Frye Art Museum

Seattle, Washington

(206) 622-9250

 

The Art of Western Artist Charles M. Russell

Nov. 21, 1998 - Jan. 17, 1999

 

Dubbed "America's Cowboy Artist," Charles M. Russell (1864 -1926) painted and sculpted images of the western frontier as he witnessed them.

His popular paintings, watercolors, and sketches and are widely recognized as capturing the spirit of the vanished and romantic era of American history, documenting the old west and the daily life of fur traders, cowboys, and Native Americans. Over 30 pieces of Russell's art and the work of other western artists, including O.C. Seltzer and Edward Borein, will be on view at the Frye Art Museum beginning November 21, 1998. The exhibition is named "Saga of the West: Selections from the Charles M. Russell Museum" and features selections from the C. M. Russell Museum.

Russell was raised in Missouri and began sketching at age 16, when he left home for the Montana Territory. He spent a decade working as a ranch hand and cowboy. In his spare time he sketched what he saw. At nineteen, Russell completed his earliest watercolor.

Russell continued to paint, sketch, and sculpt scenes of the west at a time when few others were focused on the subject. Many of his works reflect the culture of Native Americans. After 1919, he spent winters in California, where a strong following developed among the movie colony.

Actors William S. Hart, Douglas Fairbanks, and Will Rogers were avid collectors of Russell art. By the time of his death, the artist had produced over 4,000 works of art, including his popular bronze sculptures.

From top to bottom: Pablo's Buffalo Hunt, c. 1909, watercolor; Red Man of the Plains, 1901, watercolor; Kelly's Duel with Sioux Indians, 1922, pen and Ink, 22 x 30.5 inches, courtesy of C. M. Russell Museum, Great Falls, MT.

 

Editor's note:

Editor's note: The Frye Art Museum provided source material to Resource Library for the above article. If you have questions or comments regarding the source material, please contact the Frye Art Museum directly through either this phone number or web address: 206-622-9250; http://fryemuseum.org/. Read more about the Frye Art Museum in Resource Library

Please click on thumbnail images bordered by a red line to see enlargements.

For further biographical information please see America's Distinguished Artists, a national registry of historic artists.

Following are examples of artworks created by Charles M. Russell They may not be specific to this article and likely not cited in it. The images were obtained via Wikimedia Commons, which believes the images to be freely available for presentation here.  Another source readers may find helpful is Google Images.

 

(above: C.M. Russell, Bronc to Breakfast, 1908, watercolor on paper, Montana Historical Society, Mackay Collection. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons*)

 

(above: C.M. Russell, A Quiet Day In Utica, originally called Tinning A Dog, Oil, 1907,  Sid Richardson Museum, Fort Worth, TX. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons*)

 

(above: C.M. Russell, Lassoing A Steer, 1897, oil on board 18.5  x 24.5 inches, Private collection.  Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons*)

TFAO also suggests these DVD or VHS videos:

Charles M. Russell: An American Artist  19 minute / 1982 / BARR - "Charles M. Russell (1864-1926) was one of the foremost in documenting the American West. By the time he was 16 he followed his dreams to the mountains and plains of Montana, where he lived the life of a hunter and cowboy. Sketching and modeling were just a hobby for him, but he captured the West exactly as he saw it. Over the next 40 years, Russell created a treasure of American art-a record of the West so rich and personal that it remains as vivid for us today as it was for him at the turn of the century."
 
Portrait of Charles M. Russell: Preserver of the Old West, A Features paintings and rare photographs of the artist, storyteller, humorist, and cowboy, Charlie Russell (1864-1926). 23-minute video. Description source: Amon Carter Museum Teacher Resource Center
 

TFAO catalogues:

*Tag for expired US copyright of object image:

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