Every artist knows in his heart that he is saying something to the public. Not only does he want to say it well, but he wants it to be something which has not been said before. He hopes the public will listen and understand — he wants to teach them，and he wants them to learn from him.
What visual artists like painters want to teach is easy to make out but difficult to explain，because painters translate their experiences into shapes and colors, not words. They seem to feel that a certain selection of shapes and colors, out of the countless billions possible, is exceptionally interesting for them and worth showing to us. Without their work we should never have noticed these particular shapes and colors, or have felt the delight which they brought to the artist.
Most artists take their shapes and colors from the world of nature and from human bodies in motion and repose ； their choices indicate that these aspects of the world are worth looking at, that they contain beautiful sights. Contemporary artists might say that they merely choose subjects that provide an interesting pattern, that there is nothing more in it. Yet even they do not choose entirely without reference to the character of their subjects.
If anyone painter chooses to paint a gangrenous leg and another a lake in moonlight, each of them is directing our attention to a certain aspect of the world. Each painter is telling us something, showing us something, emphasizing something — all of which means that, consciously or unconsciously，he is trying to teach us.
1.[单选题]An artist’s choice of shapes and colors indicates that he believes them to be____- A.meaningful in themselves
- B.merely beautiful
- C.a reflection of his experiences
- D.worth looking at
2.[单选题]The writer says that contemporary artists might say their choice of subject ____- A.carries a message to the public
- B.only provides interesting patterns
- C.has no pattern or form
- D.teaches the public important truths
3.[单选题]The writer says that contemporary art contains____. - A.nothing but meaningless patterns
- B.uninteresting aspects of the world
- C.subjects chosen partly for their meaning
- D.completely meaningless
4.[单选题]A painter chooses certain shapes and colors because he feels that they ____- A.have been used frequently
- B.are easy to work with
- C.are worth showing to the public
- D.will be most attractive to the public
5.[单选题]Compared with a painter of unpleasant subjects, a painter who draws a lake in moonlight is____.- A.conveying more meaning
- B.pointing out different things
- C.more skilled
- D.communicating less
6.[单选题]It is hard to explain what a painter is saying，because____.- A.most painters do not express themselves well
- B.a painter uses unusual words and phrases
- C.a painter uses shapes and colors instead of words
- D.many painters do not say anything
7.[单选题]Without the artist’s work, the public might not- A.notice particular shapes and colors
- B.see the shapes and colors that express his experience
- C.feel his delight in shapes and colors
- D.all of the above
8.[单选题]Implied but not stated____，.- A.a painting is more easily understood than a symphonyB
- B.art is merely the arranging of shape and color
- C.every artist tries to say something to the public
- D.one must look beyond shape and color to find what the artist is saying
9.[单选题]An artist hopes that the public will____.- A.understand him and learn from him
- B.notice only shapes and colors in his work
- C.teach him something
- D.believe what he says in his work
10.[单选题]The word “translate” underlined in Paragraph 2 means to____- A.express in another language
- B.be capable of being translated in another language
- C.express something in another form
- D.judge or guess that something has the specified meaning or intention
参考答案： D,B,C,C,B,C,D,D,A,C