【读新闻学英语】尴尬了！特朗普想借梵高的画 美术馆却借了他一个……

The emailed response from the Guggenheim's chief curator to the White House was polite but firm: the museum could not accommodate a request to "borrow" a painting by Vincent Van Gogh for President Donald and Melania Trump's private living quarters.

古根海姆美术馆首席策展人给白宫的邮件回复很礼貌，但也很坚定：总统夫妇想要 “借”一幅梵高的画作放在他们的私人起居室，美术馆恕难从命。

Curator：/kjʊˈreɪ.tər/ 策展人
Accommodate：/əˈkɒm.ə.deɪt/ 适应、调节
Quarters：/ˈkwɔː.tərz/ 由公司为雇员提供的房屋（或其他居住场所）

Instead, wrote the curator, Nancy Spector, another piece was available, one that was nothing like the lovely Landscape with Snow.

不过，策展人Nancy Spector写道，另外一件艺术品可以出借。不像梵高的《雪景》这么可爱，这件艺术品非常独特。

The curator's alternative: an 18-karat, fully functioning, solid gold toilet - an interactive work entitled America that critics have described as pointed satire aimed at the excess of wealth in this country.

策展人的选择是：一个运转良好的18k金马桶。这是一件交互式的作品，名字叫“美国”。批评人士认为，该作品是对美国财富过剩的尖锐讽刺。

Alternative：/ɒlˈtɜː.nə.tɪv/ 供替代的选择
Karat：/ˈker.ət/ 开（金的纯度单位）
Pointed：（评论、问题、方式等）尖锐的，犀利的，直截了当的，批评的
Satire：/ˈsæt.aɪər/ 讽刺，讥讽；讽刺作品

For a year, the Guggenheim had exhibited America - the creation of contemporary artist Maurizio Cattelan - in a public restroom on the museum's fifth floor for visitors to use.

这件作品的创造者是当代艺术家Maurizio Cattelan。古根海姆将“美国”放在美术馆5层的公共厕所里，供参观者使用。

Contemporary：/kənˈtem.pər.ər.i/ 当代的；现代的

But the exhibit was over and the toilet was available "should the President and First Lady have any interest in installing it in the White House", Spector wrote in an email.

但展出结束后，马桶就可以外借了“如果总统和第一夫人有兴趣把它装在白宫的话”， Spector在一封邮件中称。

特朗普夫妇 图片来源：Gettyimages

The artist "would like to offer it to the White House for a long-term loan," wrote Spector, who has been critical of Trump. "It is, of course, extremely valuable and somewhat fragile, but we would provide all the instructions for its installation and care."

这位曾经批评过特朗普的艺术家“愿意将马桶长期租赁给白宫，”Spector写道。“当然了，这件作品极度珍贵，从某种程度上来说也很脆弱，但我们会提供所有的安装建议，并承担维护工作。”

Fragile：/ˈfrædʒ.aɪl/ 易损坏的；易碎的；脆弱的

The White House did not respond to inquiries about the matter.

白宫并未就该事件相关问询做出回应。

Asked to explain the meaning of his creation and why Cattelan offered it to the Trumps, he said, "What's the point of our life? Everything seems absurd until we die and then it makes sense."

当被问到作品的意义是什么，以及为什么要借给特朗普夫妇时，Cattelan说：“人生又有什么意义呢？直到我们死前，人生每件事看起来都很荒诞，这也正是生命的意义所在。”

make sense：有意义；讲得通；言之有理

He declined to reveal the cost of the gold toilet, though it has been estimated to have been more than $1 million.

他拒绝透露金马桶的制作成本，虽然估计可能超过100万美元。

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