11．
Some of the best known works of a11time were painted by the Dutch Post-Impressionist artist，Vincent Willem Van Gogh（1858-1890）．
And Irises（1889）is among the most recognized of his pieces．
On May 8，1889，Van Gogh was admitted to the mental hospital at Saint Paul-de-Mausole，France．During his stay he painted some 130 paintings with the surrounding gardens and clinic becoming his main subjects for painting．
Among these were the famous The Starry Night and Irises．
Inspired by the nature surrounding him，Van Gogh began his work on Irises within the first week of his stay at the hospital．Like many artists of his time Van Gogh was influenced by Japanese woodblock（木刻）prints which began in the 17th century．The use of black outlines in Irises is a typical feature of the Japanese works．It helped to strengthen the expressive power of the painting．Irises is the one of Van Gogh's paintings that has a stillness and beauty not seen in many of his later works．
The technique of Japanese artist Hokusai was used by Van Gogh with precision．The use of blue and violet（紫色）bring the flowers to life．This also created a sense of movement and depth to the flowers．Van Gogh placed the irises unevenly（不均衡地）on the page，making the flowers the focus．These are all techniques taken from Hokusai．Van Gogh added to his work his own style，however，by placing orange marigolds carefully in the background．The position of a single white iris begs many questions from the viewers that are still open for interpretation（解读）Currently one of the most expensive paintings，Irises shows Van Gogh's ability to use his surroundings to paint images that have depth and character．Although it was painted during a time of suffering for Van Gogh，he was able to channel that energy into turning bright colors，deep outline and flat paint into works of art．His influence is forever felt among admirers and artists alike．
60．From the passage we can learn that Van GoghC．
A．painted about 130paintings all his life
B．admired many artists of his time
C．painted Irises at Saint Paul-de-Mausole
D．was a French Post-Impressionist artist
61．According to the passage，IrisesB．
A．is a typical woodblock print
B．reflects some techniques of Hokusai
C．shows Van Gogh's pessimistic view of life
D．resembles many of Van Gogh's later works
62．Van Gogh chose blue and violet so that the flowers couldA
A．1ook lively
B．be the focus
C．be moving
D．1ook uneven
63．Which of the following is true about the single white iris？B
A．People share the same view on it．
B．Its position inspires viewers to think．
C．Van Gogh painted it in a strange way．
D．It serves as the background of the painting．
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