Wandering about the American West and working for a time as a cowboy, Frederic Remington throughout his career looked to the Old West as a favorite subject. After formal study at the Art Student's League in New York City, he returned to visit the West, where he followed the campaigns of the U.S. Cavalry.

His first commission for Harper's Weekly illustrated a situation occurring in the last great Indian war led by Geronimo. He settled in New Rochelle, NY, in 1891, but surrounded himself with western memorabilia that provided specifics upon which he based his paintings. Primarily a painter, his bronze sculpture Bronco Buster contains details characteristic of his paintings. Remington worked as a correspondent and artist during the Spanish-American War, supplying illustrations for periodicals, but continued to produce works showing the Old West.