John Russell (1858—1930) was an Australian Impressionist painter who lived in France and worked closely with Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet, and Henri Matisse.
John Russell Summary
- Born in the Darlinghurst suburb of Sydney, Australia to a family with Scottish and English roots
- Learned under Alphonse Legros in London and Fernand Cormon in Paris
- Made the first oil portrait of Vincent van Gogh, his schoolmate, which was much appreciated by the Dutchman
- Married the famous Italian model Marianna Antonietta Mattiocco
- After his wife’s death destroyed some 400 of his own artworks
- Chose not to seek artistic recognition and was largely forgotten after his death until recently
John Russell’s Famous Paintings
- Peonies and Head of a Woman (c. 1887)
- Dr Will Maloney (c. 1887)
- The Garden, Longpré-les-Corps-Saints (1887)
- In the Afternoon (c. 1890)
- Mrs. Russell among the Flowers in the Garden of Goulphar (1907)
- In the Morning, Alpes Maritimes from Antibes (c. 1891)
- A Clearing in the Forest (1891)
- Belle Île en mer (1898)
- Rough Sea, Belle-Île (c. 1900)
- Le Pointe de Morestil par mer calme (1901)
- Boys on the Beach, Belle Île (the early 1900s)