在线英语听力室

VOA慢速英语 2007 0919b

时间:2007-12-19 06:00:10

搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号:tingroom,领取免费英语资料大礼包。

(单词翻译)

VOICE ONE:

I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Shirley Griffith with EXPLORATIONS in VOA Special English   We begin a series of programs about efforts to keep alive old ways of doing things that are culturally important.  Today we tell about a large outdoor art project made of traditional natural materials.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

The new National Museum of the American Indian is near the United States Capitol building on the grassy1 mall area in Washington, D.C.  The museum building is made of yellow rocks.  They are roughly2 cut and placed so the outside walls look like the tall cliffs3 in the American Southwest.

The design of the building is very different from the other museums and government buildings that are in the center of Washington.  Most of these well known buildings are made of white or gray marble or concrete.  They look like most building, designed and built by people. The Indian museum reminds people of the natural, native world.  Yet the National Museum of the American Indian, like all the other buildings in the city, is designed to look the same forever.

VOICE TWO:

Something very different has risen from a small space of ground outside the south side of the museum.  Five large new sculptures have been built there to welcome visitors. These tall graceful4 statues are not like most outdoor art, which is made of stone or metal. 

They are made of materials used by people throughout the world to make their homes.  The artist made the sculptures out of local natural resources that are not permanent.  The sculptures are designed to slowly return to the earth. 

VOICE ONE:

 
Nora Naranjo-Morse building a sculpture
Nora Naranjo-Morse is the artist.  She is a Native American from Santa Clara Pueblo5 in New Mexico.  She grew up in a family that made pots from the clay dug from the ground near their Pueblo.  She is a sculptor6 who usually works7 with clay or bronze.  She is also a poet and filmmaker.

In two thousand six, the National Museum of the American Indian announced that Miz Naranjo-Morse won a design competition for outdoor sculptures to be placed next to the museum.  The sculptures would celebrate the third anniversary8 of the museum, which opened September twenty-first, two thousand four.  The judges chose her design from among fifty-five entries by artists from Native communities in North America and South America.  

VOICE TWO:

Nora Naranjo-Morse says she had been thinking for a while that she would like to create some public sculptures that would be forever changing.  When she heard about the competition of the National Museum of the American Indian she decided9 to propose10 building sculptures that would wear away over time.  She thought it was be especially interesting in a city like Washington, D.C., where most of the art and the buildings are permanent.   She named her sculpture project “Always Becoming.‿/P>

VOICE ONE:

The five sculptures that resulted are from more than two meters to almost six meters tall.  Three are together in one grassy area outside the museum.  They are named Mother, Father and Little One.  Two larger ones are sheltered nearby under a tall old elm tree.  They are named Moon Woman and Mountain Bird. 

All of them are made of organic11 materials from the earth -- clay, dirt, water, sand, straw, wood and stone.  Through the years they will slowly wear away.  They will always be changing and becoming something new as the weather works on them.  As the outside wears away, something else will appear.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO: 

Nora Naranjo-Morse says her sculpture project is based on how Native people through history have been affected12 by their environment.  She says the Native community sees itself as always changing to react to the social, political and natural environment. 

She says the idea that art, objects and buildings are not permanent is part of Native culture.  A long time ago Native Americans made their cooking pots from clay.  When a pot broke, it became part of the earth again.  Houses were built from natural materials.  When the houses were no longer used, they slowly returned to the earth.

VOICE ONE:

Miz Naranjo-Morse began thinking the sculptures should involve designs of Native homes.  She wanted them to also represent male and female13 relations, family and community.  Then she says she started playing with ideas, drawing them, and finally making models.  Yet she still did not know exactly how the sculptures would look when they were finished. 

VOICE TWO:

She was not really concerned about the exact shape the sculptures would take because she had a feeling that they would find their own voice.  She says: “They grew to be whatever they wanted.‿nbsp; That is the way she usually creates her art.  She starts with an idea of what she wants to express and what materials she will use.  As she works, she says, the art seems to develop its own life.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

In May, Nora Naranjo-Morse arrived in Washington from her home in Espanola, New Mexico to begin building the sculptures.  The work would take one month.  She had several helpers, including her niece from Arizona, Athena Swentzell Steen, Athena’s husband Bill, and their children.  The Steens are experts at building structures of natural materials.  Don Juan Morales of Durango, Mexico, and his family also helped 
Mixing materials to build the sculptures
with the project. They also had experience with natural building materials.  They all worked together as a team.

The crew found large gray stones to make a solid base for the sculptures.  They gathered dirt, sand, clay and straw from the local area.  They used their hands and sometimes feet to mix the dry material with water in large containers. 

VOICE TWO:

The sculptures rose from the ground as the handfuls14 of the wet dirt and straw mixture were added to each shape.  They grew slowly.  Each layer of the wet mix had to be firmly connected to the dry part.  Then it had to dry hard in the sun before any more material could be added.

Workers at the Indian Museum and in offices near the museum stopped every day to see how the pieces were changing.  Some helped build the sculptures.  Groups of small children from the Smithsonian’s Early Education Center helped mix the mud and put it on with their hands.  So did a group of teachers who wanted to learn about traditional Native American building methods to teach their students.

VOICE ONE:

The sculptures are all different.  Two of them, Father and Mountain Bird, are made of black locust15 tree branches.  The long wood pieces are placed in a wide circle at the bottom.  The poles lean in until they come together at the top like tepees that were used as homes by the Plains Indians of North America.  Spaces between the wood poles are filled with woven mats made from bamboo growing near the museum.  Vines16 will grow up the sculptures and enclose17 them, changing their appearance.

Inside the Father sculpture is a special piece of wood.  Miz Naranjo-Morse’s parents cut it in New Mexico more than fifty year ago to use as a support in a building.

The Mother sculpture is a small rounder clay shape.  It has a hole in the center.  When you look through it you see a large stone that marks the southern point of the museum.

(MUSIC)  

VOICE TWO:

 
Athena Steen plastering19 to finish a sculpture
At the end of the summer, Nora Naranjo-Morse and some of her crew returned for a week to finish the rough sculptures.  They made a smooth mix of dirt, sand and water to cover the outside of the sculptures.  Natural colors from different clays were added to the plaster18.  The plaster dried hard and smooth in the sun.  Then they carved Native American designs into some of the surfaces. 

VOICE ONE:

The work of building the sculptures is over.  The many hands are through shaping them.  Yet sun and rain, snow and wind will continue to shape them through the years.  The sculptures will always be changing, always becoming something new. 

As Nora Naranjo-Morse wrote in her book, "Mud Woman, Poems from the Clay": “There is nothing like an idea that comes to life through clay.‿/P>

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

This program was written by Marilyn Rice Christiano and produced by Mario Ritter.  I'm Shirley Griffith.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Steve Ember. You can get more information about activities celebrating the anniversary of the National Museum of the American Indian at our Web site voaspecialenglish.com.  Listen again next month to EXPLORATIONS for another in a series of programs about efforts to keep traditional ways alive.


分享到:


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 grassy DfBxH     
adj.盖满草的;长满草的
参考例句:
  • They sat and had their lunch on a grassy hillside.他们坐在长满草的山坡上吃午饭。
  • Cattle move freely across the grassy plain.牛群自由自在地走过草原。
2 roughly nXrxK     
adv.概略地,粗糙地,粗鲁地
参考例句:
  • If you treat your coat so roughly,it will be worn out soon.你如果这么糟蹋你的外套,它很快就不能穿了。
  • The island is roughly circular in shape.这个岛屿大致是圆形的。
3 cliffs e083e9c7853d148373e503224538662c     
n.悬崖,峭壁(cliff的复数形式)
参考例句:
  • the chalk cliffs of southern England 英格兰南部的白垩质峭壁
  • Local folklore has it that prehistoric men drove cattle over these cliffs. 当地民间传说中称,史前人类把野牛从这些悬崖上驱赶下去。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 graceful deHza     
adj.优美的,优雅的;得体的
参考例句:
  • His movements on the parallel bars were very graceful.他的双杠动作可帅了!
  • The ballet dancer is so graceful.芭蕾舞演员的姿态是如此的优美。
5 pueblo DkwziG     
n.(美国西南部或墨西哥等)印第安人的村庄
参考例句:
  • For over 2,000 years,Pueblo peoples occupied a vast region of the south-western United States.在长达2,000多年的时间里,印第安人统治着现在美国西南部的大片土地。
  • The cross memorializes the Spanish victims of the 1680 revolt,when the region's Pueblo Indians rose up in violent protest against their mistreatment and burned the cit
6 sculptor 8Dyz4     
n.雕刻家,雕刻家
参考例句:
  • A sculptor forms her material.雕塑家把材料塑造成雕塑品。
  • The sculptor rounded the clay into a sphere.那位雕塑家把黏土做成了一个球状。
7 works ieuzIh     
n.作品,著作;工厂,活动部件,机件
参考例句:
  • We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
  • The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。
8 anniversary Cw0zD     
n.周年(纪念日)
参考例句:
  • They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。
  • Today is my parents'30th wedding anniversary.今天是我父母结婚30周年纪念日。
9 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
10 propose A0lzq     
v.提出,建议;提名,推荐
参考例句:
  • Did he propose marriage to you?他向你求婚了吗?
  • I propose resting for an hour.我建议休息一小时。
11 organic 3RAzW     
adj.有机的,有机物的;有组织的
参考例句:
  • Organic farming is expanding everywhere.有机农业正在各地迅速发展起来。
  • The organic fertilizer shall keep the soil in good heart.这有机肥一定会使土壤保持肥沃。
12 affected TzUzg0     
adj.不自然的,假装的
参考例句:
  • She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
  • His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。
13 female 3kSxf     
adj.雌的,女(性)的;n.雌性的动物,女子
参考例句:
  • We only employ female workers.我们只雇用女工。
  • The animal in the picture was a female elephant.照片上的动物是头母象。
14 handfuls 1c61c8a23cf34e19b6e3367b0c40e56c     
一把(的量)( handful的名词复数 ); 用手抓起的数量; 少数人(或事物); 难以控制的人(或动物)
参考例句:
  • We shall take part in it as handfuls of dust and splinters of bone. 我们将是作为一撮尘土,几根枯骨参加将来的生活。 来自英汉文学
  • He reached gloomily into one of his trees and picked handfuls of fruit. 他闷闷不乐地把手伸到一棵树上,摘下一把水果来。
15 locust m8Dzk     
n.蝗虫;洋槐,刺槐
参考例句:
  • A locust is a kind of destructive insect.蝗虫是一种害虫。
  • This illustration shows a vertical section through the locust.本图所示为蝗虫的纵剖面。
16 vines 54c9d645462eec110cb822b9be6a9056     
n.藤本植物,藤( vine的名词复数 );葡萄树
参考例句:
  • Melons grow on vines. 瓜长在藤上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Grape vines overarched the garden path. 葡萄藤在花园小路上方形成了拱形。 来自《简明英汉词典》
17 enclose Spcx2     
vt.围住,包住;把…装入信封,附入
参考例句:
  • I'll enclose his letter with mine.我将他的信装入我的信中寄出。
  • I enclose two tickets along with this letter.我随信附上两张票。
18 plaster LO7xz     
n.石膏,灰泥,膏药;v.涂以灰泥,敷以膏药,使...平
参考例句:
  • He mixed up some plaster to repair the wall.他和了一些灰泥去补墙。
  • She applied the plaster on his shoulder.她将膏药贴在他的膀子上。
19 plastering 43f22d19b3fd2fcc2def214423951fc8     
n.涂以灰泥,石膏工艺
参考例句:
  • Sue's cousin was plastering the ceiling in a dank basement. 苏的表弟当时正在一间潮湿的地下室抹房顶。 来自互联网
  • For a really smooth surface, use a plastering float. 要想获得真正光滑的表面,请使用灰泥抹子。 来自互联网

本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎 点击提交 分享给大家。