Show Preview | The Russell

“The latchstring is always out for you” was the welcoming way late-19th– and early-20th-century cowboy artist Charles Marion Russell often concluded his beautifully illustrated letters to friends. Such a spirit of warm hospitality characterizes The Russell, an annual art auction that has served as the primary fundraiser for the C.M. Russell Museum in Great Falls, Montana, since 1969. The approximately 210 historic and contemporary works in this year’s event have been on display for museumgoers since late June, and the culminating four-day sale draws as many as 500 aspiring purchasers.

They’ll first gather, along with some 75 of the participating contemporary painters and sculptors, on Wednesday, August 16, from 5 to 7 p.m., for a Preview Party held at the museum. “It’s a magical homecoming reunion for the artists and Western art lovers,” notes Duane Braaten, the museum’s director of art and philanthropy. He also works with artists and art consigners to put together the annual lineup. Excitement continues to build starting at 5 p.m. the next day, when attendees reconvene at nearby event venue The Newberry for First Strike Thursday Night, a lively auction of about 80 works by first-time participants in The Russell.

On Friday, August 18, at 11 a.m., the main events take place a few miles away from the museum at the Meadow Lark Country Club, in an open tent overlooking the cottonwood-shaded banks of the Missouri River. First comes Art in Action, a “quick draw” during which guests mingle with two dozen artists—including landscape painters Greg Scheibel and Randy VanBeek and wildlife artist Jennifer Johnson—completing works to be auctioned starting at 1 pm, with proceeds going directly to the museum. Following soon after is the main event: the four-hour Russell Live Auction, during which more than 100 prized lots will be sold.

Among the many standouts from contemporary artists this year are Michael Blessing’s THERE’S ONE FOR BOTH OF YOU, a DayGlo-highlighted image of actor Val Kilmer as Doc Holliday in the 1993 film Tombstone; GIRLS NIGHT OUT, by Nancy Dunlop Cawdrey, portraying a trio of grizzlies in the artist’s vivid dye-on-silk style; and Kimberley Monahan Dady’s SUN WORSHIPPER, a serenely realistic portrait of a young Native American girl.

Of course, many collectors will also be eagerly anticipating the historic works consigned to this year’s auction, including pieces by Maynard Dixon, Joseph Henry Sharp and this year’s standout: PIEGANS, completed in 1908 by C.M. Russell, which has an estimated value of $2.6 million to $3 million. “One of his most recognized and beloved subjects, it was painted in the prime of his career,” says Braaten. “It’s so rare for a masterwork like this to come to market.”

Such a high-flying lot serves as a thematic prelude of sorts to The Russell’s final event. On Saturday, August 19, the Educational Symposium that traditionally concludes the gathering features Texas-born astronaut Mike Mullane, appropriately known as “the Space Cowboy,” who shares with the museum’s namesake the ability to spin a great yarn with a wry sense of humor. “Here on the western frontier,” concludes Braaten, “we’ll be celebrating Mullane’s adventures on the frontiers of space.” —Norman Kolpas

contact information(406) 727-8787cmrussell.org

This story appeared in the August/September 2023 issue of Southwest Art magazine.

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