About

Russ is an award winning, acclaimed International Artist, Sculptor, and Wood Carver. His artwork is in corporate and private collections throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Central America and the Far East. His Chinese style landscape paintings have received National and International attention and praise. He was a pioneer in the field of computer art and photography, helping to create many of the tools used today for digital drawing and painting. He is a published author in the area of computer imaging and editing with Microsoft Press. Russ earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Fine Art, and Chinese Landscape Painting, from Montana State University. He continued his advanced studies at the University of Washington, in Native American and Indigenous Art and then studied Traditional Native Carving at the Fleming College of the Arts in Ontario, Canada. Along with his studies of Native American Art, he also studied the Indigenous Art and Carvings of the Pacific Rim region, The Taoist Landscape Painting of China, and the Far East. His artwork is a unique blend of the Native culture he was raised in, the Chinese and Taoist Paintings in which he earned his degree, ancient Egyptian painting and carving, the Art Deco Period, and the Indigenous Carvings and Paintings of the Pacific Rim region. Russ grew up in Billings, Montana and on the Northern Cheyenne reservation at Lame Deer, Montana. His Native father, John Wooden Legs, was a hereditary leader of the Cheyenne People and a Traditional Spiritual leader. Russ was raised with traditional Cheyenne beliefs and spirituality and is an elder of the Cheyenne, Native American Church. His artwork reflects these traditional beliefs and teachings as well as the Taoist teachings of China that he learned while getting his Degree. Russ began drawing horses, cowboys and the western lifestyle at an early age. He was introduced to his first art teacher J.K. Ralston by his grandmother, when he was 10 years old. J.K. Ralston is one of the original 3 cowboy artists and a contemporary of C.M. Russell and Fredrick Remington. J.K. lived in a small log cabin in Billings, Montana. During the early 60's, the cartoonist, Stan Lynde, creator of the cartoon strip 'Rick O'Shay', was also quite an influence. While in high school, Russ created a popular, underground cartoon strip. As a Combat Marine in Vietnam, he illustrated his experiences during his tour and the infamous 'Tet' Offensive of 1968. Some of these drawings are on National display through the Marine Corps and the Veterans Administration. He later went on to create the Montana Vietnam Veterans Memorial in 1985/86. Russ is also credited with having several individuals placed on the National Memorial in Washington, D.C. Russ currently lives in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho where he has his studio and gallery. Locally, he has won numerous 1st Place and Best in Division Awards at the Spokane Artistry in Wood show. He has been a featured Artist in Montana, and Seattle, Washington. In 2012 he was featured at Season's in Coeur d'Alene for the monthly art walks.  He has participated in Coeur D’ Alene Art on the Green, as well as the Sandpoint Art Festival. He is a former member of the Guild of Natural Science Illustrators in Washington, D.C., was a sketch artist for the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office, an architectural Illustrator and draftsman in Seattle and a medical illustrator. He created ground breaking concepts in the field of Digital Art, Photography, and Drawing while he worked at Aldus Corporation and Microsoft. He is an accomplished Painter, Illustrator, Sculptor, Carver, Engraver and Woodworker. Russ believes that we must never stop growing and learning and continues to study and expand his diverse knowledge of Native and Contemporary Art.