“Crafting a Home: Interior Home Design in Southern Oman.” Home/Making Symposium, Concordia University, Montreal. Forthcoming May 12, 2023. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sU1fHYgk2WC7Be3b-sUAarjcfgFJjW4J/view

My presentation will explain, using photos of the interiors of houses, how Dhofari house-owners use specific color schemes, types of furniture and objects such as vases and mirrors to create beautiful interiors. My talk will highlight three specific points. Firstly, as almost all houses are designed by the people who will live in the space, the rooms are built to the families’ specifications. Give than most Dhofaris live in multi-generational clusters of 30 or more family members, this means consulting the wishes of many people. Secondly, although most writing on the Arabian Peninsula highlights the separation of men and women, many Dhofari houses are built for both genders and all ages to enjoy the same spaces at the same times. Lastly, interior design is controlled by different people at different times. For example, the senior woman might be in charge of decorating the kitchen, the senior man might choose the colors of the main sitting room, while a sister might design the room for her brother and his new wife. I will also discuss how families procure the decorations, including traveling to other countries, having furniture custom-made and using hand-made objects.