He lived his whole life as a poor man He suffered from a mental illness that led him to cut off part of his left ear in 1888 and to shoot himself two years later. But after his death, he achieved the world fame.

　　* And the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, home to the biggest collection of his masterpieces, is marking the anniversary with exhibitions throughout the year.

　　“He is a big fame like Einstein and Beethoven. He is such a great figure. We are always amazed by how popular he is and his popularity seems to be growing.” said Andreas Bluehm, the museum's head of exhibitions.

　　Van Gogh was the son of a pastor. He left school when he was just 15. By the age of 27, he had already tried many jobs including an art gallery salesman and a French teacher. Finally in 1880, he decided to begin his studies in art.

　　“Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I have before my eyes. I use colour more freely, in order to express myself more forcibly,” he wrote in a letter to his brother, Theo, in 1888.

　　Van Gogh sold only one painting during his short life. But now his works are sold for millions of dollars. His “Portrait of Dr. Gachet” was sold for US 89.5 million in 1990. It is the highest price ever paid for a painting.

1．The second paragraph mainly tells us that ________.

[　　]

A．the Van Gogh Museum is located in Amsterdam

B．the Van Gogh Museum has the biggest collection of Van Gogh'smasterpieces

C．exhibitions will be held in honor of Van Gogh

D．the Van Gogh Museum will hold exhibitions the whole year through for Van Gogh

2．The underlined word “figure” in the third paragraph means “________”.

[　　]

3．The writer cited a part of a letter written by Van Gogh to show Van Gogh's ________.

[　　]

4．Choose the right order of the given events.

a．He worked as a French teacher.

b．He achieved the world fame.

c．He left school. d. He cut off his left ear.

e．He shot himself. f. He began studies in art.

[　　]

He lived his whole life as a poor man. His art and talent were recognized by almost no one. He suffered from a mental（精神的）illness that led him to cut off part of his left ear in 1888 and to shoot himself two years later. But after his death, he achieved world fame. Today, Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh is recognized as one of
the leading artists of all time.
　　Now, 150 years after his birth on March 30, 1853, Zundert, the town of his birth, has made 2003 “The van Gogh Year”in his honor. And the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, home to the biggest collection of his masterpieces, is marking the anniversary（周年纪念）with exhibitions throughout the year. The museum draws around 1.3 million visitors every year. Some people enjoy the art and then learn about his life. Others are first interested in his life, which then helps them understand his art.
Van Gogh was the son of a pastor（牧师）. He left school when he was just 15. By the age of 27, he had already tried many jobs including an art gallery（画廊）salesman and a French teacher. Finally in 1880, he decided to begin his studies in art.
Van Gogh is famed for his ability to put his own emotions into his paintings and show his feelings about a scene. His style is marked by short, broad brush strokes（笔画）.“Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I have before my eyes, I use color more freely, in order to express myself more forcibly,” he wrote in a letter to his brother in 1888.
Van Gogh sold only one painting during his short life. He relied heavily on the support from his brother, an art dealer who lived in Paris. But now his works are sold for millions of dollars. His portrait of Dr. Gacher sold for $89.5 million in 1990. It is the highest price ever paid for a painting. “I think his paintings are powerful and the brilliant colors in them are attractive to people,” said a Van Gogh’s fan.
【小题1】All through his life, Van Gogh __________.

A．depended on his brother	B．worked hard on art studies
C．was not recognized by people	D．expressed himself in paintings

【小题2】 Van Gogh killed himself because of ___________.

A．the poor life	B．his illness
C．his pain from left ear	D．the objections from the artists of his time

【小题3】 One of the characteristics of Van Gogh’s paintings is ______________.

A．the likeness between his paintings and the reality

B．the short time for him to complete a painting

C．the various styles mixed together

D．the special strokes he made

【小题4】 The selling of his paintings is considered to be the most successful because ________.

A．more and more people like his paintings

B．people can understand him through his paintings

C．1.3 million people visit his painting museum every year

D．Zundert has made 2003 “The Van Gogh Year” in his honor

【小题5】 We can infer from the passage that _______.

A．his powerful art came from his poor life

B．his fellow townsmen regret treating him unfairly

C．all his paintings were drawn in the last 10 years of his life

D．most of his paintings are kept in the museum of his hometown

阅读理解

　　He lived his whole life as a poor man. His art and talent were recognized by almost no one. He suffered from a mental illness that led him to cut off part of his left ear in 1888 and to shoot himself two years later.

　　But after his death, he got world fame.

　　Today, Dutch artist Vincent Yan Gogh is regarded as one of the leading artists of all time. Postcards and posters of his paintings and drawings continue to sell like hot cakes.

　　Yan Gogh was the son of a pastor. He left school when he was just 15By the age of 27, ht had already tried many jobs including an art gallery salesman and a French teacher. Finally in 1880, he decided to begin his studies in art.

　　His masterpieces including portraits, sunflowers and landscapes were produced in just 10 years.

　　Yan Gogh was well-known for his ability to put his own emotions into his paintings and show his feelings about a scene. His style is marked by short, broad brushstrokes(笔画).

　　“Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I have before my eyes, I use colour more freely, in order to express myself more forcibly,” he wrote in a letter to his brother, Theo, in 1888.

　　Van Gogh sold only one painting during his short life. He relied heavily on support from Theo, an art dealer who lived in Paris.

　　But now his works are sold for millions of dollars. His Portrait of Dr. Cachet sold for US $ 89.5 million in 1990It is the highest price ever paid for a painting.

　　“I thins his paintings are powerful and the brilliant colors in them are attractive to people,” said Molly Anderson, a Van Gogh fan.

1．The underlined words “hot cakes” here mean ________.

[　　]

A．cakes that are cooking

B．cakes that taste hot

C．things that are popular

D．things that cost less

2．Which of the following is NOT true?

[　　]

A．Gogh killed himself in 1890

B．Gogh's painting styles are unique(独特)

C．Gogh's art was well received at his times

D．Theo, an art dealer got on well with Gogh

3．The passage suggests that ________.

[　　]

A．the author thinks highly of Gogh's painting

B．Molly Anderson knew little about Gogh's work

C．Gogh was not pleased with his work so that only sold one painting in his life

D．Gogh's interest in drawing formed at school

4．Why did the writer cite(引用) a part of a letter written by Van Gogh?

[　　]

A．To show Van Gogh's skill.

B．To show his style.

C．To show that he was an emotional person.

D．To show he was an unusual man.

5．The best title for the passage is ________.

[　　]

A．Gogh-A great artist

B．Artist's life is not easy

C．Owning Gogh's works means wealth

D．Artist's dream comes true after death

He lived his whole life as a poor man. His art and talent were recognized by almost no one. He suffered from a mental（精神的）illness that led him to cut off part of his left ear in 1888 and to shoot himself two years later. But after his death, he achieved world fame. Today, Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh is recognized as one of

the leading artists of all time.

　　Now, 150 years after his birth on March 30, 1853, Zundert, the town of his birth, has made 2003 “The van Gogh Year”in his honor. And the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, home to the biggest collection of his masterpieces, is marking the anniversary（周年纪念）with exhibitions throughout the year. The museum draws around 1.3 million visitors every year. Some people enjoy the art and then learn about his life. Others are first interested in his life, which then helps them understand his art.

Van Gogh was the son of a pastor（牧师）. He left school when he was just 15. By the age of 27, he had already tried many jobs including an art gallery（画廊）salesman and a French teacher. Finally in 1880, he decided to begin his studies in art.

Van Gogh is famed for his ability to put his own emotions into his paintings and show his feelings about a scene. His style is marked by short, broad brush strokes（笔画）.“Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I have before my eyes, I use color more freely, in order to express myself more forcibly,” he wrote in a letter to his brother in 1888.

Van Gogh sold only one painting during his short life. He relied heavily on the support from his brother, an art dealer who lived in Paris. But now his works are sold for millions of dollars. His portrait of Dr. Gacher sold for $89.5 million in 1990. It is the highest price ever paid for a painting. “I think his paintings are powerful and the brilliant colors in them are attractive to people,” said a Van Gogh’s fan.

1.All through his life, Van Gogh __________.

A．depended on his brother	B．worked hard on art studies
C．was not recognized by people	D．expressed himself in paintings

2. Van Gogh killed himself because of ___________.

A．the poor life	B．his illness
C．his pain from left ear	D．the objections from the artists of his time

3. One of the characteristics of Van Gogh’s paintings is ______________.

A．the likeness between his paintings and the reality

B．the short time for him to complete a painting

C．the various styles mixed together

D．the special strokes he made

4. The selling of his paintings is considered to be the most successful because ________.

A．more and more people like his paintings

B．people can understand him through his paintings

C．1.3 million people visit his painting museum every year

D．Zundert has made 2003 “The Van Gogh Year” in his honor

5. We can infer from the passage that _______.

A．his powerful art came from his poor life

B．his fellow townsmen regret treating him unfairly

C．all his paintings were drawn in the last 10 years of his life

D．most of his paintings are kept in the museum of his hometown

 

Birthdays often involve surprises. But this year's surprise on the birthday of the great British playwright William Shakespeare is surely one of the most dramatic.

On April 22, one day before his 441st birthday anniversary, experts discovered that one of the most recognizable portraits of William Shakespeare is a fake. This means that we no longer have a good idea of what Shakespeare looked like. "It's very possible that many pictures of Shakespeare might be unreliable because many of them are copies of this one," said an expert from Britain's National Portrait Gallery.

　 The discovery comes after four months of testing using X-rays, ultraviolet light, microphotography and paint samples. The experts from the gallery say the image —commonly known as the "Flower portrait"— was actually painted in the 1800s, about two centuries after Shakespeare's death. The art experts who work at the gallery say they also used modern chemistry technology to check the paint on the picture. These checks found traces of paint dating from about 1814. Shakespeare died in 1616, and the date that appears on the portrait is 1609.

　"We now think the portrait dates back to around 1818 to 1840. This was when there was a renewed interest in Shakespeare's plays," Tarnya Cooper, the gallery's curator (馆长), told the Associated President.

　　The fake picture has often been used as a cover for collections of his plays. It is called the Flower portrait because one of its owners, Desmond Flower, gave it to the Royal Shakespeare Company.

　　"There have always been questions about the painting," said David Howells, curator for the Royal Shakespeare Company. "Now we know the truth, we can put the image in its proper place in the history of Shakespearean portraiture."

Two other images of Shakespeare, are also being studied as part of the investigation (调查) and the results will come out later this month._________________

1.What makes the birthday of Shakespeare dramatic this year?

A．It was found that he painted a portrait in 1814 instead of in 1609.

B．The Flower portrait has been found to be a fake.

C．Three portraits of Shakespeare are being tested to identify a real one.

D．It was found that there was a renewed interest in Shakespeare's plays around 1818 to 1840.

2.Which statement is True according to the passage?

A．Portraits of Shakespeare are all unreliable.

B．"Flower portrait " was a portrait of Shakespeare given to Desmond Flower.

C．1814 might be when the portrait was drawn.

D．The Flower portrait is not often used as a cover for Shakespeare's play.

3.How many methods were used to test the portrait?

A．Not mentioned.     B．Two              C．Three            D．At least four.

4.The best title for this passage is _________.

A．Birthdays often involve surprises　

B．The surprise on the 441st birthday of Shakespeare

C．One portrait of Shakespeare is a fake

D．How can we know Shakespeare's appearance?

5.Which is the best sentence to fill in the blank in the last paragraph?

A．Soon we'll know which portrait is reliable.

B．Maybe we cannot find a real portrait of Shakespeare.

C．If the two portraits are found to be false, they will test more.

D．For now what Shakespeare really looked like will remain a mystery.