New seating is planned around Bronco Buster statue in Barney Allis Plaza - Kansas City, Mo. - News Article Locations on Waymarking.com

This replica of Remington's "Bronco Buster" is located in Barney Allis Plaza. The statue is 8 foot tall and rests on red granite plinth. The plinth has a plaque and a picture of Barney Allis. The sculpture itself is bronze.

Thirty years after the Bronco Buster statue dug its hooves into the north end of downtown’s Barney Allis Plaza, the 16-foot-tall cowboy atop a bucking horse may soon become more of a destination point.

New seating is planned for the site across from the downtown Marriott hotel under a proposal that the City Council is expected to approve Thursday.

Some $250,000 will be spent on benches, tables and other improvements, where now there are only scattered picnic tables. The money is coming from a trust fund administered by the city. Friends of the late Dutton Brookfield, a two-time mayoral candidate, established the trust for the upkeep of the statue, which was erected in 1985.

Even after the upgrades are paid for, there will be more than enough money left in the trust to maintain the statue, Councilman Scott Taylor said.

The sculpture has a controversial history. At the time it was installed, art critics denounced it as unimaginative. They said it was not so much a representation of Western artist Frederic Remington’s original, as supporters claimed, but an outright reproduction of the 2-foot-tall first casting that sits in the Oval Office at the White House.

Supporters claimed that the opponents were merely being snobs.

That argument isn’t heard much now. But those who would reignite the fight, or simply want a place to rest while taking in the view, are likely to find a more comfortable place to do so later this year, Taylor told the city finance committee Wednesday.

- Kansas City Star Website

Bronco Buster

SCULPTOR: Unknown
Remington, Frederic 1861-1909 (copy after)

MEDIUM: Sculpture: bronze; Base: polished granite

TYPE: Sculptures-Copy
Sculptures-Outdoor Sculpture
Sculptures
OWNER/LOCATION: Administered by City of Kansas City, Missouri Planning Services Division 4600 East 63rd Street Kansas City Missouri 64130
Located Barney Allis Plaza 12th & Wyandotte Kansas City Missouri

DATE: 1985. Dedicated Nov. 25, 1985

NOTES: Save Outdoor Sculpture, Missouri, Kansas City survey, 1994.

SUMMARY: Enlarged replica of Frederic Remington's "Bronco Buster." The horse is rearing up on his hind legs, while the driver leans forward with his proper right arm extended to the side, flashing a whip.

TOPIC: Western
Figure male
Equestrian
Homage--Brookfield, Dutton

CONTROL NUMBER: IAS MO000137

- Smithsonian Outdoor Sculptures Website

The Bronco Buster (also spelled "Broncho Buster" as per convention at the time of sculpting) is a sculpture made of bronze copyrighted in 1895 by American artist Frederic Remington. It portrays a rugged Western frontier cowboy character fighting to stay aboard a rearing, plunging bronco, with a stirrup swinging free, a quirt in one hand and a fistful of mane and reins in the other. It was the first and remains the most popular of all of Remington's sculptures.

The sculpture was executed in the summer of 1895, and later that fall it was copyrighted with the United States Copyright Office. He took his subject from "A Pitching Bronco", an illustration of his that had been published in the April 30, 1892, issue of Harper's Weekly. Sculpting was a new medium for Remington at this time, and this new method of portrayal was a total success in the eyes of his collectors and art historians.[citation needed] Breaking away from the restricted limits of flat paper, pen and ink and watercolor; Remington moved to the next level of his artistic potential, through the more effective medium of three-dimensional expressions. Remington, who always strove to capture the essence of the moment in his work, now found he was more able to effectively express that which he had observed first hand.

- Wikipedia

This heroic size interpretation of
Frederic Remington's
"BRONCO BUSTER"
is presented by friends of
DUTTON BROOKFIELD, 1917 - 1979,
to memorialize his promotion
of the Kansas City Spirit
through outstanding business, civic,
and philanthropic leadership.

- Marker Text

Type of publication: Newspaper When was the article reported?: 05/06/2015 Publication: Kansas City Star Article Url: [Web Link] Is Registration Required?: no How widespread was the article reported?: regional News Category: Arts/Culture

Visit Instructions:
Give the date of your visit at the news location along with a description of what you learned or experienced.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.