新西兰英语 641 Bull on a piano

 　　The artist Michael Parekowhai, was chosen to represent New Zealand at the Venice Biennale last year. This month, his sculptures are on show in Christchurch. In Venice, his bull on a piano was set in a garden. In Christchurch it is on an empty section where a building has been demolished². Instead of a garden, there is a pile of concrete rubble³ from a demolished building and in the distance are cranes and partly demolished buildings. It is the opposite of a peaceful and beautiful garden setting.

　　The bull and piano are made of bronze and painted black. In fact, there are two pianos, one with a bull sitting and looking while the other piano has a standing⁴ bull. Inside is a red carved piano. The carvings⁵ are both Maori symbols and European symbols. When the exhibition is open, pianists are playing the piano for visitors.

　　The title of the art works is “On First Looking into Chapman’s Homer” which is the title of a poem by John Keats. It is about the excitement of experiencing great art and the old world facing the new world. The piano represents European culture but the carvings include the artist’s Maori culture.

　　Listen to The Venice Biennale to hear about New Zealand’s entry in this exhibition in 2009.

　　Click on Venice Biennale 2011 to see Michael Parekowhai’s work.

　　Vocabulary

　　sculpture – three-dimensional art works

　　rubble – concrete and brick rubbish after demolition⁶ of a building

　　crane – a machine for lifting heavy things e.g. a concrete ball to demolish¹ a building

　　bronze – mixture of copper⁷ and tin

　　symbols – things which represent different cultures

　　Note: Homer’s poem, ‘The Odyssey’, was written in Greek. Keats was excited when he read the translation by Chapman.

　　Question

　　Why was Christchurch chosen for the first NZ exhibition of this work?

1 demolish   

v.拆毁(建筑物等)，推翻(计划、制度等)

参考例句：

• They're going to demolish that old building.他们将拆毁那座旧建筑物。
• He was helping to demolish an underground garage when part of the roof collapsed.他当时正在帮忙拆除一个地下汽车库，屋顶的一部份突然倒塌。

2 demolished   

v.摧毁( demolish的过去式和过去分词 )；推翻；拆毁（尤指大建筑物）；吃光

参考例句：

• The factory is due to be demolished next year. 这个工厂定于明年拆除。
• They have been fighting a rearguard action for two years to stop their house being demolished. 两年来，为了不让拆除他们的房子，他们一直在进行最后的努力。

3 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

4 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

5 carvings   

n.雕刻( carving的名词复数 )；雕刻术；雕刻品；雕刻物

参考例句：

• The desk was ornamented with many carvings. 这桌子装饰有很多雕刻物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Shell carvings are a specialty of the town. 贝雕是该城的特产。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 demolition   

n.破坏,毁坏,毁坏之遗迹

参考例句：

• The church has been threatened with demolition for years. 这座教堂多年来一直面临拆毀的威胁。
• The project required the total demolition of the old bridge. 该项目要求将老桥完全拆毁。

7 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。