【新唐人2013年04月25日訊】 (美国之音電)
- 禮節美語-247 Art for an Office 1
公司主管 James找到公關部主任 Felicia.
James: Hey, Felicia…do you have time for a quick conversation?
Felicia: Sure, boss. What’s up?
J: I was walking through the hallways of our office yesterday and it struck me that we could use a little beautification around here.
F: Are you thinking about repainting the hallways?
J: Well, actually I was considering buying some art to display around the office and factory grounds. I think we could all benefit from a little touch of culture, don’t you think?
F: Yes…that’s a great idea. I think looking at beautiful things helps lift morale.
公司主管James說，自己昨天經過公司走廊，突然覺得，We could use a little beautification around here. 我們的工作環境需要美化一下。beautification is spelled b-e-a-u-t-i-f-i-c-a-t-i-o-n, beautification 是名詞，意思是美化。原來，James是想購置一些藝術作品，給公司增添些許文化氣息。Felicia 表示贊成，她覺得，看到賞心悅目的東西，也有助於 lift morale 提高員工士氣。James 說：
J: Yeah, that’s what I was thinking. It might brighten up the office and lift people’s spirits a bit as well. I’m not really sure about what kind of art to buy though.
F: That is a tricky issue. Everyone has different tastes. You know the old expression: “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."
J: What about you Felicia? What kind of art do you like?
F: Well, actually I like abstract modern art. I love the works of Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock.
J: I see. So you’re a bit of a modernist, huh?
每個人對藝術的偏好都不一樣，Everyone has different tastes. taste is spelled t-a-s-t-e, taste 在這裡是名詞，意思是品味。俗話說： Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 只要看的人喜歡，那就是美。這句話經常被用在情感方面，相當於中文裡所說的情人眼裡出西施。Felicia 說，她偏愛 abstract modern art 抽像派現代藝術。為甚麼呢？
F: I feel modern art is open to interpretation. Each person looks at the painting with a different understanding and gets a different message from it. Sometimes I find landscape paintings or more traditional art to be a bit boring.
J: Yes, I would agree with that. I don’t want any pictures of fruit in bowls hanging on our walls…it needs to be something inspirational!
F: How about you, boss? What kind of art inspires you?
J: I’m a big fan of photography. I like real images captured by a camera. They’re so genuine, and I find that I don’t get tired of looking at them over and over again.
Felicia 喜歡抽像派現代藝術作品是因為：It is open to interpretation. 這類藝術作品給觀眾留下了解釋的空間，每個人對抽像派藝術作品的解讀都可能不一樣。James 說，他最喜歡攝影作品。I’m a big fan of photography. 用相機捕捉的真實畫面，令人百看不厭。
