A Life Made with Artists: Doris Littrell and the Oklahoma Indian Art Scene

Some are born to paint. Others, to admire. And a few are born with the eye to spot great artistic talent and the passion to bring it to the world. Doris Littrell was always one of the latter. Whether tromping through mud to track down a promising canvas or whispering the needed word of encouragement in a struggling painter’s ear, she made her life with Native American artists. And in doing so, this longtime Oklahoma gallery owner helped make possible the contemporary Oklahoma Indian Art Movement. This is her true story–told in her own words, in the words of the artists she championed, and those of the collectors who admired them both–graced by 32 pages of the art that Littrell loved so much.