VOA标准英语2009年-Color Lithographs Illustrate 19th Century

By Mike O'Sullivan
Los Angeles
28 October 2009

Technology can bring lasting¹ change to society, and one change it brought in the 19th century was the widespread use of color in art and commerce. A printing process known as lithography began in Germany and then spread to America, where brightly colored printing transformed popular culture. An exhibition called The Color Explosion at the Huntington Library illustrates² the changes.

The 19th century is often recalled as a monochrome world, remembered through stiffly posed, black and white photographs of people dressed in shades of gray. Much of the century, however, was awash in color, especially in America, where brightly colored prints found a place on boxes, cans and cartons, as well as children's games, calendars and posters.

David Mihaly, curator of the Huntington exhibition, says the mass production of color was enabled by a groundbreaking process called lithography. "It had a tremendous visual impact on people who, up to this time, really had not seen much color before. So lithography, one of its major impacts, was to colorize America and bring color to virtually every community and every home, affordable³."

Lithographic artists used grease crayons to sketch⁴ images on a block of limestone⁵. The printer applied⁶ water and ink, and the ink adhered to the greasy⁷ image. The stone block was then used to mass-produce printed copies.

Black and white lithography was invented in Germany in the 1790s, and it spread to France and England, then made its way to America with German immigrants. Mihaly says that after a few decades, printers started using colored ink, as the process expanded from city to city in the country's westward⁸ expansion.

"As we start to push from the eastern seaboard cities, going a little further inland by way of canals and rivers, we start seeing more lithographic centers. By the 1840s, we get into some color printing that's starting to develop in America. And by the 1870s, this is where you really see the boom in lithography with the introduction of color," he said.

He says the vibrant⁹ prints helped spur the development of a consumer culture.

Colored lithographs¹⁰ adorned¹¹ boxes of citrus and cigars, sheet music and calendars that advertised insurance companies. A lithographer named Milton Bradley created a colorful children's game in the 1860s called The Checkered¹² Game of Life, and went on to make a fortune as a game producer.

Memorable¹³ battles from the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War were rendered in vivid prints, and Mihaly says mass-produced art added color to the homes of average Americans.

"Color lithography became so universal that in the 19th century eventually people woke up seeing color lithographs and went to bed seeing color lithographs. And it's that color that is around us today and we sort of take for granted," he said.

Through the 19th century, the boundaries were blurring¹⁴ between fine art and commercial art, as hungry artists went to work for business clients. The Huntington's director, David Zeidberg, says modern art lovers may value these lithographs more than the artists who created them. He says many worked commercially just to pay their bills. "I think initially¹⁵, they perhaps looked on this more as a way to make a living, and perhaps a little bit a denigration¹⁶ of their artistic¹⁷ talent, but I think it is a form of art in its own right, and I think it stands with fine arts just fine today," he said.

Color lithography also gave rise to a culture of collecting, and thanks to early collectors, many of these art works retain their brilliant colors.

The 280 objects on display in the exhibit The Color Explosion are drawn¹⁸ from a 135,000 piece collection, which is being donated to the Huntington by high tech entrepreneur Jay Last. The show will be on display through late February.

1 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

2 illustrates   

给…加插图( illustrate的第三人称单数 )； 说明； 表明； （用示例、图画等）说明

参考例句：

• This historical novel illustrates the breaking up of feudal society in microcosm. 这部历史小说是走向崩溃的封建社会的缩影。
• Alfred Adler, a famous doctor, had an experience which illustrates this. 阿尔弗莱德 - 阿德勒是一位著名的医生，他有过可以说明这点的经历。 来自中级百科部分

3 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

4 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。

5 limestone   

n.石灰石

参考例句：

• Limestone is often used in building construction.石灰岩常用于建筑。
• Cement is made from limestone.水泥是由石灰石制成的。

6 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

7 greasy   

adj. 多脂的，油脂的

参考例句：

• He bought a heavy-duty cleanser to clean his greasy oven.昨天他买了强力清洁剂来清洗油污的炉子。
• You loathe the smell of greasy food when you are seasick.当你晕船时，你会厌恶油腻的气味。

8 westward   

n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西

参考例句：

• We live on the westward slope of the hill.我们住在这座山的西山坡。
• Explore westward or wherever.向西或到什么别的地方去勘探。

9 vibrant   

adj.震颤的，响亮的，充满活力的，精力充沛的，(色彩)鲜明的

参考例句：

• He always uses vibrant colours in his paintings. 他在画中总是使用鲜明的色彩。
• She gave a vibrant performance in the leading role in the school play.她在学校表演中生气盎然地扮演了主角。

10 lithographs   

n.平版印刷品( lithograph的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The etchings, drypoints, lithographs, and engravings together formed his graphic work. 蚀刻画、铜版画、平版画以及雕刻构成了他书画刻印的作品。 来自互联网
• These historic works of art will be released as limited editions of signed lithographs. 这些艺术历史作品是以有限的单一的平版版本发行。 来自互联网

11 adorned   

[计]被修饰的

参考例句：

• The walls were adorned with paintings. 墙上装饰了绘画。
• And his coat was adorned with a flamboyant bunch of flowers. 他的外套上面装饰着一束艳丽刺目的鲜花。

12 checkered   

adj.有方格图案的

参考例句：

• The ground under the trees was checkered with sunlight and shade.林地光影交错。
• He’d had a checkered past in the government.他过去在政界浮沉。

13 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。

14 blurring   

n.模糊，斑点甚多，（图像的）混乱v.（使）变模糊( blur的现在分词 )；（使）难以区分

参考例句：

• Retinal hemorrhage, and blurring of the optic dise cause visual disturbances. 视网膜出血及神经盘模糊等可导致视力障碍。 来自辞典例句
• In other ways the Bible limited Puritan writing, blurring and deadening the pages. 另一方面，圣经又限制了清教时期的作品，使它们显得晦涩沉闷。 来自辞典例句

15 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

16 denigration   

n.弄黑；诋毁；贬低；抹黑[医] 涂黑，变黑

参考例句：

• The essence of the denigration of women is our definition as sex object. 诋毁妇女的实质就是视我们为性目标。 来自演讲部分
• None of you a failure as a denigration of your intellect. 不要觉得失败而诋毁了自己的才华。 来自互联网

17 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。

18 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。