外刊逐句精读｜《经济学人》：艺术拍卖新玩法｜CATTI一级译员外刊精读｜M...

本文摘自20221215《经济学人》

标题：What an unusual auction says about the art market

• auction n. 拍卖

auctioneer n. 拍卖师

mountaineer n. 登山运动员

auction house n. 拍卖行

导语：Poking fun at status-obsessed buyers 

• poke fun at sb./ sth. 取笑某人/ 某事

= tease/ make fun of sb./ sth.

Some of the kids were poking fun at Judy because of the way she was dressed.

其中有些孩子正在嘲笑朱迪的穿着。

• obsess vt. 使...着迷；心神不宁

be obsessed with/ by sth.

sth.-obsessed adj. 对某事着迷的

status-obsessed adj. 对身份、地位着迷的

P1

Penny Pinch, a Chicago street artist, likes to have fun with art-world finances. His work—from murals to paintings to tote bags made in collaboration with the Chicago Cubs baseball team— uses scavenged or donated materials (hence the name). His latest experiment, hosted at A Very Serious Gallery, in the city’s north-west, is in pricing. 

• art world n. 艺术界

A group or network of people involved in the production, commission, preservation, promotion, and sale of art.

• finances n. 财力；财务管理

the money available to a person, an organization or a country; the way this money is managed

EG. assets, stocks, funds, resources

• mural n. 壁画

extramural adj. 面向校外人群的

extramural courses 非全日制课程

• tote bag/ tote n. 托特袋、环保袋

• collaboration n. 合作、协作

in collaboration with sb. 与某人合作

• Chicago Cubs 芝加哥小熊队

• scavenge /ˈskævɪndʒ/ v. 拾荒、捡破烂

scavenger n. 食腐动物；拾荒者

• hence adv. 因此、由此

~ which leads to

He was a tiny, slight figure, hence his nickname,'the little Wonder'.

他身材矮小，“小奇人”的绰号由此得来。

• penny-pinching adj. 吝啬的

penny-pincher n. 小气鬼

penny-pinch vt. 吝啬地花钱、斤斤计较

• experiment n. 尝试、试验

experiment in sth. 某方面的试验

• pricing n. 定价、计价

pricing policy 定价策略/ 政策

段落大意：开门见山：介绍主角（街头艺术家），引出其最新的艺术试验。

P2

On December 16th Mr Pinch is due to sell 15 paintings, one of which is pictured, in a Dutch auction. Each will start at a price of $3,000, which will be cut by $100 every hour until a buyer emerges. According to Mr Pinch and Allan Weinberger, the gallery’s owner, it is the first-ever such auction of new art (a claim your correspondent could not disprove). 

• due adj. 预期、预计

be due to do sth. 预计做某事

The coursework's due today.

课程作业今天要交。

• picture vt. 用图片显示；在报纸、杂志上刊登

• Dutch auction n. 荷式拍卖

• emerge v. 出现、浮现

• new art n. 新艺术

= art nouveau 

• disprove v. 证明...是错的

段落大意：艺术试验玩法简介。

P3

Dutch auctions are more commonly used to sell homogenous goods, such as cut flowers in 17th-century Holland or government bonds today. Their use for unique works is considerably rarer. Mr Pinch says the auction is “an opportunity for people who can’t normally buy large pieces of work”. It is also an opportunity to poke fun at the art world.

• homogenous adj. 同种的、同类型事物组成的 

= homogeneous

homo-：同样的、相同的

homogenize vt. 使...单一化

hetero-：不同的

heterogenous adj. 由不同成分组成的

= heterogeneous

• cut flower n. 切花

• government bond n. 政府债券

• piece of work 

work of art n. 艺术品

• poke fun at sb./ sth. 嘲弄某人/ 某事

段落大意：背景补充：1.荷式拍卖简介；2.艺术家采用荷式拍卖的原因。

P4

The opportunity may come at a cost. As Eric Budish of the University of Chicago notes, the trick with a Dutch auction is knowing where to set the starting price. For Treasuries, the range is established by looking at previous auctions. For Mr Pinch’s art, there is no equivalent, meaning he risks setting the price too low and leaving money on the table. 

• sth comes at a (huge) cost 某事有(巨大)代价

= sth comes at a (high) price

She won fame, but it came at a huge cost.

她出名了，但也付出了巨大代价。

• note v. 之处、特别提到

• trick n. 诀窍、窍门

• Treasury n. (政府）财政部

Department of the Treasury（美）财政部

the Exchequer (英）财政部

Treasuries n.（美国）国债

Treasury bond, note, bill（按单词长短记）

T-bond 长期国债

T-note 中期国债

T-bill 短期国债

• leave money on the table（谈判、理财、买卖）亏了

If you're going to college and you don't apply for any grants or scholarships, you're probably leaving money on the table.

如果你去念大学却没申请任何助学金或则奖学金，那真是亏了。

段落大意：采用荷式拍卖对艺术家有弊。

P5

Mr Pinch is unconcerned by this, as he has something else in mind. At a regular auction, a potential buyer is influenced by the crowd. Clamour for an offering indicates a higher potential resale value and a greater status gain if the auction is won. These sorts of considerations are “icky”, reckons Mr Pinch, which is why he likes Dutch auctions, where they are not possible. When somebody else bids, it is too late. Potential buyers must focus on how much they value the art, not how much others do. 

• unconcerned adj. 不在意的

He seemed unconcerned by his companion's problems.

他对同伴的困难似乎毫不关心。

• clamour n. 喧闹声

• offering n. 报价

offer vt. 报价

• resale n. 转售、转卖

• icky adj. 黏糊糊的、令人讨厌的

• reckon v.（非正式）想、认为

• bid v.（拍卖）出价、喊价

 

段落大意：艺术家并不在乎荷式拍卖的劣势，认为这种拍卖方式能选出真正欣赏艺术的买家。

P6

Yet there is an irony to the experiment. By launching the first Dutch auction for art, Messrs Pinch and Weinberger may generate enough hype to attract exactly the sort of buyers they wish to repel—those motivated more by status than a love of art.

• irony n. 讽刺之处

The irony is that when he finally got the job, he discovered he didn't like it.

讽刺的是，当他最终得到那份工作时，他发现自己并不喜欢它。

• Messrs n. Mr的复数形式

Ms —— [pl] Mss/ Mses

Miss —— [pl] Misses

• hype n. 大肆宣传、炒作

• repel vt. 驱逐、击退

repellent n. 驱虫剂

段落大意：讽刺的是，本次拍卖最终可能恰恰会吸引艺术家最想避开的那群人——图身份而不是爱艺术的买家。

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