Special Exhibition opens to the public

Public opening for a new special exhibition

Advertising the Frontier Myth: Poster Art of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West

May 18, 2024

We excited to open our newest special exhibition, “Advertising the Frontier Myth: Poster Art of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West,” to the public on Saturday, May 18, at 8 a.m. Viewing the exhibition is included in the price of admission to the Buffalo Bill Center of the West (which is free for Center members).

The posters that advertised the thrilling performances of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West used compelling images to attract spectators. From small to very large-scale, the posters often papered the walls of buildings, making it impossible to miss that the Wild West was coming to town.

This exhibition shares from our large Wild West poster collection. See the exciting imagery of skilled riders on horseback, sharpshooters performing impressive tricks, dramatic reenactments of both the real and mythic moments in western American history. These posters, in fact, influenced the first—and lasting—impressions of the fascinating spectacle.

The exhibition is based on the award-winning book, Art and Advertising in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West (2019), by guest curator Dr. Michelle Anne Delaney of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian.

Advertising the Frontier Myth will be on view in our Anne & Charles Duncan Special Exhibition Gallery. The exhibition is supported with partial funding by Wyoming Humanities.