Question

The Art of the Elephants

If your cat walked across something you were painting and left footprints behind, would you consider your cat an artist? What if your bird held a colored pencil in its beak（喙） and painted on a piece of paper? Most people may think of animal art as a joke, but some people have been taking it very seriously.

Elephants were used for hundreds of years in Thailand’s logging industry(伐木业). They moved wood from forests in areas where there were no roads. At the beginning of this century, when the forests of Thailand began to quickly disappear, the government put a stop to logging. All of a sudden, many elephants in Thailand no longer had a way to make a living.

Some elephants were treated badly. Others had to try to live on their own and couldn’t find enough food to eat. There were once tens of thousands of elephants in Thailand. Today, there are less than five thousand. When two Russian American artists, Vitaly Komar and Alex Melamid, first heard about the troubled elephants in Thailand, they knew that something had to be done to forever change the way people treated Thai elephants. Then, they came up with an idea to help these elephants.

Komar and Melamid visited elephant camps in Thailand and began to show the elephant trainers how to teach the elephants to paint. At first, the trainers had to guide the elephants’ trunks. The elephants became more comfortable doing this with practice—and lots of sweet snacks—and finally started to paint on their own. The strange idea that Komar and Melamid had to save the elephants actually began to work. They even helped found several elephant art schools in Thailand and in other Asian countries. The elephants and their trainers go there to learn about painting and get supplies they need.

Today, people begin to buy elephant artworks from galleries(画廊) all around the world. Some are even willing to pay more than ＄2,000 for the works of the elephant artists! Some people compare the cheerful, brightly-colored artworks to the works of some great abstract(抽象地) painters. Some people are just happy to buy these special and original(原创地) artworks. Others think they are helping the troubled elephants in this way. The next time you see a piece of colorful abstract art, find out who the artist is. You just may be surprised at what you learn!

1.What may most people think of animal art?

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2.What did elephants do in Thailand’s logging industry?

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3.How many elephants are there in Thailand today?

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4.What was Komar and Melamid’s idea to help the elephants in Thailand?

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5.Please list one reason why people buy elephant artworks.

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Answer

1.Most people may think of animal art as a joke.

2.They moved wood from forests where there were no roads.

3.There are less than five thousand.

4.They showed elephants trainers how to teach elephants to paint.

5.Some people compare the cheerful, brightly-colored artworks to the work of some great painters./ Some people are just happy to buy these special and original artworks./ Others think they are helping the troubled elephants in this way.

【解析】本文是一篇说明文，介绍的是大象艺术品。大象作画是两名俄罗斯籍的美国画家为帮助大象而想出的一个主意，即让训象师教大象作画，作品出售后，训象师和大象可以得到报酬和需要的东西。很多人喜欢大象的作品，也有人是为支持这些受苦的大象而购买这些画作的。

1.题意：大多数人对于动物艺术的看法是什么？细节理解题。根据第一段最后一句“Most people may think of animal art as a joke...”（ 大多数人觉得动物艺术是笑话。）可知答案是Most people may think of animal art as a joke.

2.题意：大象在泰国的伐木业中从事什么工作？细节理解题。根据第二段第二句“They moved wood from forests where there were no roads”（人们用大象在没有公路的森林中运输木头。）可知答案是They moved wood from forests where there were no roads.

3.题意：现如今，在泰国有多少只大象？细节理解题。根据第三段第四句“Today，there are less than five thousand.”（ 今天的大象数量不足5千只。）可知答案是There are less than five thousand.

4.题意：Komar和 Melamid想出了什么办法来帮助泰国的大象？细节理解题。根据第四段首句“Komar and Melamid visited the elephant camps in Thailand and began to show elephants trainers how to teach elephants to paint.”（ 两人拜访了泰国的大象营地，并给训象师展示怎样教大象绘画。）可知答案是They showed elephants trainers how to teach elephants to paint.

5.题意：请列举人们购买大象艺术作品的一个原因。细节理解题。根据最后一段中“Some people...Some people...Others...”（ 有些人把这些艺术比作最伟大画家的抽象艺术；有些人就是喜欢购买这种特别和原创的艺术作品；另一些人认为以此可以帮助受苦的大象。）可知答案是Some people compare the cheerful, brightly-colored artworks to the work of some great painters./ Some people are just happy to buy these special and original artworks./ Others think they are helping the troubled elephants in this way.