BY Josh Samuelson
Miles City Star Staff Writer

Fans of the World Famous Bucking Horse Sale who are looking for a souvenir other than memmories, cell phone photos – or , if you’re a contestant, a few bumps and bruises – will be able to take home a beautifully crafted poster by renowned western artist Bob Coronato. The rodeo poster , which measures 18″ wide by 38 ” tall, is on sale for $20. and is available at the Miles City Area Chamber of Commerce or online at www.buckinghorsesale.com or www.milescitychamber.com.
Coronato, from Hulett Wyo., was at the Bucking Horse Sale last year, taking in the festivities, when he ran into Chamber Executive Director and BHS Board of Governors member John Laney. Coronato mentioned that he would like to do a commemorative rodeo poster for the Bucking Horse Sale, and after a quick Internet search, Laney and the chamber quickly agreed.

“It was probably the easiest committee i’ve ever worked with” Coronato said. “Usually they’re hesitant and shy about what your going to do. but they were great.” Coronato has done numerous posters for rodeos around the region, including Belle Fourche, S.D., Deadwood, S.D., and Sheridan, Wyo., among others. Due to the time that goes into each poster, he does just one a year.
“I want to get to all the major rodeos in the region,” Coronato said. “Ive been asked to do ones around the country, but I turned them down because I want to stay in this area.”

The process of putting togeather the impressive work of art starts with some studying.
“I came to the Bucking Horse last year and hung out for a few days and got the flavor of it all,” Coronato said. After getting the go-ahead from Miles City, Coronato went to work on the itricate painting. The painting took nearly four months, working seven days a week from 10 in the morning until as late as five the next morning. ” I’m not real fast,” Coronato said. “It’s a painting, and a painting in layers. It starts with a flat board, and then texture it down with modeling paste. I paint an acrylic on that and then go over it with a silk screen to get the lettering just right, and then over that with oil paint. And all of those steps take drying times and some manipulations.”

The original painting that was used to create the poster stands at 59 inches tall. “This is one of my favorites,” Coronato said. ” The whole event is one of my favorites. It’s a lifestyle, it’s iconic in a way. You’re not a real bronc rider until you’ve done Miles City.”

Laney and the chamber have been thrilled with the results of Coronato’s labor. “It’s a beautiful piece of art,” Laney said. “It’s nice to be in the mix with the rodeos that he’s doing. He wants to do the big rodeos in the region, and it’s cool that we got ours before Cheyenne Frontier Days got theirs.”

BOB CORONATO immersed himself in the Bucking Horse Sale, then spent hours capturing its spirit in this poster

Coronato grew up in New Jersey, but his heart was in the Old West. And after graduating from art school in Los Angeles, he moved to Hulett, Wyo., (pop. 383)
Coronat has lived in Hulett about 20 years now, but when he first moved their he quickly joined in the ranch lifestyle that would be the focus of his art. “Once I went to Hulett, I wanted to get fully embeded,” Coronato said. ” So i went to work on ranches, branding and trailing. I was free labor for everyone in southeastern Montana, Wyoming and South Dakota. I started out painting traditional ranching scenes, but i always wanted to do rodeo posters. I waited until it was just right. I waited to get into posters until i had enough expirience, lived long enough in the area to have it just right”

That dedication is evident in his poster for the Bucking Horse Sale. The work features scenes from throught the weekend, highlighted by a rider hanging on to a bucking horse. Ther’s also a scene from the street dance, and the wild horse racer being dragged through the dirt.

The BHS Board of Governors released a photo of the poster on facebook a few months ago, and there was immediate and overwhelming demand for the art. “it went wild,” Coronato said. ” People were calling constantly, and it wasn’t even done yet. We saw it was on pinterest: it was everywhere.”

The most interesting scene on the poster is at the bottom, featuring an old cowboy riding a young girl’s bike, a true story from Hulett. ” There was a guy in Hulett who hadn’t missed a Bucking Horse Sale in something like 30 years” Coronato said. ” And for whatever reasons, he didn’t have a drivers license. But he was going to get to the Bucking horse Sale, so he got on a bike and started pedaling to Miles City. He got about halfway to Alzada Mt. (30 miles from Hulett) and got picked up. he never missed a Bucking Horse Sale, and its kind of a legend in Hulett, so i had to get it on there.”

Coronato will not be signing posters at the sale, choosing to enjoy the weekend in realative anonymity. But he did sign the posters that are at the chamber.