Consider the Seated Couple sculpture of the Dogon culture. ...

[rachel9]

Consider the Seated Couple sculpture of the Dogon culture. Discuss what this work reveals about gender roles and the status of the family within the culture in which it was created.
 
  What will be an ideal response?

Question 2

Discuss how the Islamic architecture was colored by the culture of Persia, giving examples of architecture in the text.
 
  What will be an ideal response?

[jrpg123456]

Answer to Question 1

Complementary gender roles are the subject of the Seated Couple. The sculpture portrays a couple seated side by side on a stool, which links them physically and symbolically. The man is slightly larger and speaks for the couple through his gestures, suggesting concepts of nurturing and procreation, while the female is quiet. The figures are highly conventionalized and abstract, which suggests that the work represents spirits and ideas, not specific people.

Answer to Question 2

During the 12th century, Persian architecture inspired a new form of mosque, such as the Friday Mosque at Isfahan. The entrance is a large vaulted chamber whose pointed arch is set in a rectangular frame, an iwan, covered with blue glazed mosaic tile, which was a specialty of Persian artists. Four sides of the mosque's courtyard are set with an iwan, which became a standard configuration in Persia, and into Egypt. The Taj Mahal in India is based on Persian architectural forms, and each of its four facades is set with an iwan.