George Horne Russell, R.C.A. (1861-1933)
He was born in Banff, Scotland; he studied at the Aberdeen School of Art, and the South Kensington School of Art. He came to Canada in 1889 and soon established a studio in Montreal where he painted portraits of many noted and well-to-do Canadians, those wealthy Montrealers sometimes enjoyed vacationing in St. Andrews, N.B. where Russell did purchase a summer home and studio. Russell made many trips to sites along the east coast including Grand Manan Island, N.B. and Maine as well as Lunenburg, N.S. He painted many maritime scenes and also opened his studio for exhibitions of the work of local painters.
In Montreal in 1926 he held his first solo exhibition at the Watson Art Gallery. He was considered a major maritime painter. Over the years, his paintings were exhibited at the R.C.A. shows and the Art Association of Montreal Spring Shows until his death. He was the President of the Royal Canadian Academy from 1922-26.
His works are in the collections of the National Gallery of Canada, The Glenbow Museum, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the Beaverbrook Art Gallery amongst many others.
