Oreland C. Joe (Southern Ute/Diné) is regarded as one of the finest sculptural artists in the world. He wanted to be an artist from his early childhood on and never let go of the dream. He traveled to Europe to study the Masters and dedicated himself to refining his work and expanding his horizons. He is a man who has always been humble and appreciative of his family and mentors, and has always been willing to lend a hand to help others. He doesn’t regard himself as a Native American artist; instead, he thinks of himself as an artist who is a Native American.
How we met is an interesting story.
In 1981, we opened our first gallery in the historic Old First National Bank Building in Durango. We were still selling Navajo rugs, Indian Jewelry, and other Native American art forms out of a showroom our father had created in the front of the Pepsi-Cola Building years before. The idea for the gallery had come about a few years before when my sister and I had been traveling through places like Jackson, Wyoming, and other art centers in the West, selling our wares.
When the First National Bank moved to a new building, it just seemed like the perfect location, with big windows and a location on Main Avenue that you couldn’t miss. We remodeled the space and were planning our grand opening. The week before the opening day, a 23-year-old named Oreland Joe walked into the Pepsi plant trying to sell his sand paintings. They were incredible and a massive step above most of the sand painters working at the time.
We asked him if he’d like to show his work at the opening a few days later, and he agreed. When the day arrived, he showed up with his sand paintings and a single alabaster sculpture. He told us it was his first, and he wondered if he could show it as well.
My sister remembers that Bill Fitzgerald, a good friend and veterinarian in Durango, bought the sculpture that night. Imagine that! Owning Oreland Joe’s first sculpture!
Oreland left his sand paintings behind and went on to become one of the best-known Native artists in the country. He worked with marble, limestone, and alabaster, and also began casting work in bronze. He returned to Europe with his friend Alvin Marshall to continue to study the work of the Master artists.
He won many awards and was featured in top galleries in the country (he outgrew us pretty quickly!). In 1993, he was honored by the Cowboy Artists of America as their first Native American member. It was an incredible honor.
In recent years, he turned his skill to another medium and began to paint. As a stone sculptor, pounding the rocks with a hammer and chisel is hard on your joints. By spending more time painting, he is extending his career as an artist. And what a painter he is.
He has also formed The Sacred Youth Foundation with his son, Bo Joe, to support youth, introducing the traditional art of Native American culture to 126 Navajo youth in grades 4th-12th in a summer camp setting. The camp culminates in a cultural fair where the youth can display or perform what they have created during the three-day event.
