G. Russell Case Retrospective Show to Open at Brigham City Museum of Art & History.

The Brigham City Museum of Art and History is honored to host Utah: North to South, a retrospective of artist G Russell Case, open Saturday, April 16 through Saturday, June 18. A symposium and preview featuring Tim Newton, Publisher of Western Art and Architecture Magazine, and David Ericson, Owner of David Ericson Fine Art, will take place on April 14th at 6:00 PM.  They will discuss the broader context of landscape painting in Utah, from its history to its current place in the art world. The opening reception in the Museum with a guided tour by Case will follow. 

The exhibition will provide visitors and art enthusiasts a look into Case’s 30 year career, focusing on Northern Utah, one of his favorite places to paint. He often paints right in his yard, just west of Brigham City, where he has a grand view of the Wasatch Mountains. Born in Cedar City, Utah, Russell was heavily influenced to paint by his father–an accomplished painter and artist in his own right– and began his artistic career with watercolor paintings, later transitioning to oils. Case paints directly from the created landscape, trying to record color and light. And his studio compositions are derived from thoughts recorded outdoors. The philosophy of his work leans to that of Robert Henri–to paint the emotions and the inner poetry of the subject, not to merely be bound by literal translations. Russell tries to record with direct strokes, the composition, color, and emotion that he finds.

Case is eager to share his vision of Utah’s landscapes through this solo exhibition representing is over 30 year career and says ” What an honor it’s going to be to be hosted here in Brigham City, my hometown, for a show of this size we call a retrospect show paintings from my past up to the present. It represents a large body of work, things from field studies, easel paintings, and drawings. One important aspect of being an artist is to get an opportunity to have a show and display your work. For me, that’s almost as important as the process itself of making the painting is to get feedback and to be able to share the whole process and the finished product at the same time it’s an important part of what I do. We’re going to bring in tours from local schools and I’m going to be able to have my gear there and demonstrate and talk about the show and show them what landscape painters do, maybe talk a little bit about the area and what’s beautiful about it how we use this for design and composition with landscape painting should be a really fun time for that. And I want to thank the Brigham City Museum for hosting the show and Utah Humanities and the National Endowment for the Humanities for getting behind this project.”

Tim Newton is widely known in the art community and respected by artists, collectors, and art professionals alike. “Russell Case is one of today’s premier painters of the American West, ” said Newton. “Russell’s vision, like those greats of old, is a grand one. The sweeping vistas, the hidden canyons, the vastness of the skies. These are the glories of Creation that Russell reveals to us. They are narratives of beauty that are a balm to the human spirit, a much needed joy in an often challenging world”.

The Museum will also host a panel discussion on May 18 at 6:00 PM on the history of the Mountain West and the role the Utah landscape plays in those stories.  This program will feature expert speakers Molly Cannon, Director, Utah State University’s Museum of Anthropology and Mountain West Center for Regional Studies; Darren Parry, Former Chairman, Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation; Russell Case; and Jodi Graham, Executive Director, Utah Humanities as moderator.

Executing a project of this size took a lot of time, effort, and resources for Museum staff alongside Case and his team. The exhibit and accompanying programs and catalog bring together experts in the western landscape and its history to celebrate the unique beauty of this place. “It was an honor, both at the institutional and the personal level, to work with Russell and our many brilliant collaborators to bring this project to life,” said Alana Blumenthal, Brigham City Museums Director. “I know that the brilliant expression and contagious enthusiasm of G. Russell Case will inspire our visitors.” 

Utah: North to South is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities and Utah Humanities as part of the American Recovery Plan (ARP) Act. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities or Utah Humanities.

About the Brigham City Museum of Art & History:
The Brigham City Museum of Art & History is northern Utah’s cultural hub, offering temporary exhibitions on art (contemporary and historical) and history. The museum’s mission is to collect, preserve, and interpret art and materials that tell stories of human experiences and of the land.

The museum is a department of Brigham City Corporation and receives added support from the Box Elder Museum Foundation. It is located at 24 North 300 West. Hours of operation are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Field trips and guided tours are available by appointment.  Admission is free. Visit brighamcitymuseum.org for more information.  

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Please contact Museum Director Alana Blumenthal at ablumenthal@bcutah.org or Curator of Education Mary Ann Urban at maurban@bcutah.org or call 435-226-1439 for more information.