Russell Black was born in Northridge, CA, in 1959, and grew up in the San Fernando Valley just north of Los Angeles, CA. After attending UCLA and a brief tour of duty in the USAF, Russell was employed by General Telephone of Southern California in the Design Drafting Department where, in 1984, he was selected to be the drafting project leader for GTE's involvement in the summer Olympic games being held in Los Angeles.

After leaving the phone company in 1990, Russell opened up his own creative design firm specializing in product design and his clients included Nike, Reebok, McDonalds, and many individual entrepreneurs. At this time he also taught college accredited courses in art and design at the Learning Tree University in both Thousand Oaks and Reseda, CA.

Russell and his family moved north to the East Bay area of San Francisco in 1996, and he taught art for the city of Pleasanton for six years.

Now residing in Southern Utah, Russell continues to travel and paint the local scenery of the Southwest.

Artist Statement:
"I feel that art should be the individual statement of the artist about their world and how they feel and experience this magnificent place around us. My art strives to be both personal and original. I look at the surrounding scene and ask, "What is happening here that isn't happening anywhere else?" I then endeavor to design what I see into a meaningful statement of how I feel about it, what moves me, or inspires me about the scene. If I can find a way to communicate my emotions to you the viewer, then I have done my job not only as a visual communicator, but as a true artist."