VOA慢速英语2014 美国人对艺术的追求无处不在

 

Americans Look for Art Everywhere 美国人对艺术的追求无处不在

Jasper Johns' painting 1958 'Three Flags' was among the works chosen for the 'Art Everywhere.'

Welcome to American Mosaic¹ from VOA Learning English. I’m June Simms.

Have you ever see the painting called “Allies Day, 1917” by the American artist Childe Hassam?  You can find it in the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C. But you could also find a copy of it at a city bus stop last month.

“Allies Day, 1917,” was part of a huge campaign across America in August.  Pictures of the nation’s most popular artworks were displayed on big signs, bus shelters, subway stations and more.  The campaign was called “Art Everywhere.” Five major museums led the project. The organizers say they wanted to permit more people to enjoy art and learn about U.S. culture and history. 

The campaign reproduced 58 American paintings, photographs and other works of art.  The work covered a period of 230 years in American history.  The organizers presented the reproductions in about 50,000 places.

Charles Brock is with the National Gallery of Art, one of the museums involved in the campaign.

“It’s really educating people about the foundation of the American visual culture.”

Mr. Brock says the campaign was also designed to persuade people to visit museums.

“Museums, of course, are dedicated² to preserving culture for future generations, and so we have to make sure the future generations are interested.”

Museum visitor Elizabeth Vanbeek praised the “Art Everywhere” campaign.

“It’s nice to have art everywhere and make it accessible to kids.”

The idea for the campaign came from a similar project in Britain, called “Art Everywhere in the UK.” Richard Reed was the founder³.

“America to me is a country that does things bigger and better, more posts, more prominent places, wonderful art all across the country.”

The five museums that organized “Art Everywhere,” nominated one hundred possible works.  Then, in April, they invited Americans to vote on which they would most like to see represented. The artwork that got the most votes overall was the 1942 Edward Hopper painting “Nighthawks.”  The work hangs in the Illinois museum, Art Institute of Chicago.

Stephan Freitas is with the Outdoor Advertising⁴ Association of America.  It helped pay the costs of “Art Everywhere.”

“People are going to the website. They are using the map and they’re looking for and finding the pieces of art. We’ve encouraged people through Instagram to upload selfies for themselves with the artwork and at the end we’re going to randomly⁵ select the winners.”

Kurt Gunther is a visitor to D.C. from Arizona.

“I’m from Phoenix⁶, where art is not really as celebrated⁷, and putting this, I guess in public places allows people to see art when they’re not going to museums. 

Tanaka Rubens is visiting the U.S. from Japan.

“It’s amazing to be here in New York and see all this work of art for free.”

Michael Vidikan of Washington, D.C. agrees.

“Well, it would be great if they did it year round.”

Art Everywhere gives museums the chance to share treasures more widely. And the public gets a chance to experience those treasures in unexpected ways.

1 mosaic   

n./adj.镶嵌细工的，镶嵌工艺品的，嵌花式的

参考例句：

• The sky this morning is a mosaic of blue and white.今天早上的天空是幅蓝白相间的画面。
• The image mosaic is a troublesome work.图象镶嵌是个麻烦的工作。

2 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

3 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

4 advertising   

n.广告业；广告活动 a.广告的；广告业务的

参考例句：

• Can you give me any advice on getting into advertising? 你能指点我如何涉足广告业吗?
• The advertising campaign is aimed primarily at young people. 这个广告宣传运动主要是针对年轻人的。

5 randomly   

adv.随便地，未加计划地

参考例句：

• Within the hot gas chamber, molecules are moving randomly in all directions. 在灼热的气体燃烧室内，分子在各个方向上作无规运动。 来自辞典例句
• Transformed cells are loosely attached, rounded and randomly oriented. 转化细胞则不大贴壁、圆缩并呈杂乱分布。 来自辞典例句

6 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

7 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。