Svend Johansen was born in Gentofte and attended the Copehangen Technical School where he met Poul Henningsen who became a friend and associate for the rest of his life. He studied painting at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts from 1912 to 1916 under P. Rostrup Bøyesen. In 1919, he began an extended stay in France where he met Vilhelm Lundstrøm in Paris in 1922. Together with Karl Larsen and Axel Salto, Johansen and Lundstrøm settled in Bormes near Cannes, establishing the artistic group De Fire. They exhibited together until 1930. Johansen became a member of the Grønningen artists association in 1933. He produced posters for Grønningen, Tuborg and for the theatre. He contributed sketches to Politikens Magasin and illustrated books by Pierre Louÿs, François Rabelais and Johan Herman Wessel. From 1924, he brought new life into stage decoration in Tivoli's Sommerteater, including cubic curtain patterns. For productions of Maskarade, Bortførelsen fra Seraillet and Slaraffenland, he not only designed striking stage sets but also provided the costumes.