TRAVEL - GREAT FALLS, MONTANA - MAN OF THE WEST

Charles M. Russell 1864-1926

{Photos; C.M. Russell, Charlie’s Studio, The back door to Charlie Russell’s Studio}

The saga of “Kid Russell” has been told in words and in song as a tribute to a man who lived the majority of his life in the west and obeyed his calling. That calling? To make an artistic recording of the real and already dying west. He proved the “west” is not just a direction.

Charles M. Russell was born to moderate wealth in St. Louis, Missouri. He came to Montana when he was 16 with a dream of becoming a real cowboy. He was so captivated with the West he chose to stay and fulfill his childhood fantasy and in 1882 landed a job as a wrangler on a cattle drive – the became a night wrangler for the Judith Basin Roundup. The job he kept for eleven years.

A self-taught artist, his first sketches showed an observant eye, a feel for animal and human anatomy, a sense of humor and a flair for portraying action.

Russell greatly admired the American Indians, especially those of the Northern Plains. He spent the summer of 1888 visiting often with the Blood Indians in Alberta, Canada. This experience affected him for the rest of his life, and can be seen in the many detailed works he created of Plains Indians.

Charles witnessed the changing of the West. He saw the bitter winter of 1886-87 end the cattleman's dominion on the northern plains. The days of free grass and unfenced range were ending and, for Russell, the cowboy life was over by 1893.

Charlie married Nancy Cooper in 1896. He painted and sculpted in his log studio adjacent to their home, filling it with his collection of Indian clothing, utilitarian objects, weapons, cowboy gear, "horse jewelry," and other western "props" useful in accurately depicting the scenes of the Old West of which he was so fond. It was here that Russell completed all of his major paintings after the studio's construction in 1903.

Charlie Russell completed approximately 4,000 works of art during his lifetime. He was the first "Western" artist to live the majority of his life in the West. For this reason, Charlie knew his subject matter intimately, setting the standard for future western artists to follow.

Charles Russell felt deeply the passing of the West, the most evident theme of his art. This sense of loss touched him with an emotional immediacy. He was haunted by youthful fantasies, memories of what once was and by the evidence of change that surrounded him as an everyday reality. His work reflected the public demand for authenticity, but also the soul of a romantic.

The C.M. Russell Museum is worth the drive to Great Falls, Montana and be sure to give yourself enough time to enjoy the museum and the art. Directions and more information may be found on their web site at; http://www.cmrussell.org/ or by calling 406-727-8787.

Enjoy!