George E. Russell
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George Ellis Russell (January 23, 1933 – 8 May 2016) was a Canadian painter and art teacher known for his philanthropy.
Russell was a relatively obscure figure until 2015 when he was contacted by the development director of Quebec Arthritis Society, Elizabeth Kennell. He had been a long time monetary donor to the charity and Kennell inquired about a painting donation.[1] When Russell offered to donate his entire collection, Kennell reached out to Yolande Racine, a former curator at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, for her opinion. Racine confirmed that Russell was an "accomplished artist [who] has created a composition code oscillating between the expression of reality and illusion, between the figurative and the abstract." Alan Klinkoff, the owner of a gallery specializing in Canadian art also judged Russell to be "a highly accomplished artistic talent."[2] The Arthritis Society ended up raising $70,000 from the sale of his work.[3]
Russell died from cancer on 8 May 2016 in Laval, Quebec.[4]
Early life and training
Russell was born on January 23, 1933 in Viscount, Saskatchewan.[5]
His formal training began at Emma Lake Artist Workshop (affiliated with the Art department of University of Saskatchewan)[6] where the influential art critic Clement Greenberg presented to the Canadian public works by Morris Louis, Jules Olitski, Kenneth Noland during the period 1949-1969. He was influenced by the Modernist styles in painting and sculpture emerging in Saskatchewan at that time credited to both the presence of American-educated art professors and the frequent visits by Clement Greenberg.[7]
He later pursued a Masters of Art at Concordia University in 1969. This migration provided the opportunity to discover Quebec’s erupting artistic scene post Refus Global. It is here his practice transforms to abstraction and geometry.[8]
Though not a member, his work is closely associated with those of the Plasticien movement[8]
Critical Reception
In 2010, a retrospective of Russell's work entitled Kaleidoscope et Rétrospective was presented jointly by Maison des arts in Laval and Galerie Luz in Montreal.[9] In the accompanying monograph, the art historian Martin Champagne wrote:
"The work of George E. Russell constitutes a point of encounter between two artistic cultures, not only in the geographical sense—if we consider that his work nourishes itself from two remote artistic scenes: one situated in his homeland Saskatchewan, and the other in Quebec, his adopted land- but also in the temporal sense, taking into account that his work transcends the geometrical abstraction of the 70's to integrate aesthetic notions of open work, interaction of media, and the participation of the spectators, fundamental characteristics of Contemporary Art."[7]
Russell's work has continued to be shown after his death. In 2017, Grosvenor Park United Church rediscovered and repaired a two panel piece that Russell had donated when he attended in the late 1960s.[4] The ELLEPHANT gallery exhibited a series of serigraphs, watercolors and canvases during the 2020 Pictura art fair in Montreal.[10][11]
References
- ^ Simon Lewsen (25 December 2015). "George E. Russell: Joint Benefit". Canadian Art. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
- ^ Jeanette Kelly (13 April 2015). "Laval art teacher George E. Russell donates life's work to charity". CBC News. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
- ^ Susan Schwartz (2016-08-29). "Applause: Arthritis Society benefits from donation of artist's entire oeuvre". Montreal Gazette.
- ^ a b Darlene Polachic (2017-01-07). "Grosvenor Park United restores iconic painting". Saskatoon StarPhoenix. Retrieved 2020-12-21.
- ^ "Russell, George Ellis 1933 - 2016". Coopérative funéraire du Grand Montréal (in French). Retrieved 29 November 2020.
- ^ Champagne, Martin (2010). George E. Russell, Rétrospective. Laval: Gibraltar. p. 2. ISBN 9782981209801. OCLC 936660154.
- ^ a b Champagne, Martin (2010). George E. Russell, Rétrospective. Laval: Gibraltar. p. 1. ISBN 9782981209801. OCLC 936660154.
- ^ a b Champagne, Martin (2010). George E. Russell, Rétrospective. Laval: Gibraltar. p. 5. ISBN 9782981209801. OCLC 936660154.
- ^ Galerie Luz (2015). "Galerie Luz, Montréal, exposition George E. Russell". www.galerieluz.com. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
- ^ "Pictura. Pleins feux sur la peinture à Montréal/ Painting…in Montreal's image. Liste des artistes". Retrieved 25 September 2020.
- ^ Jérôme Delgado (7 November 2020). "Montréal, ville-peinture avec "Pictura"". Le Devoir (in French). Retrieved 7 December 2020.