There  is an attitude of dismissal amongst personalities who are foreign to  and scornful of African cultures, with regards to elements of  Sahelian/Sudanic architectural traditions, as merely simple structures  of mud. Never mind the multiple layers of design both in physiology and  building-material that constitute the Sahelian or Sudanic architectural  traditions. In an earlier posting, the long tradition of building in  stone in western Africa, along with several mud-built designs, was  elaborately covered [see: Before the Ruins].  Perhaps nothing gets the point across better than photography, just how  elaborate and sophisticated the otherwise "bland" looking architectural  designs are; paint-jobs can do wonders in bringing out the true  sophistry of these designs, that perhaps unpainted architecture do not  make as apparent.