美国国家公共电台 NPR Sketching Impeachment: An Artist's View Of The Senate Trial

 

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

Most of the public gets one camera angle on Donald Trump's Senate impeachment¹ trial. It's a video feed controlled by the Senate recording² studio. The cameras are operated by government employees. They're generally pointed³ squarely at the dais. And no other visual recording is allowed in the chamber⁴. But the rules don't say anything about sketch⁵ pads. That's why Art Lien⁶ has been sitting in on the proceedings⁷. He is a courtroom artist who's normally based at the Supreme⁸ Court. He's covering the impeachment for The New York Times, and he's now here in the studio.

Welcome.

ART LIEN: Thank you.

SHAPIRO: I'm excited to see that you brought your sketch pad. Will you show us what you've got?

LIEN: OK. Well, here's one I did yesterday of Senator Collins and Murkowski.

SHAPIRO: Hunched⁹ over a pile of papers.

LIEN: And they seem to be paying very - you know, following along the arguments very closely.

SHAPIRO: These are not just any two Republican senators; they're two Republican senators who seem to be more moderate, and their votes may be in question. And so there is a real news judgment¹⁰ that you're making as well.

LIEN: Oh, yeah. That's why I sketched¹¹ them because, you know, when it comes down to voting on witnesses, they're going to be key.

SHAPIRO: How about another one?

LIEN: OK. Let me see. I have - oh, OK. This was sort of iconic yesterday. We noticed that several of the senators had fidget spinners on their desks.

SHAPIRO: (Laughter).

LIEN: And so here is a sketch of Senator Burr with his fidget spinner.

SHAPIRO: Your focus on the fidget spinner tells me that you're approaching this job with a sense of humor.

LIEN: I try to.

SHAPIRO: So what are you looking for?

LIEN: Well, I'm looking for color, you know, something unusual, something that says something or tells some kind of story.

SHAPIRO: Give us an example.

LIEN: Yeah, the - a big hit on the very first day, Senator Risch...

SHAPIRO: This is Senator James Risch, Republican of Idaho.

LIEN: Yes. Senator Risch, on the very first day, fell asleep. It was that late night, but this was only 5:30.

SHAPIRO: He was at least described as the first to go.

LIEN: He was the first to go. Actually, I haven't seen any other senators falling asleep.

SHAPIRO: And you caught it on your sketch pad.

LIEN: I did.

SHAPIRO: Show us.

LIEN: It's right here.

SHAPIRO: (Laughter) He's between two other senators. His head is resting on his hand.

LIEN: Between Crapo and Blunt.

SHAPIRO: Red tie, yeah.

LIEN: Yeah. And his spokesperson said he was just simply listening with his eyes closed. But his head was definitely going down and down and down.

SHAPIRO: (Laughter) Have you heard from any senators or their staff about how you have portrayed¹² them, either positive or negative?

LIEN: Oh, I have.

SHAPIRO: (Laughter) Tell us about it.

LIEN: North Carolina Senator Burr.

SHAPIRO: Richard Burr, yeah.

LIEN: Yeah. He caught my attention because he wasn't wearing socks in his very expensive loafers - or they seemed that way. And so I did a sketch of him. And the next day, he had it as his profile picture on Twitter. And...

SHAPIRO: Really?

LIEN: Yeah. He's...

SHAPIRO: Well, that's a compliment.

LIEN: ...Very interested in it. Yeah.

SHAPIRO: Do you complete all of these sketches¹³ sitting there in the chamber, or do you do the ink outlines and then bring them back and finish the watercolors in your office or someplace else?

LIEN: I'm not allowed to bring my little watercolor. I have a very small box with my watercolors, and I can't bring that into the chamber. So in the chamber, I'm just doing a line drawing, and then I come outside and finish it in the press gallery.

SHAPIRO: I think many people find doing watercolor to be almost a meditative¹⁴ activity. You're doing it on deadline as a job (laughter). Is there anything peaceful about it, or is it just, like, got to churn this one out and get onto the next one?

LIEN: Well, there's watercolor, and there's watercolor.

SHAPIRO: (Laughter).

LIEN: I'm really doing drawings and just adding a splash of watercolor.

SHAPIRO: It's the short order cook version of watercolor.

LIEN: When I retire, my ambition is to do real watercolors.

SHAPIRO: (Laughter) Then you'll do sunsets.

LIEN: Yeah.

SHAPIRO: Art Lien is sketching¹⁵ the Senate impeachment trial for The New York Times.

Thanks for coming in. We'll let you get back to work.

LIEN: Thank you very much, Ari.

(SOUNDBITE OF YASUAKI SHIMIZU & SAXOPHONETTES' "TOKYO TABOO")

1 impeachment   

n.弹劾；控告；怀疑

参考例句：

• Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。
• The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

2 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

3 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

4 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

5 sketch   

n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述

参考例句：

• My sister often goes into the country to sketch. 我姐姐常到乡间去写生。
• I will send you a slight sketch of the house.我将给你寄去房屋的草图。

6 lien   

n.扣押权，留置权

参考例句：

• A lien is a type of security over property.留置是一种财产担保。
• The court granted me a lien on my debtor's property.法庭授予我对我债务人财产的留置权。

7 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

8 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

9 hunched   

（常指因寒冷、生病或愁苦）耸肩弓身的，伏首前倾的

参考例句：

• He sat with his shoulders hunched up. 他耸起双肩坐着。
• Stephen hunched down to light a cigarette. 斯蒂芬弓着身子点燃一支烟。

10 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

11 sketched   

v.草拟（sketch的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The historical article sketched the major events of the decade. 这篇有关历史的文章概述了这十年中的重大事件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He sketched the situation in a few vivid words. 他用几句生动的语言简述了局势。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

12 portrayed   

v.画像( portray的过去式和过去分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• Throughout the trial, he portrayed himself as the victim. 在审讯过程中，他始终把自己说成是受害者。
• The author portrayed his father as a vicious drunkard. 作者把他父亲描绘成一个可恶的酒鬼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

13 sketches   

n.草图( sketch的名词复数 )；素描；速写；梗概

参考例句：

• The artist is making sketches for his next painting. 画家正为他的下一幅作品画素描。
• You have to admit that these sketches are true to life. 你得承认这些素描很逼真。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 meditative   

adj.沉思的，冥想的

参考例句：

• A stupid fellow is talkative;a wise man is meditative.蠢人饶舌，智者思虑。
• Music can induce a meditative state in the listener.音乐能够引导倾听者沉思。

15 sketching   

n.草图

参考例句：

• They are sketching out proposals for a new road. 他们正在草拟修建新路的计划。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• "Imagination is busy sketching rose-tinted pictures of joy. “飞舞驰骋的想象描绘出一幅幅玫瑰色欢乐的场景。 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险