This work references early art movements such as Surrealism, Finish Fetish from the 1960’s, process experimentation from the 1970’s, Modernism and retro Sci-Fi. These are works on paper, drawn with sticks dipped in ink, then overlaid with 3-dimensional plastic, fiberglass and tinted bioresin (a special non-toxic formula made from pine sap). Smaller drawings are embedded in these materials, forming distorted views of both terrestrial and alien formations. The structures of habitats, outposts, landers and piers float in the seductive bioresin color fields, suggesting strange other-worldly atmospheres and landscapes.

Around 2017, the "Skirting the Habitable Zone" series moved the work from recognizable structures to a more retro futuristic take on planetary landers. These spiny, angular and awkward structures envision satellite solar panel arrays, Mars Landers and other scientific probes. The work examines some pressing social issues such as critical environmental conditions and exponential growth on Earth and the expanding human desire to inhabit other worlds – as in the series "Martian Paradox" and "Extra Solar Condoblivian." The embedding of small detailed drawings of astronomical objects, factories, server complexes and cities examine these ideas, all the while creating a strangely lyrical and whimsical presence despite the heaviness of the subject matter.

The "Coronagraph Series” was inspired by witnessing the total solar eclipse August 2017 during a residency and exhibition at Aurobora in Ketchum, Idaho. Working in a radial grid, the explosion emanating from the blackened sun suggests a frantic semaphore sent out through our solar system and beyond. These spokes invoke a visual language – through images depicting such things as forms in nature, cosmic phenomenon, and man-made industry and technology – that simutaneously communicate our earthly plight and our visceral human desire to expand ourselves into the greater universe.

Early bioresin work : Beginning around 2012, after struggling with shoulder pain from excessive inking on large works, Russell shifted to broader, rougher marks made with found sticks dipped in permanent ink. This process led to loose renditions of large architectural structures, oil platforms and odd imaginary planetary landers. Ballpoint pen is still used to make a myriad of small drawings, and these found their way into the larger structural drawings as collaged components – along with recycled plastic containers and packaging to add distortion and three dimensionality. Layered fiberglass and tinted bioresin introduced atmospheric textures and chance elements. The result is a hybridization of many of Russell's past themes and methodologies.