Upcoming Exhibition
Coming Soon! Advertising the Frontier Myth: Poster Art of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West
Opening May 18 in the Anne & Charles Duncan Special Exhibition Gallery
Explore the captivating world of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West through an immersive special exhibition opening May 18. Advertising the Frontier Myth: Poster Art of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West features posters from the Jack Rennert Collection, acquired through the generosity of the Hal R. and Naoma J. Tate Foundation, as well as works from the Center of the West’s own unrivalled holdings. With thirty large-scale vintage posters alongside original photos and exciting digital interactives, the exhibition offers a unique perspective on the promotional efforts of William F. Cody and his Wild West Company.
The exhibition offers fascinating insights into the cultural legacy, mythmaking, and international impact of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West through posters that feature everyone from Buffalo Bill Cody and renowned sharpshooters Annie Oakley and Johnny Baker to Native Americans, American Cowboys, South American Vaqueros, and the Congress of Rough Riders of the World.
The exhibition is based on the award-winning book, Art and Advertising in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West, by guest curator Michelle Delaney of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian and funded through The Papers of William F. Cody.
This exhibition is supported with partial funding by Wyoming Humanities.
Advertising the Frontier Myth will be on view through October 24, 2024.