Looking Up with John David Wissler

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Looking Up – A Conversation with JD Wissler

Episode 349 | Savvy Painter Podcast

Let me just say this up front: you will not be the same after this episode.
This conversation—recorded almost exactly ten years ago—was with one of the kindest, most devoted artists I’ve ever met: JD Wissler. JD passed away this week, and sharing this episode again feels like a small way to honor the deep legacy he left in paint, light, and story.

JD was obsessed with clouds. But this isn’t just a podcast about painting skies. It’s about what happens when an artist gives themselves fully to one subject, one passion, and allows it to shape their life. His stories will change the way you look at your work. They might even change the way you look at the sky.

Your Episode Map

Here’s where to pause, reflect, and rewind:

[2:47] — The moment JD decided he had to be a painter
[5:07] — The watercolor that took six weeks and the lesson that lasted a lifetime
[9:14] — Scraping the raspberry: when a teacher asks you to destroy something precious
[14:46] — What to do when your painting fights you back
[18:41] — How JD defines "finish" in a painting (hint: it’s not about perfection)
[27:41] — The places that call us back again and again
[29:48] — Why the sky was never just a backdrop for JD—it was everything
[40:37] — The turning point that made him put his work on the wall
[56:31] — What JD learned from hard times—and how they fueled his best paintings

For Your Studio Wall

Words worth pinning next to your easel.

"Don’t hold on to those precious things. If you want to make the painting work, they have to go."

"It has to be from somewhere inside me to make it a good painting."

"The sky is not a backdrop—it envelops everything around you."

"Sometimes, I finish a painting because I can’t make it better—and I want to start the next conversation."

"Painting isn’t therapy. It’s complete self-expression."

What to Bring Into the Studio With You

Because listening is just the beginning.

Let JD’s voice echo in the back of your mind as you paint this week: You don’t have to get it perfect. You just have to stay in the conversation. Whether you’re wrestling with a canvas, standing under a changing sky, or trying to find your way back to your practice—this episode is here to remind you that beauty is in the persistence. And in the looking up.

🎧 Listen to the episode, and then come tell me what part of JD’s story stayed with you.

📩 DM me or tag me on Instagram @savvypainterpodcast. I want to hear what this opened up for you.

Until next time—keep painting, keep looking up.