Oviloo and her adopted granddaughter Tye by photographer Jerry Riley.
Meet Oviloo Tunnillie one of the few female Inuit carvers to achieve international success. Her work will touch your heart and leave you wanting to know even more about the talented woman who created such exquisite art.
Not only is Oviloo a unique carver because of her gender, but also because she was so prolific and her pieces give the viewer such a remarkable window into her own personal life. Sadly Oviloo died in 2014 of cancer when she was only 65.
I a, particularly drawn to the pieces that tell of Oviloo’s childhood illness.
Oviloo in the Hospital
At the age of five, she was diagnosed with tuberculosis
This Has Touched My Life by Oviloo Tunnillie
and was taken away from her family and sent to a Manitoba hospital to recover. 
She was separated from her parents and siblings for nearly three years.
Nurse with Oviloo
Frightened and unable to speak English the little girl felt sad and lost.
Oviloo was a carver,
Oviloo the sculptor carrying a piece of stone
a daughter,
One of Oviloo’s carvings of her father
an armchair sports enthusiast,
Oviloo’s carving of an Olympic figure skater
a mother and grandmother,
Oviloo and her granddaughter holding a photo of themselves
a woman,
Woman with long hair by Oviloo
and a citizen who witnessed first hand some of the pressing social problems in her home community.
Woman Passed Out by Oviloo
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