在美国中部熠熠生辉的中国文化

石欣灵

纳尔逊·阿特金斯艺术博物馆位于美国中部密苏里州的堪萨斯城，这座建于20世纪30年代初的博物馆收藏了数千件中国文物。

1 The Nelson⁃Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City， Missouri collects more than 7，500 high⁃quality Chinese works， ranging from ceramics （瓷器） to furniture， and from paintings to sculptures. “We may not have the biggest Chinese art collection， but it is one of the finest in the world，” says Ling⁃en Lu， curator （馆长） and Chinese art specialist of the museum.

2 An exhibition on the theme of Lively Creatures： Animals in Chinese Art was held at the museum， which displayed lots of ancient Chinese paintings with images of animals in many art forms. The creatures on the paintings represent celebration， personal messages， and so on.

3 Organizers of the exhibition produced a set of cards， with images of animals on one side and their cultural meanings in Chinese artistic tradition on the other. For example， deer symbolize a long life. The cards are provided to visitors for free.

4 “I find it very interesting， and the way that the things are drawn is very cool，” says  Camden Lombard， a 17⁃year⁃old high school student， after visiting the exhibition. “I feel like I know a lot more about Chinese culture and what Chinese people were like back then as well as their beliefs and stuff. “I want to go to China someday to find more，” he adds.

5 “Its a big source of pride having such a collection of Chinese art，” says Christie Makar， an educator with the school outreach and educator programs of the museum. “Its kind of eye⁃opening and were bringing the world together，” says Makar. “There are so many similarities and we can appreciate the beauty and the work that artists from around the world have created. Were also trying to give our students the idea that there are differences， but they are beautiful differences.”

6 “Were in a situation where its sometimes hard to look outside of your own personal viewpoints，” says Marla， manager of volunteer engagement at the museum. “I think having access to seeing what other cultures have created， what they valued and appreciated and what was important to them， is really important in building that understanding about all the people we share this planet with.”

[Reading][Check]

Gist 1. What is the first paragraph mainly about？

A. The history of the Nelson⁃Atkins Museum of Art.

B. Reasons for building the Nelson?Atkins Museum of Art.

C. Functions of the Nelson⁃Atkins Museum of Art.

D. A brief introduction to the Nelson⁃Atkins Museum of Art.

Detail 2. What do we know about the exhibition Lively Creatures： Animals in Chinese Art？

A. It was held both in China and America.

B. It offered free cultural cards to its visitors.

C. It aimed at promoting Chinese culture among students.

D. It involved paintings with images of animals and people.

Inference 3. Whats Christie Makars attitude towards Chinese art？

A. Critical. B. Neutral.

C. Optimistic. D. Suspicious.

Inference 4. What can we infer from Marlas words in the last paragraph？

A. It is vital to understand other cultures.

B. It matters a lot to hold on to ones own cultural roots.

C. It is sometimes important to have our own viewpoints.

D. It is tough to deal with culture shock at the present moment.

[Language][Study]

Ⅰ. Discover useful structures in the text

1. which引導非限制性定语从句

An exhibition on the theme of Lively Creatures： Animals in Chinese Art was held at the museum， which displayed lots of ancient Chinese paintings with images of animals in many art forms. 馆内举办了以“生气勃勃：中国艺术中的动物”为主题的展览，展出了许多中国古代绘画作品，这些画中有以多种艺术形式呈现的动物形象。

2. that引导同位语从句

Were also trying to give our students the idea that there are differences， but they are beautiful differences. 我们也试图让我们的学生知道存在差异，但它们是美丽的差异。

Ⅱ. Text⁃centered chunks

range from...to （在一定的范围内）变化

a set of  一套；一副

and so on 等等；诸如此类

for example 例如

feel like 感觉就像

kind of 有点儿；稍微；有几分

have access to 得以接近；得以会见；得以进入