He moved to San Francisco, California's Mission District in 1989, where he became a member of the local art community, initially drawing cartoons on lampposts and bathroom walls using black Sharpies. From 1989 until 1992, Johanson attended City College of San Francisco. In 1994, Johanson did one of the initial board graphic runs for a new San Francisco-based skateboard brand, Anti-Hero, which brought his art to a wider audience. Also, during this time, he played in a band called "Tina, Age 13," which was scrawled on a drawing the band came across randomly. The band toured several times, and record numerous 7" records, an EP called "The Alcoholic Father of My Inner Child," and a full-length LP, "Good Feelings," for Goldenrod Records, which remained unreleased until the late 2000s. In 2004 he and Jo Jackson, an artist and his wife, moved to and bought a home in Portland, Oregon.