Part A: Reading Comprehension

Text 1

The longest bull run in a century of art-market history ended on a dramatic note with a sale of 56 works by Damien Hirst, “Beautiful Inside My Head Forever”, at Sotheby’s in London on September 15th 2008. All but two pieces sold, fetching more than £70m, a record for a sale by a single artist. It was a last victory. As the auctioneer called out bids, in New York one of the oldest banks on Wall Street, Lehman Brothers, filed for bankruptcy.

The world art market had already been losing momentum for a while after rising bewilderingly since 2003. At its peak in 2007 it was worth some $65 billion, reckons Clare McAndrew, founder of Arts Economics, a research firm—double the figure five years earlier. Since then it may have come down to $50 billion. But the market generates interest far beyond its size because it brings together great wealth, enormous egos, greed, passion and controversy in a way matched by few other industries.

In the weeks and months that followed Mr. Hirst’s sale, spending of any sort became deeply unfashionable. In the art world that meant collectors stayed away from galleries and salerooms. Sales of contemporary art fell by two-thirds, and in the most overheated sector, they were down by nearly 90% in the year to November 2008. Within weeks the world’s two biggest auction houses, Sotheby’s and Christie’s, had to pay out nearly $200m in guarantees to clients who had placed works for sale with them.

The current downturn in the art market is the worst since the Japanese stopped buying Impressionists at the end of 1989. This time experts reckon that prices are about 40% down on their peak on average, though some have been far more fluctuant. But Edward Dolman, Christie’s chief executive, says: “I’m pretty confident we’re at the bottom.”

What makes this slump different from the last, he says, is that there are still buyers in the market. Almost everyone who was interviewed for this special report said that the biggest problem at the moment is not a lack of demand but a lack of good work to sell. The three Ds—death, debt and divorce—still deliver works of art to the market. But anyone who does not have to sell is keeping away, waiting for confidence to return.

21. In the first paragraph, Damien Hirst’s sale was referred to as “a last victory” because

[A]

the art market had witnessed a succession of victories. 

[B]

the auctioneer finally got the two pieces at the highest bids. 

[C]

Beautiful Inside My Head Forever won over all masterpieces. 

[D]

it was successfully made just before the world financial crisis. 

22. By saying “spending of any sort became deeply unfashionable” (Para. 3), the author suggests that

[A]

collectors were no longer actively involved in art-market auctions. 

[B]

people stopped every kind of spending and stayed away from galleries. 

[C]

art collection as a fashion had lost its appeal to a great extent. 

[D]

works of art in general had gone out of fashion so they were not worth buying. 

23. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

[A]

Sales of contemporary art fell dramatically from 2007 to 2008. 

[B]

The art market surpassed many other industries in momentum. 

[C]

The art market generally went downward in various ways. 

[D]

Some art dealers were awaiting better chances to come. 

24. The three Ds mentioned in the last paragraph are

[A]

auction houses’ favorites. 

[B]

contemporary trends. 

[C]

factors promoting artwork circulation. 

[D]

styles representing Impressionists. 

25. The most appropriate title for this text could be

[A]

Fluctuation of Art Prices. 

[B]

Up-to-date Art Auctions. 

[C]

Art Market in Decline. 

[D]

Shifted Interest in Arts. 

答案与解析 (Answers)

21. [D] it was successfully made just before the world financial crisis.
解析：第一段描述了达米恩·赫斯特的拍卖会取得了巨大成功（£70m+），但紧接着提到就在拍卖进行的同时，雷曼兄弟银行在纽约申请破产。这标志着全球金融危机的爆发，因此这次拍卖被称为“最后的胜利”。

22. [A] collectors were no longer actively involved in art-market auctions.
解析：第三段指出“任何形式的消费都变得极不合时宜”，随后解释这在艺术界意味着“收藏家们远离了画廊和拍卖室（collectors stayed away from galleries and salerooms）”。选项A是对这一行为的准确描述。[B]项错在“人们停止了每一种消费”，过于绝对。

23. [B] The art market surpassed many other industries in momentum.
解析：本题要求选出“不正确”的一项。第二段末尾提到艺术市场产生兴趣的方式是“很少有其他行业能比拟的（in a way matched by few other industries）”，指的是吸引关注和争议的程度，而非在“发展势头（momentum）”上超过了许多其他行业。文中提到势头自2003年起就在丧失。其余选项在文中均有对应。

24. [C] factors promoting artwork circulation.
解析：最后一段提到，“3D”（死亡、债务和离婚）依然将艺术品推向市场（deliver works of art to the market）。这意味着这三个因素是促进艺术品流通（circulation）的动因，故选C。

25. [C] Art Market in Decline.
解析：通读全文，文章从第一段的“最后胜利”转折到金融危机，详细描述了当代艺术销量暴跌、拍卖行面临巨额担保赔付、价格大幅缩水以及买家持币观望的现状。核心主旨是描述艺术市场的衰退，故C项最合适。

核心长难句精解 (High-Light)

1. 伴随状语与插入语结构：
"As the auctioneer called out bids, in New York one of the oldest banks on Wall Street, Lehman Brothers, filed for bankruptcy."
【解析】As 引导时间状语从句。主句主语是 Lehman Brothers，中间插入了说明其地位的同位语。这句话用时空交错的对比，极具戏剧性地揭示了金融危机对艺术市场的冲击起点。

2. 复杂的定语从句与因果逻辑：
"But the market generates interest far beyond its size because it brings together great wealth, enormous egos... in a way matched by few other industries."
【解析】because 引导原因状语从句。matched by few other industries 是过去分词短语作后置定语，修饰 way。说明艺术市场虽小，但由于其聚集了财富、权欲和争议，吸引了超乎寻常的关注。