Drawing on Native American Heritage and A Sense of Humor (John Feodorov) | Art21

John Feodorov: I'm real interested 
in using, like, kitsch objects

and trying to create spiritual-like altars.

This sort of weird disneyfication of 
nature that happens in western society,

you know, whereas in native mythologies, 
animals are extremely powerful totem symbols,

demanding, you know, fear and respect.

So those contradictions are 
real important in my work.

You know, in kind of trying to blend 
them into sort of a hybrid mythology.

"Forest at night" is made up of 12 trees. 
Each tree has 12 arms on each side.

And 12 is something that's important 
in both Christian and Navajo mythology.

And then, in a little plate in front 
of each tree stump is some sawdust,

sort of like ashes of someone who's been cremated.

I'm more interested in the ambiguity. 
I think the ambiguity is where,

you know, the spiritual lies.

That's how Navajos sing "Old Macdonald."

Woman: yes, I'm riding my donkey up the hill.

[ singing in Navajo ]

That's how he bumps up and down.

Woman: Sing with grandma.
[ singing in Navajo ]

Feodorov: I have this background 
of a traditional Navajo

and this sort of outsider Christian 
background of Jehovah's Witnesses,

which are completely opposed to each other.

And I'm, like, in the middle, trying to 
kind of, you know, make sense out of it.

Grandma: This is grandpa again with his horses.

And grandma with her horse and hillary 
ready to go somewhere, to a powwow.

Feodorov: my grandmother was a hand trembler.

And people would go to her, and her hand 
would begin to tremble and she would,

like, answer questions for them.

And hand tremblers sort of, are oracles.

Grandma: here's grandma and grandpa again.

And then -- oh, here you are. 
You're walking with Grandpa.

Feodorov: I spent just about every summer 
with my grandparents on the reservation

until probably, like, 15.

Grandmother: Grandpa always looks 
so serious, but he's very comical.

Feodorov: well, my grandfather 
used to be a yei be chei dancer,

which is one of the ritualistic 
dances, where they put on the mask,

and they become the gods.

You know, when they start dancing, 
the spirit enters into them.

The bear is a very, very powerful totem 
symbol for Native American cultures.

Behind these masks are cuddly, cute little faces.

It's turning these teddy bears 
into powerful totem symbols,

sort of giving them back their power.

But also they would be products 
that consumers could buy.

So at the same time, we'd be 
stripping them of their power.

They're just sort of examples of the 
issue of commodifying spirituality.

People think that, you know, 
many times when they buy –

or at least the advertising 
wants people to believe that

buying something will change their 
lives or have an effect on their lives.

Well, this is something that is 
just outright telling you that.

I made a little handbook that 
would accompany your purchase.

"Congratulations, you have just purchased 
the most important product of your life.

If your life is not going 
the way you wish it would,

chances are you have somehow 
offended your totem teddy.

If this is the case, use the 
handy spinning oracle to determine

what you must do to appease 
your offended totem teddy."

And it always goes to "Try again."

"Warning -- the consumer must use extreme caution

when performing any of the 
following dances and chants."

You know, like Christians, you know, 
"Please, God, forgive me for this,"

or, you know, "Please, God, let me have..."

You know, there's none of 
that in Navajo mythology.

You basically do the ritual 
and it has to go right.

If, you know, your situation has to be corrected.

If it's not, well, it's because 
you did the ritual wrong.

I'm not debunking spirituality, 
I'm not making fun of it, I am…

well, yeah, I am.

But the thing is is that it's only 
because I think it's necessary.

Years of spoon-bending research has shown

that employees who frequently 
journey to the world of the dead

come back as highly motivated employees,

exactly what you need to 
be on top and stay on top.

That's why we developed the Office Shaman.

But, you're probably asking 
yourself, where's the shaman?

That's the beauty part.

We have highly trained licensed shamans 
available to guide your employees

through their spirit quests.

Here's a potential motivated employee right now.

What's your name, sir?

It's Paul.

Paul, now, don't be afraid, but I kill you 
from the south, I kill you from the east.

Feodorov: Paul Stewart and I have 
been collaborating on music and,

sort of, performance art 
pieces for almost 20 years.

–You're passing through the 
world of fire, of water.

I am now going to sprinkle you with 
the grave dirt of your ancestors.

The animal spirits have now been 
pacified. And here are their messages.

Paul, stand up. Welcome back. How do you feel?

I feel fine.

Now, back to work.

Thanks, Office Shaman.

Feodorov: I'm still not really 
interested in making comfortable works,

like Matisse said, you know, that 
art should be like a comfy chair.

I think it should be provoking.

Since I knew that these were paintings 
that were going to be in office spaces,

I wanted to create paintings that were 
showing the environment that, you know,

that the workers were in.

Seeing the corporation as like a heaven.

You know, you have all these 
different steps of deities.

The composition is obviously modeled 
on, like, early medieval icons.

The CEO is seated in the throne 
like a Christ figure would be

in the tympanum area of a cathedral.

And the hand is shaped like a pose, you know,

that the Christ figure makes, which 
is a blessing pose for the hand.

Of course, you know, he's stuck a cigar in there,

which has completely defiled that tradition.

And to see the CO as, you know,

not just a guy that gets paid 
a big salary, but as a deity.

On very few paintings have I known what I 
was going to do when I started the painting.

For me it has to happen as I'm doing it, you know?

It's a battle for me, it always is. It's 
like this canvas is like mocking me,

saying, you know, I dare you 
to make something out of me.

So it's something for me that's not really an 
enjoyable process, it's a struggle, you know?

And I guess I like the struggle.