Cody Show To Debut One-Of-A-Kind Chris Navarro Bronze That Survived Foundry Fire

CODY — The Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale is about to demonstrate for the 43rd time why it’s one of the most unique and esteemed Western art auctions in the United States. The gallery at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, featuring work from 104 artists, open the weekend with a Friday reception.

Western artists covet a spot in the prestigious show, and many cite it as one of the favorite events of their careers. This will be a bittersweet show for some Wyoming artists who lost an important partner with the burning of Cody's Caleco Foundry in May.

Chris Navarro is one of the artists who lost a lifetime of work in the fire that destroyed one of Wyoming's last remaining bronze foundries. His piece for this year's Buffalo Bill show and live auction, titled “Range War,” should arrive just in time for the gallery opening.

"I'm just doing the best I can, like a lot of other artists, since Caleco burned down," he told Cowboy State Daily. "But there's still the Buffalo Bill Art Show. I've been doing this show since 1988, and I'll keep doing it for as long as they invite me back."

An Artistic Community

The Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale is a joint fundraiser for the Buffalo Bill Center of the West (BBCOW) and the Cody Country Chamber of Commerce. The monthlong gallery exhibit of paintings and sculptures culminates in a live auction held under an enormous tent in the museum's parking lot in September.

"We're a gallery only once a year," said Kathy Thompson, director of the show for 16 years. "We only have one opportunity to showcase these artists and raise this money. But the city of Cody supports us so much, and everyone benefits from it."

The artists selected to participate come from every corner of the United States and as far as Belgium. Unlike other Western art auctions, which deal in the art of long-dead masters, the Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale is made up exclusively of living contemporary Western artists who are still active.

Cody has embraced its status as a haven for contemporary Western art, with a number of art galleries and the Whitney Museum of Western Art at the BBCOW. National publications like USA Today and Newsweek consistently recognize Cody as having one of the best small-town art scenes.

Navarro lives in Casper, but Cody was essential to his career. In 1980, his first bronze sculpture was poured and assembled there.

That was at the now-destroyed Caleco Foundry, which tarnishes the return to Cody for this year's show and sale. Like many other Wyoming bronze artists, the foundry has been close to Navarro and essential to his sculpting career.

"I'd been working there for 44 years, nearly my entire career," he said. "And that's all gone."

Losing One Of The Last

The May 29 fire at the Caleco Foundry gutted the entire facility. The expensive equipment used to melt bronze to 2,200 degrees and pour it to create bronze sculptures was completely destroyed.

For the artists, the loss of the foundry was eclipsed by the loss of their molds. Bronze artists use molds repeatedly to make multiple sculptures of a single figure, making them the most valuable assets of their careers.

The mold for Navarro's submission to the 43rd Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale, “Range War,” was lost in the foundry fire, along with dozens of other molds from more than four decades of work.

"I lost around 60 molds," he said. "I had probably a dozen bronzes that burned up in the fire that I was able to salvage and repair, but I lost another dozen sculptures that were in the process but weren't cast."

Navarro said he knows of at least seven other local artists whose lives and livelihoods were irreparably damaged by the fire. Caleco was one of only two bronze foundries in Wyoming specializing in the arcane art of lost-wax casting.

Navarro took his surviving molds to Eagle Bronze in Lander, Wyoming's last bronze foundry. But he had already been working with Eagle Bronze before the Caleco fire, and he knows other artists are still trying to find new foundries to continue their work.

"Lander is the only lost-wax casting foundry in Wyoming, so it's the only option in-state," he said. "But it's sad that I'm not going to be going to Caleco anymore."

Thompson lamented the loss of Caleco, knowing its impact on Navarro and other Wyoming bronze artists who have been participating in the Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale for decades.

"Sculptors make their money with multiples," she said. "The Caleco fire was a huge blow to our local artists, including some artists that have been in the show and got their work done there. Bronze sculpture is quite a process and quite expensive, and I'm not sure where they'll go. But they'll keep going."

Art And Artists Appreciated

While Navarro lost the mold of “Range War,” he got one bronze from the mold before it was lost. That sculpture, now one-of-a-kind, had to be shipped from a gallery in Cheyenne to reach Cody in time for the gallery opening.

"It should be there by Friday," he said.

It has a pedestal waiting for it in the John Bunker Sands Gallery at the BBCOW, where it will be on display with the other 103 pieces in this year's Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale. Nobody feels better about that than Navarro, who's looking forward to a happier time during his next trip to Cody.

"It's my favorite art show, hands down," he said. "I've done a lot of art shows, and this is the best. I get to see a lot of artists only once a year, and most of the time, it's at the Buffalo Bill Art Show because so many good artists come there. They treat you about as good as you can get treated by anybody, that's for sure."

Thompson is revered by all the artists in the show, including Navarro. Her 16-year tenure as director saw the show's prestige and profitability increase significantly, and she has a potential connection with every artist featured in the show.

"I have 104 favorite pieces because we have 104 amazing artists,” she said. “We think it's important that we value all their art, and we want them to be sure they also value their art."

Artistic Ambitions

After 16 years at the helm, Thompson handed the reins of the Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale to her protege, Katelyn Parker. Still, Thompson eagerly provides her experience and enthusiasm for the endeavor while Parker builds the show's prestige.

The success of the show is paralleled by the success of the Cody community. The Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale, the flagship event of the week-long Rendezvous Royale, has become a significant shoulder-season event for northwest Wyoming, bringing in hundreds of people for the live auction in September.

"One of the most important things about this whole week is the fact that we use every single vendor we can that's in this town," Thompson said. "Everything from the flowers to the design of the catalog, the marketing, and the porta-potties. The galleries downtown carry many of our artists, so it's business for them. Everything's local except for the tent. We don't have a tent that big."

The Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale will be open from Saturday through Sept.19, with the live auction under the big tent Sept. 21. For Thompson, Parker and the hundreds of staff and volunteers who make it possible, it's time to enjoy the artistic fruits of their labor.

"Just this morning," Thompson said, "someone said to me, 'You must be tired of all this.' I said, 'No, this is when you better start having fun.' No more spreadsheets this week. That's a blessing, isn't it?"

While Navarro and many other Wyoming bronze artists will be feeling the loss of the Caleco Foundry for many years to come, they can alleviate their loss by visiting the gallery in anticipation of the September auction.

"I enjoy being there, and I think they enjoy me being there too," Navarro said. "I'll be going to Lander for my work now, but Cody will always be my home away from home.”

Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.