyKen Potter, and many more). The gallery also represents a select group of extremely talented American watercolorists that are actively painting today (i.e. Carolyn LordKen GoldmanSteve SantmyerDavid Solomon, and others).

CaliforniaWatercolor.com was founded in the year 2000. This unique art website is dedicated to spreading 20th & 21st century California and American art to the furthest corners of the earth. Many of the paintings in California Watercolor’s collection have been exhibited in major museums and galleries throughout the United States and abroad. CaliforniaWatercolor.com is an excellent resource for museums, galleries, artists, students, teachers, historians, and art enthusiasts alike.

Enjoy this vast online collection of California and American art from the comfort of your own home, or schedule an appointment to stop by the Southern California gallery to view paintings in person.

Artwork curated by Michael and Nick Johnson.

How we got started:

At the age of nine, Michael Johnson discovered a large tin box in his grandmother’s garage in Los Angeles, CA. In the box he found a vast amount of old letters and pictures, including daguerreotypes, tintypes, land deeds, water rights and diaries. Michael discovered his ancestors were early California settlers who had come from New York during the California Gold Rush. This youthful experience started his fascination with all things related to California. In 1965 Michael bought his first California painting, which started an obsession that lasted over fifty years

In 1991 Michael became an art dealer on a full time basis, while at the same time continuing with his various collections. He dealt in American oil paintings of the 19th and 20th century with an emphasis on California painters. It wasn't long before Michael realized he would become the world’s worst art dealer, as he hated selling these wonderful oils, so he tempered this problem by collecting “California Scene”, “Regionalist” watercolors.

Over the following years Michael was a contributor and sponsor of many museum exhibitions of the California Regionalist painters. Although he attended many opening night parties, Michael always liked to go back on a following weekend when the general public viewed the show. He wanted to see their reactions and listen to the genuine comments about the art. One of the comments he heard over and over again was, “These are such wonderful paintings. I wish I could afford one.”

Many of these unique California paintings are now available as giclée prints on Arches watercolor paper, (the same paper used by many artists from this period), and at an affordable price ($95, $145, or $195, depending on size). The giclée prints are adorned with a 1" - 3" border of textured watercolor paper and are embossed with an official seal of authenticity.

"We hope you enjoy this art as much as we do." - Michael Johnson