Bob Johnson

Bob Johnson — Baxter, MN (1961-2017)

Bob was inspired to carve and spear at an early age by his father, a local legend during his time and an avid outdoorsman.  The fish decoys his father carved  were used as a necessity to harvest fish. Although Bob lost his father before he was a teen he continued to carve decoys and practice the spearing techniques he learned from his mentor.
His strong beliefs in spearing have kept him active in promoting decoy carving and lobbying to keep the sport and spirit of darkhouse spearing alive.  He was an active member of the Brainerd Chapter of the Minnesota Darkhouse & Angling Association as well as a supporter of the NFDA. He had also, as an instructor, initiated carving classes in the Brainerd High School.  Because of the successful participation of the students, many other schools in Minnesota have followed his steps in offering decoy carving classes. Bob was also a promoter and participant in the annual "Whitefish Open" which is a competition spearing contest between decoy carvers held each January.
Bob's artistic talents did not go unrecognized. He won well over 200 1st place titles in National and World competitions for carving. He has been featured in magazines, documentaries, and newspapers across the country. He was the NFDA World Points Champion in 2004. His talents went beyond carving. The summer of 2007, Bob spent many hours experimenting with pottery. He was also a photographer not to mention his drawings/paintings which include several of the "The Gathering" prints.