In the early 1890s when he was struggling to find a career as an artist, Russell lived with Mr. and Mrs. Ben R. Roberts in Cascade, a small town southeast of Great Falls. There he painted in a small studio set up in a building near the ranch house. Roberts recalled that Russell’s mother wrote to them often, concerned about her son’s welfare. Mrs. Roberts usually handled the duties of responding to her many queries. She often painted a rosy picture so Russell’s mother would not be overly worried, maintaining that his health was fine but he couldn’t keep any buttons on his shirts. Russell knew what Mrs. Roberts was doing, and drew this humorous interpretation of himself as a successful artist—at least in his mother’s eyes. Mrs. Roberts later confirmed to Nancy Russell that her husband “visioned” this elaborate and amusing sketch for his mother in St. Louis. Russell and Nancy Cooper were married at a ceremony at the Roberts’ home in 1896.