外刊阅读:Fixing the road with art
坑坑洼洼的路面会给汽车和行人带来很多不便。有一位艺术家突发奇想,把自己的作品放到路面上的浅坑里,不仅能给路过的人欣赏,还能起到提醒作用。
Fixing the road with art
by Jacqueline Gulledge
We've all been there before: You're driving down the road when suddenly a pothole seems to appear out of nowhere and sends the car jumping. Most people think potholes are a nuisance, but artist Jim Bachor sees them as a canvas for his intricate artwork.
pothole /ˈpɒthəʊl/ n. (路面的)坑洼
out of nowhere 突然(出现)
nuisance /ˈnjuːs(ə)ns/ n. 让人讨厌的东西、麻烦事
canvas /ˈkænvəs/ n. 画布
intricate /ˈɪntrɪkət/ adj. 错综复杂的
artwork /ˈɑːtwɜːk/ n. 艺术作品(由art和work组成)
"It's the idea of taking something that is universally hated and fixing it," Bachor says. "Not just fixing it, but fixing it with something that is universally loved by everyone."
universally /ˌjuːnɪˈvɜːs(ə)li/ adv. 普遍存在地(由universal加后缀-ly变成副词)
Bachor uses the ancient art form of mosaic to create eye-catching, colorful portraits of famous artists like Aretha Franklin or simple everyday objects like food. He even makes less-appealing visuals of rodents and insects.
ancient /ˈeɪnʃ(ə)nt/ adj. 古代的、古老的
form /fɔːm/ n. 形式
mosaic /məʊˈzeɪɪk/ n. 马赛克
eye-catching 吸引眼球的
portrait /ˈpɔːtreɪt/ n. 肖像
everyday /ˈevrideɪ/ adj. 日常的
object /ˈɒbdʒɪkt/ n. 物品
appealing /əˈpiːlɪŋ/ adj. 吸引人的
visual /ˈvɪʒuəl/ n. 视觉作品(比如绘画、照片、电影等)
rodent /ˈrəʊd(ə)nt/ n. 啮齿动物
insect /ˈɪnsekt/ n. 昆虫
Bachor was a graphic designer for 20 years before he began his career in mosaics. He credits a fateful trip to Europe in the late 1990s as his inspiration to change careers.
graphic /ˈɡræfɪk/ adj. 图形的(由graph加后缀-ic变成形容词)
career /kəˈrɪə(r)/ n. 事业、职业生涯
credit /ˈkredɪt/ v. 归功于
fateful /ˈfeɪtf(ə)l/ adj. 决定命运的(由fate加后缀-ful变成形容词)
inspiration /ˌɪnspɪˈreɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 灵感、启发灵感的人或物
While traveling in Italy, Bachor fell in love with ancient ruins in Pompeii. A tour guide pointed out a mosaic and told Bachor, "Glass and marble don't fade. It's set into mortar. So, this looks essentially the way the artist intended." Bachor says: "That kind of staying power just blew me away."
ruin /ˈruːɪn/ n. 遗迹、废墟
Pompeii /pɒmˈpeɪi/ n. 庞贝古城(公元79年毁于火山爆发)
marble /ˈmɑːb(ə)l/ n. 大理石
fade /feɪd/ v. 褪色
mortar /ˈmɔːtə(r)/ n. 砂浆、灰浆
essentially /ɪˈsenʃ(ə)li/ adv. 基本上(由essential加后缀-ly变成副词)
blow away 使极为惊讶
Bachor returned a year later to attend a mosaic class in Ravenna, Italy, to learn the proper way to perform the ancient technique. Years after that, he mastered the craft. He realized that mosaics can be just as significant today as the art form was over 1,000 years ago. "I just saw that there was an opportunity to kind of like bring it into the 20th century as contemporary subject matter and thoughts," he says.
proper /ˈprɒpə(r)/ adj. 合适的、恰当的
perform /pəˈfɔːm/ v. 做(某事)
technique /tekˈniːk/ n. 技艺、工艺
master /ˈmɑːstə(r)/ v. 精通
craft /krɑːft/ n. 手艺
significant /sɪɡˈnɪfɪk(ə)nt/ adj. 重要的
opportunity /ˌɒpəˈtjuːnəti/ n. 机会
kind of like 有点像
contemporary /kənˈtemp(ə)r(ə)ri/ adj. 现代的
subject matter 主题、题材
Even though Bachor was now a mosaic artist, he didn't know where he would install his work. It wasn't as simple as painting a canvas and hanging it on a wall. Then one day he had an epiphany.
install /ɪnˈstɔːl/ v. 安装、安放
epiphany /ɪˈpɪf(ə)ni/ n. 顿悟
"It kind of dawned on me that we had this unsolvable problem outside of our house, and I also had this passion for this artwork that's so durable," he says. "So, I decided to make a custom piece of artwork for that pothole." Since then, Bachor has created mosaic pothole art around Chicago, Detroit, New York City and even in Finland.
kind of 有点、在某种程度上
something dawn /dɔːn/ on someone 某人突然明白某事
unsolvable /ʌnˈsɒlvəb(ə)l/ adj. 解决不了的(由solve加后缀-able变成形容词solvable,再加上表示否定的前缀un-)
passion /ˈpæʃ(ə)n/ n. 激情、酷爱
durable /ˈdjʊərəb(ə)l/ adj. 持久的、耐久的
custom /ˈkʌstəm/ adj. 定做的
Chicago /ʃɪˈkɑɡəʊ/ n. 芝加哥(美国城市)
Detroit /dəˈtrɔɪt/ n. 底特律(美国的汽车城)
Finland /ˈfɪnlənd/ n. 芬兰(北欧国家)
The mosaics are a mixture of Italian marble and glass and typically measure 45-by-60 centimeters. Theoretically, the mosaics can last for years, but most don't endure that long because roads get repaved over time.
mixture /ˈmɪkstʃə(r)/ n. 混合物
Italian /ɪˈtæljən/ adj. 意大利的
typically /ˈtɪpɪk(ə)li/ adv. 典型地、通常(由typical加后缀-ly变成副词)
measure /ˈmeʒə(r)/ v. 具有…的尺码
centimeter /ˈsentɪˌmiːtə(r)/ n. 厘米
theoretically /θɪəˈretɪk(ə)li/ adv. 理论上说(由theoretical加后缀-ly变成副词)
endure /ɪnˈdjʊə(r)/ v. 持续存在
repave /riːˈpeɪv/ v. 重新铺设
over time 随着时间的推移
While he may not be getting praise from drivers or pedestrians, Bachor's art is certainly a pleasant surprise to discover.
praise /preɪz/ n. 赞扬、表扬
pedestrian /pəˈdestriən/ n. 行人、步行者
discover /dɪˈskʌvə(r)/ v. 发现
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