纪录片《文明》 第141期 艺术的胜利（18）

Artemisia's breakthrough self-portrait was bought

阿尔泰米西娅这幅突破性的自画像

by none other than King Charles I,

正是被查理一世买下

that great stickler¹ for protocol²

他是礼仪制度的守护者

but also a great lover of art.

也是艺术的热衷者

And there was no court in Europe more obsessed³ with protocol

在欧洲宫廷中没有比西班牙腓力四世

than that of Philip IV in Spain.

对礼仪制度更为着迷的了

But right at the heart of that court was the greatest of artistic⁴

处于那座宫廷核心的 是艺术界最伟大的

freethinkers, Diego Velazquez.

自由思想家 迭戈.委拉斯开兹

As official painter to the king, Velazquez produced

委拉斯开兹作为国王的御用画家

images of the royals on demand,

为皇室成员量身作画

though always with unprecedented⁵ sparkling naturalism -

尽管画中总是蕴含着前所未见的自然主义气息

the human showing through the fancy dress.

例如雍容华贵的服饰

And on one occasion at least, despite,

但尽管 或正是因为他的地位之高

or maybe because of the strength of his position,

他的画作至少有一次

he committed an extraordinary act of painterly lese-majeste.

堂而皇之地冒犯了君主

Towards the end of his career in 1656,

1656年 在他职业生涯的末期

Velazquez he produced a picture, this one, Las Meninas,

委拉斯开兹完成了这幅画作 《宫娥》

The Maids Of Honour, which more than any other before or since

这幅画以空前绝后的野心

stakes the most ambitious claim

宣告了艺术与艺术家的

for the power of art and the artist.

绝对地位

It's a painting which reverses all the usual

这幅画作完全颠倒表现了

expectations of the relationship between patron and artist.

雇主与艺术家之间的寻常关系

In this picture, it is the painter thoughtfully looking at us

这幅画中 意味深长地看着我们的画家

who is truly sovereign.

才是真正的掌控者

Anyone who comes into the presence of this masterpiece,

任何看到这幅杰作的人

or as it really feels, steps across the threshold

也可能是作者本意如此 都仿佛跨越了

of that huge work, feels him or herself

这幅巨作的界限 并惊异地感觉到

uncannily in presence of all the characters who populate it.

自身仿佛和画中人物同处一个世界

That thoughtful painter, the little princess,

沉思的画家 小公主

her maids of honour,

她的侍女们

the dwarfs⁶,

侏儒们

even that slumbering⁷ dog.

甚至是那只打瞌睡的狗

It is an absolute triumph of illusionistic painting.

这无疑是错觉主义绘画的胜利

Something else as well...

还有一点

Velazquez is the most cerebral⁸ artist of his generation

委拉斯开兹是他同时期艺术家中最具智慧的

and this is a huge brainteaser.

这是他留下的一个巨大谜题

There's a giant in the room and it's that epic⁹ sized canvas

房间中那张硕大的画布

but what's on it?

上面画着什么

A painting of the little princess,

是小公主

1 stickler   

n.坚持细节之人

参考例句：

• She's a real stickler for etiquette,so you'd better ask her advice.她非常讲求礼节，所以你最好问她的意见。
• You will find Mrs. Carboy a stickler about trifles.您会发现卡博太太是个拘泥小节的人。

2 protocol   

n.议定书，草约，会谈记录，外交礼节

参考例句：

• We must observe the correct protocol.我们必须遵守应有的礼仪。
• The statesmen signed a protocol.那些政治家签了议定书。

3 obsessed   

adj.心神不宁的,鬼迷心窍的,沉迷的

参考例句：

• He's obsessed by computers. 他迷上了电脑。
• The fear of death obsessed him throughout his old life. 他晚年一直受着死亡恐惧的困扰。

4 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

5 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

6 dwarfs   

n.侏儒，矮子（dwarf的复数形式）vt.（使）显得矮小（dwarf的第三人称单数形式）

参考例句：

• Shakespeare dwarfs other dramatists. 莎士比亚使其他剧作家相形见绌。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The new building dwarfs all the other buildings in the town. 新大楼使城里所有其他建筑物都显得矮小了。 来自辞典例句

7 slumbering   

微睡，睡眠（slumber的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• It was quiet. All the other inhabitants of the slums were slumbering. 贫民窟里的人已经睡眠静了。
• Then soft music filled the air and soothed the slumbering heroes. 接着，空中响起了柔和的乐声，抚慰着安睡的英雄。

8 cerebral   

adj.脑的，大脑的；有智力的，理智型的

参考例句：

• Your left cerebral hemisphere controls the right-hand side of your body.你的左半脑控制身体的右半身。
• He is a precise,methodical,cerebral man who carefully chooses his words.他是一个一丝不苟、有条理和理智的人，措辞谨慎。

9 epic   

n.史诗，叙事诗；adj.史诗般的，壮丽的

参考例句：

• I gave up my epic and wrote this little tale instead.我放弃了写叙事诗，而写了这个小故事。
• They held a banquet of epic proportions.他们举行了盛大的宴会。