丘吉尔，被政治耽误的画家
你可能熟悉出身贵族、就读于哈罗公学的丘吉尔；
你可能熟悉临危受命、带领英国抗击法西斯的丘吉尔；
而最为人所熟知的，是奠定欧洲战后秩序的“雅尔塔会议三巨头”之一的英国前首相丘吉尔；
但你一定不熟悉，被英国皇家美院授予“荣誉院士”的画家丘吉尔。
丘吉尔毕生都承受着抑郁症的困扰，同时在1915年，他的政治生涯也遭遇重创，阿斯奎斯首相免除了他海军大臣职务，丘吉尔跌入了人生的最低谷。而绘画，在丘吉尔处于战争和内心最黑暗的日子里，给与了他所必须的精神慰藉。
丘吉尔的绘画多为自学，不过他有特殊的机会，不断结识名家并得到指点。他很享受调弄颜料的感觉，通过绘画，他不断发掘着身边的美丽，看待周遭世界的视角也发生了改变。丘吉尔一生留下550多幅作品，家中保存了160余幅，以风景为主，都是他生活的写照。
正如英国宫廷画家约翰·拉沃瑞爵士评价的那样：“如果不是从政，丘吉尔也许会成为一名伟大的画家。”在“乱世出英雄”的时代，丘吉尔身上潜藏的政治军事能力、雄韬伟略以及“与生俱来的文化艺术天赋”，在20世纪中叶风云突变的时代背景下，释放着熠熠光彩，令后世难以企及、超越和忘怀。
本篇课程首发于2018年11月26日
难度系数：
无用系数：
When He Wasn't Making History, Winston Churchill Made Paintings
① At the age of 40, Sir Winston Churchill found himself at a career low: In 1915, after a few disastrous strategic decisions he was demoted from his position in the Navy. He resigned from his government post and became an officer in the army.
② Deflated of power and consumed with anxiety, he took up an unexpected new hobby: painting.
③ "Painting came to my rescue in a most trying time," Churchill wrote.
④ The hobby became, for the great British statesman, a source of delight and a respite from the stress of his career.
⑤ He would eventually create over 550 paintings, primarily focusing on landscapes and seascapes made 'en plein air'.
⑥ His approach was very simple: Go outside and paint what you see. Despite his incessant claims that he was merely an amateur, he developed an admirable flair for the art.
⑦ Churchill was largely self-taught, and adamant that formal art lessons were a young person's game.
⑧ The thing he and his like-minded amateur peers needed most, he believed, was a certain kind of passion.
⑨ "We cannot aspire to masterpiece," he wrote. "We may content ourselves with a joy ride in a paint-box. And for this, audacity is the only ticket."
▍其他被耽误了的画家
Churchill – emotional –just like his personality
Hitler （希特勒，纳粹德国元首）– quite cold, no warm feelings, but quite mechanical / very accurate / very precise
George Bush（乔治·布什美国前总统）– subjects are terrible (his book of paintings is a bestseller praised by art critics)
Johnny Depp （约翰尼·德普，美国知名影视演员，《加勒比海盗》中饰演“杰克船长）is a gifted painter as well. He has a website showing many of his paintings.
Prince Charles – water colours of English landscapes
▍生词好句
disastrous /dɪˈzɑːstrəs, dɪˈzæstrəs/: adj. 极为失败的；灾难性的
demote /dɪˈməʊt, dɪˈmoʊt/: vt. 使降职；使降级
deflate /dɪˈfleɪt/: vt. 使削弱；使受挫；使灰心
en plein air: 法语词组，相当于in the open air
incessant /ɪnˈsesənt/: adj. 连续不断的；没完没了的
flair /fleə, fler/: n. 天赋；天资；天分
self-taught: 自学的；自修的
aspire to: 渴求；渴望
masterpiece /ˈmɑːstəpiːs, ˈmæstɚpiːs/: n. 杰作；（个人）最杰出的作品
content /kənˈtent/: vt. 使满意，使满足
▍词汇拓展
1. make history: to do something that is very important or famous and that will be remembered as part of history
The scientists made history when they discovered the structure of DNA.
科学家们发现了DNA的构造，这是一次历史性的发现。
He made history by being the first man to walk on the moon.
他创造了在月球上行走第一人的历史。
2. at a low: a bad time in someone's life
She's at a low. Her boyfriend left her. Her car was stolen and she lost her mobile phone.
她男朋友离开了她，车子被偷了，手机也丢了，她情绪失落极了。
She can't listen to YLYK, and she can't listen to this episode. She's at a low.
她无法收听友邻优课的课程，没有办法听这一期的节目了，她很失落。
at a career low: a bad time in someone's working life (a time when you are having problems at work)
3. be consumed by/with: If someone is consumed by/with a feeling, that feeling is extremely strong = to feel something in a very strong way
He was consumed with anger.
他被怒气冲昏了头脑。
He was consumed with jealousy.
他嫉妒得要命。
He was consumed with sadness.
他沉浸在悲痛中。
4. take up an activity: become interested in it and spend time doing it. It's usually a hobby more than a career.
Some people take up yoga as a way to relax.
一些人将瑜伽作为放松的一种方式。
Some people take up jogging as a way to keep fit.
一些人选择慢跑来锻炼身体。
5. trying (adj) : difficult
a trying time: a difficult time in someone's life
It's a trying time for her. / She's having a trying time. (She is having a difficult period in her life.)
她正经历着人生的艰难期。
6. come to someone's rescue: If something comes to someone's rescue, it helps them when they are in a bad or difficult situation. It might save them from danger or harm.
Last week, I really didn't understand the homework but the internet came to my rescue.
上周的作业很难，但我通过寻求网络的帮助，最终完成了作业。
7. respite /ˈrespaɪt, rɪˈspaɪt/: n. a pause, a break or a rest from something difficult / to take a break from something you don't enjoy
During the weekends he enjoys a respite from his boring job.
在周末他才能好好享受无聊工作之余的清闲。
Their teacher was sick, so the students enjoyed a respite from studying.
老师生病了，所以学生才有时间在繁忙的学习生活中休息一下。
8. a flair for something: a natural ability to do something well
He has a flair for languages.
他学习语言很有天赋。
She has a flair for photography.
她对摄影有天赋。
She has a flair for wine tasting.
她有品酒的天赋。
9. adamant /ˈædəmənt/: adj. If you are adamant about something, you never change your opinion on it.
10. a young person's game: "game" here means an activity which young people should do but older people should not do.
11. like-minded: people who share the same opinions, ideas, or interests
12. a joy ride: a type of journey that we take just for fun (in a car / bus / boat / plane)
Taking a journey just for the fun of the journey; we don't care about the destination.
旅行有旅行本身的乐趣，我们不在乎目的地。
13. audacity /ɔ:ˈdæsəti/: n. self-confidence
▍责任编辑
武志琳、李焕、章晓丹
网友评论