Humor, Musings & Art

Below is a small collection of mixed Native American Humor, Art, musings, quotes and comments.  have one you would like to share? it’s as adding a comment below, : )  we would love to hear your opinion before you leave.

Jack Malotte -Western Shoshone

“Things That Make Me Laugh

Prize-winning traditional dancers make me laugh.
White Indian experts make me laugh.
Christian Indians make me laugh.
White artists who paint Indian things better than Indians make me laugh.
Indian tacos being called a traditional food makes me laugh.
Indians who call themselves cowboys make me laugh.
Mixing Indian culture with the dominant society makes me laugh.”

George Longfish -Seneca-Tuscarora

“This artwork is a political statement of a people who have endured and survived. The People (tribal Native Americans) have become the symbols of America’s conquest with very little or no regard for Indians as people or humans. The unique quality that makes Native Americans different from other ethnic groups in America is and will always be the land. For all who have been at war with America, they have always been given the chance to retain their land and their self-respect, not so with the ‘Indian.'”

Black Elk -Oglala

“You have noticed that everything that an Indian does is in a circle, and that is because the Power of the World always works in circles, and everything tries to be round….The Sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nest in circles, for theirs is the same religion as ours….Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. “

Sharol Graves -Shawnee

“-INDIAN CIRCUIT–  I really thought that the ability of Computer Aided Design software was ideal in drawing geometric designs often found in Native American textile, pottery, and beadwork designs. I enjoyed looking at the complex geometric patterns of the circuit boards that I helped design and produce. Somehow, I wanted the public to know that a Native America was working in the research and development of high technology, just to blow a few stereotypes about the ‘Indian mind.'”

Harry Fonseca -Maidu

“At times, Coyote is very playful and foolish-in that, there is a great freedom. However, I never forget he is wild, he is a dog, that he can bite very, very hard; he is a survivor. For a time Coyote took a little vacation. The rest did him good because he is back, wide-eyed and bushy-tailed. Now, I am the one who needs a vacation.”

George Blake -Hupa-Yurok, b. 1944)

“I watched a Raider/Redskin football game, and saw a black man jumping around with a double-trail warbonnet. I thought [of] the creation of a new mascot. They needed something that their greater Moral Majority could identify with, and that would be D.C. Rednecks.”

David Bradley -Ojibwa, b. 1954)

“Indians are, by definition, political beings. To be an artist is to seek the truth. I am an Indian who is an artist.”

Joe Cantrell -Cherokee

“Newcomers to ‘pows’ are often confused by the sideshow atmosphere outside the arena-it can get a little out of hand at times-but I suppose many expect only solemn ceremonies around a fire or something. This is an expression of our religion and I’m happy it includes humor.”

Steven Deo -Creek-Yuchi

“Being a Native American indigenous to the southeastern United States and raised in that Native cultural tradition I’ve always had to rationalize my tradition with the indoctrinated identity I received in the public education process. As Native Americans we are continually traversing the boundaries of cultural tradition and the contemporary society.”

Sharon Dryflower Reyna -Taos Pueblo

“The Koshari’s job is . . . to bring humor, to teach and bless us with seasons. I am respectful of our sacred ways and things, but I can’t help myself but to view Indian life in an off-the-wall kind of humor. “