Clars Auction Gallery is very honored to announce that they will be offering three very rare pencil drawings by Charles Marion Russell (American, 1864-1926) as part of their February 19, 2012 Antiques and Fine Art Auction.

Being offered as one lot, this series of three drawings is entitled “The Camping Trip” and were done by Russell is 1899 as a personal remembrance of the camping trip he took with his life long friend, Dr. John Louis Weitman, in the mountains of Montana. The sketches were given to Weitman as a gift from Russell and have descended through the Weitman family to his granddaughters who have consigned them to Clars.

These sketches were on exhibit in 1957 and 1985/87 at the C.M. Russell Museum  in Great Falls, Montana through the generosity of the Weitman family. Now, for the first time, they will be offered publicly along with many of Dr. Weitman’s personal items including a letter dated 1905 which mentions Russell. This important offering has been assigned a pre-sale estimate of $60,000 to $80,000.

Rick Unruh, Director of Fine Arts at Clars Auction Gallery who is handling this consignment notes that Dr. John Weitman himself was a renowned physician in Montana until moving to Oakland, California when he retired. His life-long friendship with Russell is evidenced in this photo taken with where C.M. Russell is center and Weitman is standing on the far right.

For more information on this important lot and Clars February 18th and 19th, 2012 Antiques and Fine Art sale, please call (510) 428-0100, email: info@clars.com or visit their website at www.clars.com Clars Auction Gallery is located at 5644 Telegraph Avenue, Oakland, CA 94609.