Whenweconsidergreatpaintersofthepast,thestudyofartandthestudyofillusioncannotalwaysbeseparated.ByillusionImeanthosecontrivancesofcolor,line,shape,andforththatleadustoseemarksonaflatsurfaceasdepictingthree-dimensionalobjectsinspace.ImustemphasizethatIamnotmakingaplea,disguisedorotherwise,fortheexerciseofillusionisttricksinpaintingtoday,althoughIam,infactrathercriticalofcertaintheoriesofnon-representationalart.Buttoargueoverthesetheorieswouldbetomissthepoint.ThatthediscoveriesandeffectsofrepresentationthatweretheprideofearlierartistshavebecometrivialtodayIwouldnotdenyforamoment.YetIbelievethatweareinrealdangeroflosingcontactwithpastmastersifweacceptthefashionabledoctrinethatsuchmattersneverhadanythingtodowithart.Theveryreasonwhytherepresentationofnaturecannowbeconsideredsomethingcommonplaceshouldbeofthegreatestinteresttoarthistorians.Neverbeforehastherebeenanagewhenthevisualimagewassocheapineverysenseoftheword.Wearesurroundedandassailedbypostersandadvertisements,comicsandmagazineillustrations.Weseeaspectsofrealityrepresentedontelevision,postagestamps,andfoodpackages.Paintingistaughtinschoolandpracticedasapastime,andmanymodestamateurshavemasteredtricksthatwouldhavelookedlikesheermagictothe14th?centurypainterGiotto.EventhecrudecoloredrenderingsonacerealboxmighthavemadeGiotto’scontemporariesgasp.PerhapstherearepeoplewhoconcludedfromthisthatthecerealboxissuperiortoaGiotto;Idonot.ButIthinkthatthevictoryandvulgarizationofrepresentationalskillscreateaproblemforbotharthistoriansandcritics.InthisconnectionitisinstructivetoremembertheGreeksayingthattomarvelisthebeginningofknowledgeandifweceasetomarvelwemaybeindangerofceasingtoknow.Ibelievewemustrestoreoursenseofwonderatthecapacitytoconjureupbyforms,lines,shades,orcolorsthosemysteriousphantomsofvisualrealitywecall“pictures.”Evencomicsandadvertisements,rightlyviewed,providefoodforthought.Justasthestudyofpoetryremainsincompletewithoutanawarenessofthelanguageofprose,so,Ibelieve,thestudyofartwillbeincreasinglysupplementedbyinquiryintothe“linguistics”ofthevisualimage.Thewaythelanguageofartreferstothevisibleworldisbothsoobviousandsomysteriousthatitisstilllargelyunknownexcepttoartistswhouseitasweusealllanguage—withoutneedingtoknowitsgrammarandsemantics. Theauthorofthepassageexplicitly,?disagrees?withwhichofthefollowingstatements?
A.In modern society even non-artists can master techniques that great artists of the 14th?century did not employ. B.The ability to represent a three-dimensional object on a flat surface has nothing to do with art. C.In modern society the victory of representational skills has created a problem for art critics. D.The way that artists are able to represent the visible world is an area that needs a great deal more study before it can be fully understood.正确答案B
