Indian Humor, an exhibition of contemporary American Indian arts at the Weisman Art Museum September 27, 1997 through January 4, 1998. Indian Humor has been organized in an attempt to show both a small piece of the diversity which exists among living Native American artists and communities, as well as to counter the popular notion that Indians are stoic and serious. Historically, Native Americans have been represented in simplistic depictions-noble, mystical, bloodthirsty-single- faceted and often inaccurate portrayals which convey no depth or complexity.
Indian Humor documents through visual expression the contexts of humor among Native Americans of different tribes. The images represented in this exhibition will help both Indians and non-Indians to redifine the negative ideas and humorless approaches to viewing Native America. The artists utilize many approaches. Some images are reflections of historical events, activities of the trickster, people playing Indian, houmor found in domestic situations, "insider" private jokes and comical views of contemporary life in general.
This exhibition was curated by Sara Bates of the American Indian Contemporary Arts in San Francisco. The exhibition contains 87 objects by 38 artists and includes paintings, photography, sculpture, textiles, and mixed media work. Indian Humor began a three-year national tour in 1995.