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Congratulations to our own Jodie Utter (Conservator of Works on Paper at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art and MRCG Treasurer) for her article on analysis of Charles M. Russell’s watercolor materials in The Microscope!If you would like to share your own news with the MRCG community, please send a message to the Vice-President, Daniela Leonard (dleona@artic.edu).http://www.mcri.org/home/section/71-72-833/the-microscope---volume-60%2C-fourth-quarter-2012The Watercolors of Charles M. Russell: An Examination of the Artist’s Materials and Techniques on the Montana FrontierJodie UtterThe Microscope 60 (4), pp 147 – 152Abstract: An analysis of Charles M. Russell’s (active ca. 1880-1926) watercolor materials and techniques were conducted as part of a technical study using low-power magnification, polarized light microscopy (PLM), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), infrared photography (IR), and ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Russell’s pigments were identified, as were shifts in his technique over the course of his career. Pigment samples were collected from Russell’s studio materials housed at the C.M. Russell Museum, the Britzman Collection at the Gilcrease Museum, and the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. Russell’s technique was studied looking at 26 of his watercolor paintings. The paintings were chosen to represent all phases of the artist’s career and ability. Traditional and unconventional techniques were noted, as well as shifts in the utilization of underdrawing. The study also focused on a wide variety of high-quality artists’ materials available on the Montana frontier in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
