Answer the questions

1. How do you understand the words ‘a social painter’ and ‘a portrait painter’? What topics do they deal with? What qualities do you think are required of the painters of these genres? 2. How are the works of Thomas Gainsborough and John Constable distinct and individual? 3. What artistic means did all painters use to achieve greater effects in their works?

Name some of your country’s famous artists who succeeded brilliantly as portrait painters and as landscape painters. What are their greatest merits as painters?    

                       

Read and translate the text The National Gallery

The National Gallery was begun in 1824 when the government of the day decided that London needed a national art collection to compete with famous European galleries, such as the Uffizi in Florence and the Louvre in Paris. It just happened that the Pall Mall house o Jon Julius Angerstein was for sale at the time, along with his collection of 38 painting, including works by Raphael, Rembrandt and Van Dyck. They were purchased for 57,000 and Angerstein`s house was used as the first gallery, until the present building was completed in 1838. In the meantime, a number of important pictures were added to the collection through gifts and bequests, but many of the most famous works were acquired by shrewd gallery directors scouring Europe for masterpieces that could be bought cheaply because the artists were temporarily “out of fashion”. Because space in the gallery was limited, the directors pursued a policy of quality rather than quantity.

The National Gallery fills the whole of the north side of Trafalgar Square, and house of Western paintings. Few people notice that the building itself is a rather uninspired piece of neo-classical design because there are so man competing attractions in the square and the view from the entrance terrace is superb. Two bronze statues stand on the lawns either side of the entrance: one of James ΙΙ dressed like a Roman, and one of George Washington, presented by the American people in 1921.  

The National Gallery is one of the world’s richest art collections, covering most schools and periods of painting up to the 20^th century. The gallery provides a leaflet locating the 20 most popular masterpieces. It also highlights a particular painting each day, providing notes on the subject, context and artistic achievement. It is a good idea to start your tour at the new Sainsbury Wing annexe. Here you can check on the day’s free lectures and guided tours at the information desk and obtain a room-by-room guide to the gallery.

Complete the sentences

1. London needed a national art collection to compete with ….

2. The present building was completed in ….

3. The directors pursued a policy of …rather than ….

4. The National Gallery is situated … and houses ….

5. The view from the entrance terrace of the building is ….

6. The National Gallery is one of the world’s … collections, covering … of painting up to the 20^th century.

7. Here you can check on ….