Originally featured in Points West magazine in Spring 2017
“Buffalo Bill” by James Bama
James Bama’s portrait of William F. “Buffalo Bill” Cody is a gift to the Center of the West by Trustee Emeritus Donald W. Griffin. The painting is an exciting addition to the Center’s collection which includes Bama’s archives, photographs, and many important drawings and paintings by the renowned artist. The Center also holds the most important collection of art depicting Buffalo Bill, its namesake. Bama’s sensitive rendition complements the wide variety of depictions of the celebrated frontier hero by artists ranging from Frederic Remington and Rosa Bonheur to Thom Ross and Michael Scott.
This iconic portrait was reproduced as a commemorative poster in 2003 to celebrate Bama’s designation as Honored Artist of that year’s Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale in Cody. The subject of the painting is a Colorado rancher (and Cody look-alike) who toured with reenactments of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West in the 1990s. Bama photographed the actor as he paraded through downtown Cody, and one of his photographs inspired this painting—a frame which captured the actor stopped along the parade route to speak with a group of children. With a warm downward glance and patient smile, Bama’s subject invokes the legendary showman who is said to have offered needy children free admission to performances of his Wild West show.
James Bama (1926 – 2022). Buffalo Bill, 1996. Oil on panel, 18 x 18 inches. Gift of Donald W. Griffin in memory of his wife, Kriss Griffin. 4.16.1. Image courtesy the Greenwich Workshop, Inc. 4.16.1
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