VA Rem RUe rela HE, changing tastes Tirougnout the centuries, eople have tended tobe suspicious ofthe new art movements of their period. [tthe end ofthe 18th century, for example, people were shocked by Impressionism’, eiticising its practitioners, as careless daubers’ Later, when faced with Cubist” paintings, the public were puzzled by those too. The Surrealists' were intially deemed” crazy Op-art! ves criticised because its subject matter” as aid to consist of nothing of significance. However, nowadays, king Surrealism! or Op-artis considered perfectly acceptable, and images fram these schools of art? appear everywhere, rom posters to advertising campaigns. Perhaps because ofthe ubiquity of advertising, people tend to be more visually literate™ than they used tobe, and so are perhaps inured to! surprises, Perhaps new movements in art will meet with les hostility in future 1.44.6 *types of artist and schools of art ofthe last 150 years * someone who paints quickly and carelessly (disapproving) * considered; formal "content *artmovement ™ educated with regard to art 1 not affected by HER) Words for commenting on art riginal: new in a special and interesting way (opp. = predictable) highbrow: intended for educated, intelligent people (often disapproving) (opp. = lowbrow) impenetrable: extremely difficult to understand (opp. = transparent) sophisticated: showing advanced skills and understanding (opp. = primitive) challenging: demanding considerable effort to be understood (opp. = undemanding) dazzling: inspiring great admiration because itis brilliant in some way (opp. = pedestrian) provoking: making people think (opp. = unstimul ving rare beauty or delicacy (opp. = clumsy) intriguing: interesting because its strange or mysterious (opp. = dreary) peerless: better than any other opp. = run-of-the-mill) ‘tongue-in-cheek: not intended to be taken seriously, despite appearing serious (opp. = earnest) priceless: extremely valuable (opp. = worthless) itful: clever, masterly, done well (opp. = poorly done) HR). anc metaphor Notice how words connected with art can be used when talking about literature, ‘The writer paints his hero in a fascinating light. Minor characters are more shadowy or sketchy but they are also depicted quite powerfully, even though the focus is, inevitably, on the two central characters. These are portrayed with great sensitivity. The heroine is particularly colourful and we see how her characteris shaped and moulded by events. Some say the author illustrates his motifs in a black-and-white fashion, but the image he creates to illuminate the evils of slavery will remain with me for ever. 48 English Vocabulary in Use Advanced211 21.2 213 21.4 215 21.6 27 Exercises Choose a word from the text in A opposite to answer the questions. 1 Whats the early 20th century school of art which shows unusual or impossible things happening? 2 What is the mid 20th century school of art which has its origins in optical illusions? 3 What is the early 20th century school of art which depicts people or objects as a set of geometric shapes? 4 What is the late 19th century school of art whose aim was to represent the effects of light on. people or scenes? 5, What phrase can be used to mean the content of a painting or other work of art? 6 What phrase can be used to describe someone with an educated understanding of art? Read the sentences and answer the questions. 1 Finn enjoys painting but he's a dauber not an artist. Does the speaker have a high or low opinion of Finn's work? 2 Curious as it now seems, the artist’s work was deemed morally dangerous. Is this sentence more likely to come from a formal or informal source? 3 The sculptor is now inured to criticism. How is the sculptor affected by criticism? 4. While at art school, Matilda was particularly interested in the Cubist school of art What is the difference between art school and school of art? Look at the adjectives in B opposite. Divide them into these categories: usually positive associations usually negative associations negative or positive associations Choose one of the words from each pair of opposites in B and think of a work of art (of any kind) that you could apply it to. Write a sentence explaining why it applies. [IIMPLE thin thatthe pasndngs by Sabor Da could be ale intriguing because he uses such curious and surprising images Choose the correct word to complete these sentences. 1 I think that the artist's cartoons are usually rather highbrow / dreary | lowbrow as they are intended to appeal to a mass audience. 2. When an artist sent in an ordinary red brick to an exhibition, no one was sure whether it was impenetrable / run-of-the-mill / tongue-in-cheek or intended as a serious statement. 3 Although the artist’s early work is very sophisticated, some of his later pieces are surprisingly primitive | thought-provoking / original in styl. 4 find pictures of dull grey street scenes rather dreary / peerless / dazzling 5 The design on that china plate is earnest / exquisite / transparent - however did they manage to paint such fine detail? 6 Although his photographs are quite challenging / evocative / intriguing, itis worth making the effort to understand them, Make a verb-noun-adjective word formation table with these words from C opposite. paint sketch depict portray colour shape _ illustrate _ illuminate Over to Visit the websites of well-known museums and art galleries and look at some of the works of artin them, Use words from this unit to describe the works you see. English Vocabulary in Use Advanced 49