PHILADELPHIA, PA.- For centuries, complex adobe structures, many of them quite massive, have been built in the Sahal region of western Africa—Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Togo, Benin, Ghana, and Burkina Faso. Made of earth mixed with water, these ephemeral buildings display a remarkable diversity of form, human ingenuity and originality.

British photographer James Morris offers a stunning visual survey of these structures, from monumental mosques to family homes, in Butabu: Adobe Architecture of West Africa, photographs by James Morris, a traveling exhibition of 50 photographs, on view at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology from December 9, 2006 through March 3, 2007.

Butabu (a word from the Batmmaliba language of the Togo region) describes the process of mixing earth with water to create a durable material for building. The mud-dried material and rich surface textures captured in Mr. Morris’s photographs are a vivid reminder of the continual communal effort required to maintain and upkeep these buildings, which are often threatened by the uncertainties of weather and the encroachment of Western technology.

To photograph these adobe structures, Mr. Morris traveled to remote villages and desert communities of western Africa during four-month stays in 1999 and 2000. He photographed many architectural treasures, from the great mosque at Djenne—the largest mud building in the world—to small houses in remote communities. His goal was to document these one-of-a-kind structures before they disappear, with the hope that this way of building can somehow be preserved. Through his work, he created a typological record of regional adobe buildings, while also providing an artist’s perspective of this West African architectural tradition, reflecting the sensuous, surreal, and sculptural quality of these distinctive buildings.

In Mr. Morris’s sophisticated compositions the expressive nature of these dynamic structures under the African sunlight reminds viewers of the essential landscape where these structures have been built for centuries. The modern existence of these buildings is both a reflection of their sustainability and usefulness and an affirmation of a vital, resourceful, and creative culture.

James Morris’s photographic work centers on the built environment and the cultural landscape. His work is included in the permanent collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, the British Council, Princeton University and many other private collections.

Butabu: Adobe Architecture of West Africa, photographs by James Morris is organized and toured by Curatorial Assistance Traveling Exhibitions (CATE), Pasadena, California.

This exhibition complements Penn Museum’s African Gallery, which features a broad array of traditional cultural materials from throughout the continent, including an exceptional collection of traditional masks from West Africa, and 17th, 18th and 19th century Benin bronzes from Nigeria.

The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology is dedicated to the study and understanding of human history and diversity. Founded in 1887, the Museum has sent more than 400 archaeological and anthropological expeditions to all the inhabited continents of the world. With an active exhibition schedule and educational programming for children and adults, the Museum offers the public an opportunity to share in the ongoing discovery of humankind’s collective heritage.