Page 118 - 2019 Russell Catalogue

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CHARLES M. RUSSELL (1864–1926) Approach of White Men
oil
24 1⁄8 x 34 1⁄8 inches
Inscription: Ll: CM Russell (skull) 1897
$1,250,000–1,750,000
Recorded in Charles M. Russell: A Catalog Raisonné: CR.ACM.2
[Russell] was a brilliant action painter, but reserved a special place in his heart for quiet contemplation. Indi- ans scanning the distance from a promontory were stand-ins for his overview of a dreamland that he made his
own, and all the world’s.
—Brian W. Dippie
This oil painting demonstrates Charles Marion Russell’s deep empathy for the fate of the Native American. Its composition is carefully designed to convey nostalgia for the Plains Indian way of life that was rapidly passing. An advance scouting party of four has paused on a hilltop to observe what may be occurring along the eastern horizon. As is typical of a Russell composition, the lead scout is indicated by his distinct white mount, decorated shield, elaborately beaded leggings, and colorful blanket. Elevated lances create two effective triangular compositions.
The rest of the tribe is further back in front of the Judith Basin’s legendary Square Butte. They are awaiting the chief ’s assessment of the situation ahead. Clouds above the main body indicate changing conditions symbolized by the threatening weather. Russell uses his creative skills to reimagine a decades-earlier event in territory with which he was intimately acquainted as an open range cowboy of the 1880s.
At least four previous Russell paintings provide noteworthy clues to the developed point of view that led up to this artistic rendition: An Evening with Nis-su kai-yo (illustrated in John Beacom’s book How the Buffalo Lost Its Crown), A Night with Utes (among his Russell’s Boyhood Sketches), The Indian of the Plains as He Was (first image in Pen Sketches), and his watercolor version of the identically titled 1896 work Approach of White Men. More details about how those works inform this piece can be found on our website (www.cmrussell.org/approach).
Approach of White Men very effectively demonstrates C. M. Russell’s interest in capturing a sense of the West that had already passed for Plains Indian tribes well before the end of the nineteenth century. Its quality of execution represents a worthy foreshadowing of the themes that can be found in many of his works that were executed in
the period from 1910 to 1919. Thus, there is a continuity of authentic artistic statements between this piece and numerous others that are now recognized as having been created in his greatest decade of production.
PROVENANCE
• H. G. Wellman, Cleveland, Ohio
• Amon Carter Museum, Fort Worth, Texas
• [The Coeur d’Alene Art Auction]
• Private collection, Minnesota
Opposite photo: C.M. Russell Portrait as a Young Man, n.d. Negative, 5 x 4 in. C.M. Russell Museum, museum purchase (X990.8.222.6)