Contrast between European art and Africa art

European art and non-European art are kind of different. There are some similar things, but still is two distinct type of art. I will contrast and compare the architecture and the portraiture of the West and of the Africa.

First, the commemorate thing is mainly different, depending on the place and the culture. In Africa, “Obelisks were created to commemorate the reigns of rules and to serve as gift to the gods whose temples they adorned.” (Marquardt, 2005, p.60) In the same way, Taj Mahal is a tomb created by Mumtaz Mahal for his favorite of three wives. These are architecture really important in memory of those people. In Europe, the construction of column were not simple, it contain a lot of detail representing a moment, the life of someone… for example, the Column of Trajan detail’s represent a scene from the Dancian campaign… So the way to commemorate something in both cultures is different, but stays important in the understanding of these cultures.

 Second, the architecture did not look similar. In Europe, the buildings were constructing with large column on the front, there is a basilica, the hall for assembly, a rotunda, the vast open space of the huge, and an example of this kind of architecture is the Pantheon. In Africa, the pyramids were in vogue. The statues were very present in the place where the people were assembling. The kingdom and power were represented more in statues than in big building as European art.

 Third, in both art styles, the head statues are important. In Africa, the head were made to represent an important person as the king. The style was more abstract than the Europe one. In Europe, the head, like the one of Constantinople, were place on the front of the forum. This head were more naturalistic than the Africa one.

Arts stay art whenever it looks like. The culture are different and the values too, so the arts cannot be the same everywhere.