Hello! Welcome to my corner of the internet. My name is Sarah Johnston, and I’m the artist behind Brellian.

 

I’m currently based in Houston, Texas, but a big piece of my heart still belongs to the mountains. I spent the early years of my life in Utah, surrounded by towering peaks, changing seasons, pine-covered landscapes, and the kind of scenery that has a way of making you stop and look a little longer. Even though life has taken me somewhere much flatter these days, those landscapes never really left me.

 

My work is deeply inspired by nature and the quiet moments we find within it: fog settling between trees, sunlight breaking through a storm, a bird perched silently on a snow-covered branch, or a mountain disappearing into the distance. I love creating pieces that feel less like simply looking at a landscape and more like remembering what it feels like to be there.

 

At the heart of Brellian is a desire to create art that invites you to slow down. To pause for a moment, breathe a little deeper, reflect, and reconnect with the parts of the world—and yourself—that can sometimes get lost in the noise of everyday life.

 

When I’m not painting, I’m also a mom of two, which means my days are usually a wonderful mix of creativity, family, beautiful chaos, and trying to squeeze an idea onto a canvas whenever inspiration—and life—allow.

 

I’ve also had the opportunity to turn my love of art into something I can share beyond my own paintings. I've poured my love of teaching into a book to help others learn how to paint — with more on the way. Teaching has become another meaningful part of what I do because I genuinely believe art isn’t something reserved for people who were simply “born talented.” Creativity is something we can nurture, practice, play with, and make our own.

 

Growing up among the mountains taught me to notice the small things: the way light moves through trees, how completely different a forest feels when it’s covered in snow, the silhouette of a mountain against the sky, or the flash of color from a bird against an otherwise quiet landscape. Those are the moments I keep coming back to in my work.

 

Brellian is my way of sharing a little piece of that world with you.

 

Whether you’re here to find a painting for your home, pick out a print that reminds you of somewhere you love, learn how to paint something of your own, or simply spend a few minutes wandering through some trees without actually leaving your couch—I’m really glad you found your way here.

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And if any of this makes you want to pick up a brush yourself, that's exactly why I wrote Acrylic Landscapes for Beginners — it's my step-by-step guide to help you paint your own quiet, misty corner of the world, no matter where you're starting from.