Question

[Lê Quỳnh Anh]

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions from 43 to 50.

         With Robert Laurent and William Zorach, direct carving enters into the story of modern sculpture in the United States. Direct carving - in which the sculptors themselves carve stone or wood with mallet and chisel - must be recognized as something more than just a technique. Implicit in it is an aesthetic principle as well: that the medium has certain qualities of beauty and expressiveness with which sculptors must bring their own aesthetic sensibilities into harmony. For example, sometimes the shape or veining in a piece of stone or wood suggests, perhaps even dictates, not only the ultimate form, but even the subject matter.

The technique of direct carving was a break with the nineteenth-century tradition in which the making of a clay model was considered the creative act and the work was then turned over to studio assistants to be cast in plaster or bronze or carved in marble.

Neoclassical sculptors seldom held a mallet or chisel in their own hands, readily conceding that the assistants they employed were far better than they were at carving the finished marble. With the turn-of-the-century Crafts movement and the discovery of nontraditional sources of inspiration, such as wooden African figures and masks, there arose a new urge for hands-on, personal execution of art and an interaction with the medium. Even as early as the 1880's and 1890's, nonconformist European artists were attempting direct carving. By the second decade of the twentieth century, Americans — Laurent and Zorach most notably — had adopted it as their primary means of working.

Born in France, Robert Laurent(1890-1970)was a prodigy who received his education in the United States. In 1905 he was sent to Paris as an apprentice to an art dealer, and in the years that followed he witnessed the birth of Cubism, discovered primitive art, and learned the techniques of woodcarving from a frame maker.

Back in New York City by 1910, Laurent began carving pieces such as The Priestess, which reveals his fascination with African, pre-Columbian, and South Pacific art. Taking a walnut plank, the sculptor carved the expressive, stylized design. It is one of the earliest examples of direct carving in American sculpture. The plank's form dictated the rigidly frontal view and the low relief. Even its irregular shape must have appealed to Laurent as a break with a long-standing tradition that required a sculptor to work within a perfect rectangle or square.

What is one of the fundamental principles of direct carving?

A. A sculptor must work with talented assistants

B. The subject of a sculpture should be derived from classical stories

C. The material is an important element in a sculpture

D. Designing a sculpture is a more creative activity than carving it

Answer 1

[Dương Hoàn Anh]

Đáp án C

Thông tin: Implicit in it is an aesthetic principle as well: that the medium has certain qualities of beauty and expressiveness with which sculptors must bring their own aesthetic sensibilities into harmony. For example, sometimes the shape or veining in a piece of stone or wood suggests, perhaps even dictates, not only the ultimate form, but even the subject matter.

Dịch nghĩa: Tiềm ẩn trong nó cũng là một nguyên tắc thẩm mỹ: rằng phương tiện có những phẩm chất nhất định của vẻ đẹp và biểu cảm mà nhà điêu khắc phải mang sự nhạy cảm thẩm mỹ riêng của chúng vào sự hòa hợp. Ví dụ, đôi khi hình dạng hoặc hoa văn trong một mảnh đá hay gỗ cho thấy, có lẽ thậm chí quyết định, không chỉ hình thức cuối cùng, mà cả chủ đề.

Phương án C. The material is an important element in a sculpture = nguyên liệu là một yếu tố quan trọng trong một tác phẩm điêu khắc; là phương án chính xác nhất.

          A. A sculptor must work with talented assistants = Một nhà điêu khắc phải làm việc với các trợ lý tài năng.

Neoclassical sculptors seldom held a mallet or chisel in their own hands, readily conceding that the assistants they employed were far better than they were at carving the finished marble. = Các nhà điêu khắc tân cổ điển hiếm khi tự cầm một vồ hoặc đục trong tay mình, sẵn sàng thừa nhận rằng các trợ lý họ sử dụng là giỏi hơn nhiều so với họ khi khắc tạc tác phẩm đá cẩm thạch hoàn chỉnh.

Đây là sự thật thường xảy ra, nhưng không có nguyên tắc nào quy định một nhà điêu khắc phải làm việc với các trợ lý tài năng.

          B. The subject of a sculpture should be derived from classical stories = Các chủ đề của một tác phẩm điêu khắc nên được bắt nguồn từ những câu chuyện cổ điển.

Không có thông tin như vậy trong bài.

          D. Designing a sculpture is a more creative activity than carving it = Thiết kế một tác phẩm điêu khắc là một hoạt động sáng tạo hơn khắc nó.

Không có thông tin như vậy trong bài.