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About Charles M. Russell (1864–1926) |
An artist that Smith admired and emulated, Charlie
Russell “was the only artist whose work ‘faithfully portrays
the cowboy life and conveys the spirit of the country,’” Smith
said. 
Like Smith, Russell worked as a cowboy and accurately portrayed that
life in his art. Images of works by Russell, on view at the Amon Carter
Museum, are included in this teaching guide because of Smith’s admiration
for the famous cowboy artist and to provide another view of the cowhand’s
life and work. |
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Charles M. Russell (1864–1926)
Christmas at the Line Camp, 1904
Gouache, watercolor, and graphite on paper
Amon Carter Museum, Fort Worth, Texas
1961.392
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Charles M. Russell (1864–1926)
A Tight Dally and a Loose Latigo, 1920
Oil on canvas
Amon Carter Museum, Fort Worth, Texas
1961.196
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- As youths, both Smith and Russell longed to be cowboys. Russell moved
to the Montana Territory from St. Louis shortly before his sixteenth
birthday and lived there the rest of this life. He worked as a cowhand
on the open range for thirteen years. At the same time, he became known
for his sculptures and paintings of range life. Shortly after his move
to Montana, he worked as an assistant to Jake Hoover, a hunter and trapper.
In this capacity he was able to observe animals closely and thus accurately
portray them.
- During his lifetime Russell was a leading artist of the American West.
His favorite themes were wildlife, Native Americans, and range life.
He was a cowboy who created art, not an artist who merely chose cowboys
as his subject matter.
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The Amon Carter Museum holds one of the most important collections
of Russell’s work. According to museum Director and Russell scholar
Rick Stewart, Russell’s art, in particular, exemplifies the “reality
and fancy [which became] the myth” of the West.
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