Charlie’s Week

The C.M. Russell Museum celebrates its namesake with a series of events in March.

Charles M. Russell died nearly a century ago, but his influence on the West is so profound that his March 19 birthday is practically a holiday in his hometown of Great Falls, Montana. The week-long celebration is called Western Art Week, though many people refer to it simply as Russell Week.Howard Chandler Christy (1872-1952), Pocahontas, 1926, oil on canvas, 32 x 40”This year’s celebration will include a number of events hosted by the art destination that bears his name, the C.M. Russell Museum. Charlie’s March Roundup will kick off March 17 with the Art in Action quickdraw event at the Meadowlark Country Club. Artists will create a new work in front of a live audience during the timed event. After the painting and sculpting period is over, the finished works will be sold at a live auction. Also on March 17 will be the preview party and silent auction at the Newberry, an arts venue in the heart of downtown Great Falls. Frank Tenney Johnson (1874-1939), The Indian Attack, oil on canvas, 393/8 x 49½”The following day, March 18, will feature an educational symposium at the C.M. Russell Museum in the morning and an evening live auction at the Newberry featuring artwork from artists whose works were selected for the sale by the museum.

Also returning to Charlie’s March Roundup is a special sealed-bid sale, which will close on March 19 at 9 a.m. Works in the sale will include several major pieces, including Frank Tenney Johnson’s The Indian Attack, which was the work on the artist’s easel when he died in 1939. Olaf C. Seltzer (1877-1957), Fording the Breaks, oil, 20 x 30”

Other pieces include Edgar S. Paxson’s Native American portrait Watchful Waiting, Franz Trevors’ epic Lewis and Clark meeting Indians at Ross’ Hole, Howard Chandler Christy’s dramatic scene Pocahontas and Fording the Breaks, a work by Olaf C. Seltzer, another famous Great Falls painter. The pieces will carry no estimates, but there will be a minimum bid, and after they’re sold the sold prices will not be announced. Edgar S. Paxson (1852-1919), Watchful Waiting, 1917, oil, 36 x 28”Duane Braaten, the museum’s director of art and philanthropy, says the sealed-bid items are already bringing in a lot of attention. “Not only is it a great Frank Tenney Johnson, it’s the last one he ever created. It’s an incredible painting,” he says. “For the rest of the show, we are really excited to be expanding our presence in March. We have a lot of fun celebrating Charlie Russell’s birthday with a community of art lovers who come up to Great Falls every March. We like to roll out the red carpet for them.” —