1. Read the text and translate it into Ukrainian.
2. Answer the following questions:
1. When did artists return to the traditions of the classical age?
2. What does “Renaissance” mean?
3. What did Renaissance center on?
4. What served as a constant reminder of past glories?
5. What caused the revival of interest to classical art?
6. What became a staple feature of Renaissance painting?
7. Who was at the forefront of the latest intellectual trends?
8. What is portrayed in Raphael’s “School of Athens”?
9. Who commissioned Bramante, Michelangelo and Raphael to create
masterpieces of Italian Renaissance art?
10. How did the status of artists rise in Renaissance?
3. Give Ukrainian equivalents of the following words and phrases:
witness
to revive the traditions
pinnacle of creativity
branches of art
to reach a crescendo
to occur
to remain a constant reminder of past glories
rediscovery
to become widely available
to emulate
staple feature
to be keen
to be at the forefront of the latest intellectual trends
straightforward illustrations
perfectly respectable
in essence
to rise dramatically
to regard as
to equate
foreground
4. Give English equivalents of the following words and phrases:
бути свідком вибуху художньої майстерності
повернутися до класичного періоду розвитку мистецтва
використовувати вплив славного минулого
досягнути вершини творчості
значне піднесення
архітектурні залишки
відновити золоту еру мистецтва
підвищуватися
пробуджувати
в свою чергу
спричинити підйом
мирські сюжети
передній план
5. Make up sentences of your own with the given words and phrases.
6. Match a line in A with a line in B.
A |
B |
to revive |
to attempt to equal or surpass |
pinnacle |
a gift or statement made in acknowledgment, gratitude, or admiration |
to occur |
to bring or to be brought back to life, consciousness, or strength |
available |
expensive or extravagant |
to emulate |
to make or regard a equivalent or similar in order to compare |
staple |
heathen, irreligious |
sumptuous |
obtainable or accessible, capable of being made use of, at hand |
pagan |
of prime importance, principal |
tribute |
the highest point or level of fame, success, etc. |
to equate |
to happen, take place, come about |
7. Summarize the text in English. Unit 34 text
Dutch art reflects the society’s joy in everyday life
With the rise of the Dutch republic, new forms of art became popular. The emergent wealthy merchant class chose to spend their money on portraits, landscapes, scenes of Dutch life, and still-life pictures.
The Netherlands had been part of the Spanish empire until the northern provinces finally gained independence in 1606. Holland, the richest of the provinces, rose rapidly, becoming a major maritime power in the seventeenth century, with extensive colonies. The Dutch spent much of their new wealth on the arts. Visitors to the country were amazed, both at the number of pictures that they saw, as well as the people who bought them. The diarist John Evelyn noted: "Tis an ordinary thing to find a common farmer lay out 2,000 or 3,000 pounds in this commodity; their houses are full of them." Another traveller observed: "All in general strive to adorn their houses, especially the outer or street room, with costly pieces."
The fact that owning art was commonplace had a profound impact on the type of art that was produced. Relatively few commissions came from powerful aristocrats or high-ranking churchmen, so there was little demand for the grandiose historical or allegorical scenes that filled the palaces in other parts of Europe. Calvinism, an austere form of Protestantism that opposed the decoration of churches with costly trappings, was the prevailing religion. Bourgeois patrons, who wanted comparatively small pictures, suitable for their modest town houses, dominated the art market instead. They preferred paintings that reflected their everyday lives and the world they inhabited.
Dutch landscape painting denied all forms of pretension, keeping as close as possible to nature itself. Dutch painters dispensed with idealized shepherds and architectural follies, spectacular panoramas and glowing sunsets. Instead, they concentrated on the simplest of scenes: a tranquil river, a field with cattle,
16 The Group Children
Frans Hals, c.1620
Dutch Seventeenth Century
an avenue of poplars. They lavished the same care and attention on nature in a smaller scale. The term still life originated in Holland (stilleven) and some artists specialized in arrangements of fruit, fish, shells, breakfast tables, and banquet scenes. Passionate about horticulture, the Dutch invested huge sums of money in rare plants, and they adored flower arrangements, both real and pictorial. There may even be a grain of truth in the anecdote that flower still lives were popular because those who could not afford to buy the actual flowers commissioned them.
Portraiture was also important and the Dutch prized candour and vitality above dignity and grandeur in their portraits. The first Dutch artist to give his portraits a freshness, intimacy, and spontaneity was Frans Hals. His sitters appear relaxed, friendly, and approachable. They are often captured smiling or laughing, and he shows them turning around or looking up, as if he has just interrupted them. This Group of Children is typical of his work, depicting ordinary people and celebrating their joy of life. Hals perfectly reflected a society that was proud of its way of living and integrated art as an essential aspect of its way of life.
TASKS