Masterpieces

The Starry Night was painted in June 1889 when Vincent van Gogh was staying at a home for the mentally ill. Van Gogh painted what he saw from his window—the night sky with clouds, stars and a moon. However, he didn’t just paint the clouds. He also painted the massive circles of white and yellow racing across the sky. The stars and the moon hang bright in the night sky. Beneath this amazing sky, we see a sleeping village and a dark, lonely tree.

His unusual use of colour has led experts to think that Van Gogh’s mental illness may have affected his sense of sight. He also took a drug that can make people see yellow spots, just like the stars in The Starry Night.

Unfortunately, Van Gogh’s unique paintings weren’t very popular and he only sold one painting in his lifetime. He also thought The Starry Night was a failure. However, the fact remains that The Starry Night is now one of the world’s most famous paintings.

The Scream was painted by Edvard Munch in 1893. What makes it striking is that it shows a thin figure with an expression of fear—the figure’s mouth is wide open and letting out a powerful scream. The figure covers his or her ears and looks directly at the viewer. This figure is set on a bridge above a dark, stormy sea, and against a burning orange-red sky.

In his diary, Munch talked about what inspired him. “I was walking down the road with two friends when the sun set; suddenly the sky turned as red as blood ... I stood there shaking. Then I heard the scream of nature.”

Many experts say that The Scream is connected to Munch’s mental health problems, which caused him a lot of pain.

The Empire of Light is a series of paintings by Belgian artist René Magritte. Between 1953 and 1954, he painted the same scene 27 times. It shows a beautiful house lit by lights from inside, surrounded by the darkness of night. What is strange is that above the house and the tree, we see a daytime sky full of brightness and soft white clouds. It seems like quite a mysterious scene.

Magritte was a painter inspired by his thoughts and ideas. His paintings were visual experiments as he tried to play with reality. His view was that art should shock the viewers and challenge their sense of reality.

The Empire of Light has produced different reactions in viewers. Some feel that the paintings look dark and troubling. Others, however, find them calming. As for Magritte himself, he thought that the change between day and night in the paintings was surprising. “I call this power poetry,” he said.

任务一：图文匹配，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

【1】The Scream Picture _____

【2】The Starry Night Picture _____

【3】The Empire of Light Picture _____

任务二：选择最佳选项。

【4】What do these three paintings have in common?

A.They are paintings of night.

B.They were painted in the 19th century.

C.They were drawn by mentally-ill artists.

D.They picture the artists’ understanding of nature.

任务三：阅读短文，回答问题。

【5】Which of the three paintings do you like best? Why? (List at least one reason.)

【答案】

【1】B

【2】A

【3】C

【4】D

【5】略

【解析】

本文为一篇说明文。文章介绍了三幅著名的画作。

【1】

推理判断题。根据第四段What makes it striking is that it shows a thin figure with an expression of fear—the figure’s mouth is wide open and letting out a powerful scream. 让人吃惊的是，它显示了一个瘦弱的身影，脸上带着恐惧的表情，那人的嘴张开，发出一声强烈的尖叫。结合图画可知，Picture B符合The Scream的描述。故填B。

【2】

推理判断题。根据第一段Van Gogh painted what he saw from his window—the night sky with clouds, stars and a moon. 梵高用云彩、星星和月亮描绘了他从窗户看到的夜空。及Beneath this amazing sky, we see a sleeping village and a dark, lonely tree. 在这片神奇的天空下，我们看到了一个沉睡的村庄和一棵黑暗而孤独的树。推测 Picture A为梵高的The Starry Night。故填A。

【3】

推理判断题。根据第七段It shows a beautiful house lit by lights from inside, surrounded by the darkness of night. 它展示了一个美丽的房子，从里面灯光照亮，被黑夜包围。结合Picture C的房子，推测Picture C为The Empire of Light Picture。故填C。

【4】

细节理解题。根据第一段Van Gogh painted what he saw from his window—the night sky with clouds, stars and a moon. 梵高用云彩、星星和月亮描绘了他从窗户看到的夜空。第五段I stood there shaking. Then I heard the scream of nature. 我站在那里发抖。然后我听到了大自然的尖叫。第七段What is strange is that above the house and the tree, we see a daytime sky full of brightness and soft white clouds. It seems like quite a mysterious scene. 奇怪的是，在房子和树的上方，我们看到一个白天的天空充满了明亮和柔和的白云。这似乎是一个相当神秘的场景。可知，三幅画都描绘出作者对大自然的理解。故选D项。

【5】

开放题型，只要观点积极，言之有理即可。答案略。