Russell Yuristy was born into a farming family in 1936 in Goodeve, Saskatchewan. He graduated with a degree in English and creative writing from the University of Saskatchewan (1959) before studying art at the University of Wisconsin (1967). After teaching art in Regina and coordinating workshops at Emma Lake, Yuristy moved to Stilton, Saskatchewan and began constructing the large playground structures for which is he well known. First inspired by his own drawings of hollow animals, these sculptures are currently installed at children's playgrounds throughout Canada and the United States.
Yuristy has received many significant commissions, including two large playground structures for the 1974 World's Fair in Spokane, Washington, three sculptures for Expo '86 in Vancouver, and a large aluminum sculpture for the Triple A Stadium in Ottawa in 1994. His structures can also be found in several Saskatchewan cities including Regina, Saskatoon, and Swift Current.
Yuristy's artwork is represented in the collections of the National Gallery of Canada, the Mendel Art Gallery, the MacKenzie Art Gallery, and the Canada Council Art Bank, among many others.
Russell Yuristy moved to Ottawa in 1986 to teach at the University of Ottawa and the Ottawa School of Art.
