Question

What we today call American folk art was, indeed, art of, by and for ordinary, everyday“folks”who, with increasing prosperity and leisure(闲暇)，created a market for art of all kinds, and especially for portraits. Citizens of prosperous, essentially middle­class republics—whether ancient Romans, 17th century Dutch people, or 19th century Americans—have always shown a marked taste for portraiture. Starting in the late eighteenth century, the United States contained increasing numbers of such people, and of the artists who could meet their demands.

The earliest American folk art portraits come, not surprisingly, from New England—especially Connecticut and Massachusetts—for this was a wealthy and populous region and the center of a strong craft tradition. Within a few decades after the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, the population was pushing westward, and portrait painters could be found at work in western New York, Ohio, Kentucky, Illinois, and Missouri.Midway through its first century as a nation, the United States' population had increased roughly five times, and eleven new states had been added to the original thirteen. During these years the demand for portraits grew and grew, eventually to be satisfied by the camera. In 1839 the photograph taken by an early photographic process was introduced to America, announcing the age of photography, and within a generation the new invention put an end to the popularity of painted portraits. Once again an original portrait became a luxury(奢侈品)，commissioned by the wealthy and executed(执行)by the professional.

But in the time of greatest prosperity of portrait painting—from the late 18th century until the 1850's—anyone with small amount of artistic ability could become a limner，as such a portraitist was called. Local craftspeople—sign, coach, and house painters—began to paint portraits as a profitable sideline(副业)；sometimes as talented man or woman who began by sketching family members gained a local reputation and was besieged(包围)with requests for portraits; artists found it worth their whole to pack their paints, canvases, and brushes and to travel the countryside, often combining house decorating with portrait painting.

36．In Paragraph 1 the author mentions 17th century Dutch people as an example of a group that________.

A．consisted mainly of self­taught artists

B．appreciated portraits

C．influenced American folk art

D．had little time for the arts

37．According to the passage, where were many of the first American folk art portraits painted?

A．In western New York.

B．In Illinois and Missouri.

C．In Connecticut and Massachusetts.

D．In Ohio.

38．How much did the population of the United States increase in the first fifty years following independence?

A．It became three times larger.

B．It became five times larger.

C．It became eleven times larger.

D．It became thirteen times larger.

39．According to the passage, which of the following contributed to a decline in the demand for painted portraits?

A．The lack of a strong craft tradition.

B．The westward immigration of many painters.

C．The growing preference for landscape paintings.

D．The invention of the camera.

40．The author implies that most limners________.

A．received instruction from travelling teachers

B．were women

C．were from wealthy families

D．had no formal art training

Answer 1

B　

C　

B　

D　

D