Digital Collections
Richard J Flood II Collection
The Richard J. Flood II Collection at the C.M. Russell Museum consists of the collected papers, correspondence, and photographs of Joe De Yong. As Charles Russell’s only protége, De Yong spent a significant portion of his time living with the Russell family and working with Russell in his studio, particularly during the last decade of Russell’s life.
The digitized portion of the Flood Collection available online consists of approximately 350 loose, double-sided pages of handwritten notes and pencil sketches produced by Charles Russell and Joe De Yong during their time together in Russell’s studio. As De Yong was deaf, he and Russell often relied on handwritten notes and sketches to discuss the subject matter and methodology of Russell’s art, as well as various other topics of the day. These informal papers therefor offer a window into the artist’s methods and thought processes, preserving conversations that would otherwise have been lost to history. Furthermore, a number of the pencil drawings found in the Flood Collection have been identified as preliminary sketches for major Russell paintings, providing further insight into Russell’s artistic processes.
Through a partnership with the Montana Memory Project (MMP), a collective digital platform under the purview of the Montana State Library, the Museum is pleased to publish these digitized materials, making them available to the public and discoverable through the MMP’s connections to WorldCat and the Digital Public Library of America.
About the Montana Memory Project
The Montana Memory Project (MMP) is an online source for digital collections relating to Montana’s cultural heritage. In part, these collections document the Montana experience. Access is free and open through the Internet. Many of these items are digitized copies of historic material, some items are contemporary. All serve as a resource for education, business, pleasure, and lifelong learning.
Many Montana libraries, museums, archives, and cultural institutions add materials to this collection. Contents may include maps, copies of photographs, rare books, historic documents, diaries, oral histories, audio and video clips, paintings, illustrations and art.