The African tradition of decorating the body both enhances one’s beauty and gives a person a higher status in their tribe” (African). Although African body art and scarification fuels many prejudices about the African people from the outside world, body art has existed as an important aspect of African history that allows self-expression in various tribes because forms of body decoration have existed for over five thousand years. Body art has existed as an important aspect of African history because of the many styles of body decoration that exist. Africans use scarification, body paint, mud coloring, body piercing, and lip disks to embellish their bodies. Scarification, also known as “The Proud Mark”, describes the art where a person marks his or her skin in decorative patterns.
A Review of Posing Beauty in African American Culture Posing Beauty in African American culture is an exhibition, which is first represented by the Spelman College Museum of Art in the Southeast. This phenomenal exhibition features more than 70 photographs from a variety of photographers—including those working in studios, photojournalists, leading, emerging, and amateur photographers— examine and interrogate notions of beauty and blackness in African American culture from the 1890 to the present. Instead of defining beauty, Posing Beauty portrays the idea of black beauty in many art works—how it is constructed, posed, the daily lives, as well as the media. There are three sections: Constructing a Pose, Body and Image, and Modeling and Beauty Contest. Posing Beauty allows its audiences to think deeper into how African American culture has been represented in historical and contemporary contexts.
Comparative Essay Both Mesopotamia and Egypt between 6000- 3500 B.C.E. had similarities and differences. Both regions shared similar cultural aspects in regard to religion, writing, and literature. However, Mesopotamia and Egypt differ in regards to politics concerning structure, government, and leadership as well as social structure as it regards to gender roles, classes, and hierarchical figures. Both regions shared cultural aspects in regard to religion, writing, and literature.
However, evidence shows that Sumer, Egypt, and China believed in gods closely related to nature. They looked to them for protection and help. In each religion they had priests that communicated with the gods. Each culture established diverse systems of writing and noticeable architecture. They also made different inventions that are important to the world.
There were also examples both in the instruments that were used, or the baskets and pottery that was displayed of our ancestry as a hunting-and-gathering society. It was interesting to notice that art captures and displays for eons the many phases that man and our country have gone through. In thinking about the St. James Art Fair I can't help but be reminded of the Medieval festivals that had stall to sell everything from food to baskets to art. Street entertainment, musicians & contests st. James is a move modern & formal organization of this event in history. The hunting-and-gathering society of the caveman was depicted by pictures and artwork on pottery of caveman days and early settlement days of the US and Europe.
For my dissertation, I have chosen this area of study because I have an interest in the way different races (particularly African-Americans) are portrayed in the media and how that has an effect our society as a whole. In particular, because I am from the Cayman Islands, it is a honeypot of over 150 different nationalities living together and race has been an issue for quite a bit between expats and locals as expats might receive better jobs or pay over Caymanians. Also, my father is a local and my mother is an expat from Scotland, and so growing in different instances in my life I have been the victim of racism, even from locals and so because of my experiences in life, I am fascinated by the issues that come with race and hope to dwell deeper
The Benin artworks were not just pieces of art but part of an oral tradition, which belonged to the people of Benin that contained African accounts that weren’t written about the ethnicity, culture or colonisation, they were “passed down through stories andobjects and art.” The people of Benin used this as visual record through the works of art,their society is a very complex culture and their plaques tell a documentary. Due to the circumstances of their removal and the important role which they play in African society and culture, some controversy surrounds the ownership of the Benin sculptures. One group believes that they should be returned to their original owners while the other believes that they should remain in museums. One of the critical adaptations to Benin artwork is how it is located in Museums around Europe, Benin art is not easily positioned into the category of art or anthropological. This is incredibly hard when the Benin artworks fit into both categories.
Both Malcolm X and George Jackson have provided much leadership to the world today. Their writings have influenced millions of people throughout the American society and its legal system as a whole. They both were part of a well know organization.. Malcolm created his organization called the Muslim Mosque Inc. and Jackson was in the Black Panthers Party, both of which were working towards finding unity in African American culture. Jackson also refers to white people as the devil who would arbitrate the lives of black people. Both Jackson and Malcolm’s prison experience indeed alters their moral consciousness and how they really think about society.
Their town was based around a plaza which was used for gathering and religious events. They also had structures to help protect the village like pole walls and ditches. Mississippian culture was very unique and is a little mystery. Art influenced their culture very heavily. They where built on a structured society and had higher powers to guide them.
Compare an aspect of the tomb of Emperor Shihuangdi with the burial tombs of other cultures, such as Egypt or Mesopotamia. Similar to the Egyptian rulers, Shi Huangdi was buried with subordinates and it was often servants and slaves that were buried with their leader. In the instance of the militaristic Shi Huangdi, it was soldiers and I believe that Shi Huangdi's elaborate burial was a symbol of power, belying the idea of an afterlife and a need to be prepared for it. Describe something that surprised or intrigued you about the Terracotta Army site. I actually was intrigued on how over eight thousand life-size figures of warriors and horses were interred in the mausoleum of the first emperor of China and that each figure is individually