There is ample evidence that Russell was familiar with the works of George Catlin (1796–1872), an artist who had journeyed west more than sixty years earlier. At the outset of his career Catlin realized that the scenes of Plains Indian life he was portraying were soon to vanish forever, and he became a fervent champion of the native peoples he encountered in his travels. He resolved to record as much about their customs “as the industry and ardent enthusiasm of one lifetime could accomplish.” The result was a landmark two-volume study, Letters and Notes on the North American Indians, first published in 1841, and Catlin’s North American Indian Portfolio, which appeared four years later Catlin’s illustrations gave the young Montana artist ideas for composition, figure groupings, and particular details as he struggled to develop his own style. The “war council” theme was repeated by Russell a number of times, and the composition and arrangement of details here—from the speaker with his back to the viewer to the buffalo robes and shield on the ground—seem to have been derived from Catlin’s works. Interestingly, contemporary anthropologists have noted that among the plains tribes, a warrior’s shield was never allowed to touch the ground—an indication that Russell was still in the process of learning his subject. The watercolor also shows Russell’s lack of interest in foreground or middle ground; the seated figures on the left seem to be suspended on vague washes of color that do not suggest depth or solidity.