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Museum Minute: ‘All our dreams star Buffalo Bill’: a poet reflects on the showman’s presence in Cody

Poet Evan Wambeke gives a poetry reading next to Buffalo Bill paintings in the Whitney Western Art Museum.
Olivia Weitz
Poet and actor Evan Wambeke gave a poetry reading and workshop in the summer of 2024 at the Whitney Western Art Museum as part of an artist in residency program.

Artist Evan Wambeke penned 10 poems inspired by artworks in the Whitney Western Art Museum that are now part of a community-focused digital exhibition.

His poem, “Buffalo ‘Ballad’ Bill,” explores how much of the showman’s presence is still felt in the town of Cody today.

“When you stroll the streets of his town

He’s there in every grill.

On the mugs! The shirts! City Hall!

Mustachioed ol’ Bill

He’s at the bar, as drunk as you are

Swaying of all the swill.”

A pen and ink portrait of Buffalo Bill by John Thomson Willing made in 1898 inspired the poem. Pairing the artwork with Wambeke's poem offers space to think about the man versus his larger than life persona.

“Buffalo Bill is much more than just the man that he was. He's largely the story of who his life was. And even during his life, he might've been more story than man between the dime novels and the showmanship,” he said.

Wambeke said the line, “All clouds here are shaped like goatees / All our dreams star Buffalo Bill,” is meant to be tongue in cheek. He said it’s hard to go anywhere on Cody’s Main Street without seeing images of Buffalo Bill.

Wambeke’s poems are part of a digital exhibition curated by community members. “The West in Form: Imagining a Cowboy’s World Through Formal Poetry and Western Art” exhibition is featured on the Whitney Western Art Museum’s digital guide on the Bloomberg Connects app.

The Whitney Western Art Museum is accepting proposals from those who are interested in creating digital exhibitions inspired by their collections.

Olivia Weitz is based at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody. She covers Yellowstone National Park, wildlife, and arts and culture throughout the region. Olivia’s work has aired on NPR and member stations across the Mountain West. She is a graduate of the University of Puget Sound and the Transom story workshop. In her spare time, she enjoys skiing, cooking, and going to festivals that celebrate folk art and music.

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