Watercolor（水彩畫） is the oldest paints known. It dates back to the early cave men. They discovered that they could mix the natural colors found in the earth with water. In this way they could add lifelike qualities to drawings of animals and other figures on the wall of caves.

Fresco（壁畫）, one of the greatest art forms, is done with watercolor, it is created by mixing paints and water and applying these to wet plaster（灰泥）. Of the thousands of people who stand under Michelangelos’ works in the Sistine Chapel, very few know they are looking at perhaps the greatest watercolor painting in the world.

 The invention of oil painting by the Glemish masters in the fifteenth century made fresco painting go downhill, and for the next several centuries watercolor was used mainly for doing sketches（素描） or as tool for study. It was not until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that English painters put back watercolor as a serious art form. The English have widely-known love for the outdoors and also for small, private pictures. The softness of watercolor had a strong attraction for them.

The popularity of watercolor continued to grow until the twentieth century. The United States took the place of England and became the center of watercolor. It produced such well-known watercolor artists as Thomas Eakins and Andrew Wyeth.

The first watercolor users were___________

A. the early cave men              

B. Italian fresco artists

C. Flemish masters                 

D. the English artists in the 18th century

In the 16th and 17th centuries the artists thought__________.

A .watercolor was more costly, but better

B. oil painting lasted less long, but clearer and brighter

C. watercolor was not suitable for serious works

D. oil painting was difficult to use

According to the passage, watercolor painting was put back in England because ______

A. it was easy to use outdoors        

B. it was a strong tool

C. it was extremely bright in color    

D. it was well suited to popular tastes

What is the passage mainly about?________

A. the gradual weakness of fresco painting.

 B. Oils having more power of influence over watercolor.

C. The rediscovery of watercolor in England.

D. The start and development of watercolor.

Watercolor（水彩畫） is the oldest paints known. It dates back to the early cave men. They discovered that they could mix the natural colors found in the earth with water. In this way they could add lifelike qualities to drawings of animals and other figures on the wall of caves.

Fresco（壁畫）, one of the greatest art forms, is done with watercolor, it is created by mixing paints and water and applying these to wet plaster（灰泥）. Of the thousands of people who stand under Michelangelos’ works in the Sistine Chapel, very few know they are looking at perhaps the greatest watercolor painting in the world.

 The invention of oil painting by the Glemish masters in the fifteenth century made fresco painting go downhill, and for the next several centuries watercolor was used mainly for doing sketches（素描） or as tool for study. It was not until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that English painters put back watercolor as a serious art form. The English have widely-known love for the outdoors and also for small, private pictures. The softness of watercolor had a strong attraction for them.

The popularity of watercolor continued to grow until the twentieth century. The United States took the place of England and became the center of watercolor. It produced such well-known watercolor artists as Thomas Eakins and Andrew Wyeth.

1. The first watercolor users were___________

A. the early cave men               

B. Italian fresco artists

C. Flemish masters                  

D. the English artists in the 18th century

2. In the 16th and 17th centuries the artists thought__________.

A .watercolor was more costly, but better

B. oil painting lasted less long, but clearer and brighter

C. watercolor was not suitable for serious works

D. oil painting was difficult to use

3. According to the passage, watercolor painting was put back in England because ______

A. it was easy to use outdoors        

B. it was a strong tool

C. it was extremely bright in color    

D. it was well suited to popular tastes

4. What is the passage mainly about?________

A. the gradual weakness of fresco painting.

 B. Oils having more power of influence over watercolor.

C. The rediscovery of watercolor in England.

D. The start and development of watercolor.

 

 

Watercolour is the oldest paints known. It dates back to the early cave men who discovered they could add lifelike qualities to drawings of animals and other figures on the walls of caves by mixing the natural colours found in the earth with water.

Fresco, one of the greatest of all art forms, is done with watercolour. It is created by mixing paints and water and applying these to wet plaster. Of the thousands of people who stand under Michelangelo’s heroic ceiling in the Sistine Chapel, very few know that they are looking at perhaps the greatest watercolour painting in the world.

The invention of oil painting by the Flemish masters in the fifteenth century made fresco painting go down-hill, and for the next several centuries watercolour was used mainly for doing sketches or as a tool for study. It was not until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that English painters put back watercolour as a serious art form. The English have a widely-known love for outdoors and also small private pictures. The softness of watercolour had a remarkably strong attraction for them.

The popularity of watercolour continued to grow until the twentieth century. The United States passed England as the center for watercolour, producing such well-known watercolour artists as Thomas Eakins and Andrew Wyeth.

1.The purpose of the passage is to introduce _____. 

A. the gradual weakness of fresco painting

B. oils’ power or influence over watercolour

C. the discovery of watercolour in England     

D. the start and development of watercolour

2.In the 16th and 17th centuries the artists thought _____.

A. watercolour was softer, and thus better

B. oil painting lasted longer, and was better

C. watercolour wasn’t fit for finished works

D. watercolour was too hard to use in any works

3.According to the passage, watercolour painting was put back in England because ____

A. it was easy to use outdoors              B. it was a strong medium

C. it was extremely bright in colour        D. it was suited to popular tastes

4. What would the next paragraph most probably deal with?

A. The works of famous US watercolour artists 

B. Modern American oil painters

C. The weakness of oils as popular paints       

D. Techniques of producing watercolour

 

 

Throughout the history of the arts,the nature of creativity has remained constant to artists.No matter what objects they select,artists are to bring forth new forces and forms that cause change—to find poetry where no one has ever seen or experienced it before.
Landscape(風(fēng)景) is another unchanging element of art.It can be found from ancient times through the 17th-century Dutch painters to the 19th-century romanticists and impressionists.In the 1970s Alfred Leslie,one of the new American realists,continued this practice.Leslie sought out the same place where Toomas Cole,a romanticist,had produced paintings of the same scene a century and a half before.Unlike Cole who insists on a feeling of loneliness and the idea of finding peace in nature,Lealie paints what he actually sees.In his paintings,there is no particular change in emotion,and he includes ordinary things like the highway in the background.He also takes advantage of the latest developments of color photography(攝影術(shù)) to help both the eye and the memory when he improves his painting back in his workroom.
Besides,all art begs the age-old question:What is real?Each generation of artists has shown their understanding of reality in one form or another.The impressionists saw reality in brief emotional effects,the realists in everyday subjects and in forest scenes,and the Cro-Magnon cave people in their naturalistic drawings of the animals in the ancient Forests.To sum up,understanding reality is a necessary struggle for artists of all periods.
Over thousands of years the function of the arts has remained relatively constant.Past or present,Eastern or Western,the arts are a basic part of our immediate experience.Many and different are the faces of art,and together they express the basic need and hope of human beings.
【小題1】The underlined word “poetry” most probably means______.

A．a(chǎn)n object for artistic creation

B．a(chǎn) collection of poems

C．a(chǎn)n unusual quality

D．a(chǎn) natural scene

【小題2】Leslie’s paintings are extraordinary because______.

A．they are close in style to works in ancient times

B．they look like works by 19th-century painters

C．they draw attention to common things in life

D．they depend heavily on color photography

【小題3】What is the author’s opinion of artistic reality?

A．It will not be found in future works of art.

B．It does not have a long-lasting standard.

C．It is expressed in a fixed artistic form.

D．It is lacking in modern words of art.

【小題4】What does the author suggest about the arts in the last paragraph?

A．They express people’s curiosity about the past.

B．They make people interested in everyday experience.

C．They are considered important for variety in form.

D．They are regarded as a mirror of the human situation.

【小題5】Which of the following is the main topic of the passage?

A．History of the arts.

B．Basic questions of the arts.

C．New developments in the arts.

D．Use of modern technology in the arts.四、寫作(共兩節(jié)，滿分35分)

Watercolor is the oldest paints known. It dates back to the early cave men who discovered they could add lifelike qualities to drawings of animals and other figures on the walls of caves by mixing the natural colors found in the earth with water.

Fresco (壁畫), one of the greatest of all art forms, is done with watercolor. It is created by mixing paints and water and applying these to wet plaster （灰泥）. Of the thousands of people who stand under Michelangelo’s heroic ceiling in the Sistine Chapel, very few know that they are looking at perhaps the greatest watercolor painting in the world.

The invention of oil painting by the Flemish masters in the fifteenth century made fresco painting go downhill, and for the next several centuries watercolor was used mainly for doing sketches（草圖）or as a tool for study. It was not until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that English painters put back watercolor as a serious art form. The English have a widely-known love for outdoors and also small private pictures. The softness of watercolor had a remarkably strong attraction for them.

The popularity of watercolor continued to grow until the twentieth century. The United States passed England as the center for watercolor, producing such well-known watercolor artists as Thomas Eakins and Andrew Wyeth.

The purpose of the passage is to introduce ________.

A. the gradual weakness of fresco painting

B. oil’s power or influence over watercolor

C. the discovery of watercolor in England

D. the start and development of watercolor

In the 16^th and 17^th centuries the artists thought ________.

A. watercolor was softer, and thus better.

B. Oil painting lasted longer, and was better.

C. Watercolor wasn’t fit for finished works

D. Watercolor was too hard to use in any works.

According to the passage, watercolor painting was put back in England because ______.

A. it was easy to use outdoors     B. it was a strong medium（媒介）

C. it was extremely bright in color.  D. it was suited for popular tastes

What would the next paragraph most probably talk about?

   A. The works of famous US watercolor artists.

   B. Modern American oil painters.

   C. The weaknesses of oil as popular paints

   D. Techniques of producing watercolor