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Mark Keathley
attends The CM Russell Art Auction and
Western Art Show in Great Falls, Montana
MARCH 18-21, 2009
~ Mark Keathley will be attending and
showing 10 of his newest artworks at the the
25th annual CM Russell Museum Show and
Western Art Auction. Up for bidding on the
Friday night Auction is his grand 36"x48"
painting "Indian Winter." (Seen
at right) It will be going to the
highest bidder (which could be you by
attending, by phone, or by internet bidding
- registering online.) In the past some
artist's paintings have been acquired by
collectors at remarkably high prices.
There are other images in the same show that
have sold even below cost. "You just never
know what might happen at these auctions, "
Mark reported. "Last year, one of my artist
friends painting went for $185,000! His
normal price range was $30,000. He was
crying with excitement. It is awesome when
something like that happens, but then again,
I have seen $15,000 paintings sell for
$6,000 as well." Indian Winter's suggested
retail price is $12,000. The CM Russell
Western Art Museum in Great Falls Montana
hosts this event every year on the 3rd
weekend of March (Thursday - Saturday) to
raise money for expanding the museum. Last
year over 1.2 Million dollars was auctioned
off to help the Museum! As a part of the
auction, the Museum makes available the
historic Heritage Inn Hotel. There
artists may use the hotel rooms to display
their works for the three days of the
events. Over one hundred exceptionally
talented artists sell their paintings and
prints directly to the public at the show
and then attend the two auctions on Friday
and Saturday Nights. To add to the
excitement and charm of this event 10 of the
artists "compete" in a "quick draw" event
(both Friday and Saturday evenings) in which
they must produce a completed painting in 1
hour. Crowds stand around sipping wine and
watching as these masters go at it with fury
for 60 minutes. Mark Keathley will be
painting in the Saturday night Quick Draw
event. Tickets to attend the event are
available on the website. There is
also a schedule of events -
http://www.cmrauction.com/Website/Schedule.aspx
Excerpted from the web site:
Biography of Charles M. Russell
Charles Russell is one of the few artists
who both experienced and artistically
documented the drama and innocence of the
American West. As the West was settled, his
nostalgia for days gone by was expressed in
his depictions of contemporary life on the
range.
As a self-taught artist, Russell began
drawing and sculpting at an early age. A few
weeks before his sixteenth birthday, he left
St. Louis and moved to Montana where he
worked as a cowboy for eleven years. During
those years, he sketched and painted the
cowboy life and the wilderness he loved. To
cover his expenses, Russell sold his
paintings for modest prices to saloons and
local establishments, whose proprietors were
the first Russell collectors. His first
commissioned mural was painted for a saloon
in Utica, Montana and was executed with
house paints on a pine board.
In 1896 Russell married Nancy Cooper who, as
his business manager had a lucrative impact
on his artistic career. She convinced him to
raise prices and paint full time. By 1911
his paintings were selling in the East for
what Russell referred to as "dead men's
prices", high figures normally achieved
after an artist's death. After 1919, the
Russells spent their winters in Pasadena,
California. In Hollywood they befriended
western art enthusiasts, many of whom became
Russell's patrons. In October 1926, Charles
Russell died in Great Falls, Montana.
For more details of Russell's life and work,
visit the
C.M. Russell Museum
website..
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