Morgan Jones Johnston is an American painter, storyteller, treasure hunter and entrepreneur known for her richly colorful abstracted works inspired by the universe of plant and flowers and also the liberation of the Inner Child.
Based in the Deep South, Johnston’s work is fed by lush landscapes, sprawling expanses of rolling hills, meadows, the space where land meets sea, earth meets sky and the bursts of wild flowers that Spring forth outside of our hand and will. What is the edge where nature and human meet?
With bold gestures and a physical practice, Johnston’s work is a search to find full presence while also moving in symphony with the Inner Child. Through her unique perspective of child-like freedom coupled with her intense desire to connect with the depth of the present moment, her work is a journey and invitation to return home to both nature and childhood.
Her ongoing portrait experience “You Painted My Insides” has taken her around the world, sitting with subjects at cafés, on sidewalks and in private art clubs. These abstracted, colorful portraits are experiences in vulnerability, how we see ourselves and the artist as mirror.
A life long artist and graduate of Alabama School of Fine Arts (Visual Arts, 2002), Morgan went on to create art in England and France before planting roots again in Alabama with her musician husband, Duquette Johnston. After having their first child and building an internationally recognized experiential retail brand, Club Duquette, Morgan returned full time to her art practice. Her abstracted naturalistic paintings and portraits have captivated not just collectors but also enthusiasts with her art.
Since 2018, she has devoted herself fully to her craft as a professional artist, maintaining a strict studio practice and inviting others into the magic of creativity through her online presence @ruggedandfancy and hosting select workshops and salons. From 2020-2022, Johnston produced original collections for Serena & Lily. In 2022, Johnston was invited to live paint alongside the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. She also spent a year in collaboration with Magic City Performing Arts, creating a twelve foot painting inspired by the devastation of a tornado that struck her home, working with principle dancer, Clair Hendricks, composer Olaffur Arnalds and filmmaker Evan Lanier on this collaborative meditation on grief and rebirth. In 2023 she collaborated with luxury boutique hotel Nine Orchard in New York City. In 2024, she traveled to Paris, France to paint portraits during Paris Fashion Week.
Her paintings are now featured in over 500 private collections worldwide, her creative projects have been featured in New York Times, Vogue, Southern Living, Veranda, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Nylon and more as she continues to build a growing waitlist for commissioned pieces and create collaboratively on projects that thrill her.
Browse her available works. Commission a project. Find something interesting and beautiful on her blog. And please, share with a friend! Xo
