Born in Amsterdam, Dutch artist Johan Rust studied with the master architectural painter Cornelis Springer. He worked mostly in oil for his most accomplished and desirable paintings, but also utilized watercolor and sepia.

Rust painted very fine quality seascapes and river scenes with exceptional composition and light qualities. His style was comparable to Schotel and Schouman and emphasized the same light qualities as works by the early Dutch masters. He exhibited often in Amsterdam and the Hague and also in Leeuwarden in 1855.