Life-casting and Art Reading Answers

Here, Life-casting and Art reading answers practice test and answer with explanations is provided for your knowledge and practice. Life-casting and Art Reading Passage contains six paragraphs; it also has 13 questions which comprise three types of questions: locating information, Yes No Not given, and multiple choice questions.

Table of contents:

• Solution for Life-casting and Art
• Life-casting and Art IELTS Reading Practice Test
• Passage
• Questions
• Answers with Explanations

Solution for Life-casting and Art

We have given the Life-casting and Art reading answers in the table given below.

Answer Table

1. C	5. D	9. NOT GIVEN	13. D
2. E	6. NO	10. NO
3. B	7. NO	11. YES
4. F	8. NO	12. B

Life-casting and Art IELTS Reading Practice Test - Exam Review

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Life-casting and Art Reading Answers are provided here, which will be useful in improving your grasping and logical thinking skills. To solve the questions, read each paragraph attentively, and look out for the keywords and important details. With the appropriate strategies and practice, you can easily crack your IELTS reading module.

Passage

We have provided a Life-casting and Art Reading reading passage. Read carefully and answer the questions (1-13).

Life-casting and Art

Julian Bames explores the questions posed by Life-Casts, an exhibition of plaster molds of living people and objects which were originally used for scientific purposes

1. Art changes over time and our idea of what art is changing too. For example, objects originally intended for devotional, ritualistic, or recreational purposes may be recategorized as art by members of other later civilizations, such as our own, which no longer respond to these purposes.
   
   
2. What also happens is that techniques and crafts which would have been judged inartistic at the time they were used are reassessed. Life-casting is an interesting example of this. It involved making a plaster mold of a living person or thing. This was complex, technical work, as Benjamin Robert Haydon discovered when he poured 250 liters of plaster over his human model and nearly killed him. At the time, the casts were used for medical research and, consequently, in the nineteenth-century life-casting was considered inferior to sculpture in the same way that, more recently, photography was thought to be a lesser art than painting. Both were viewed as unacceptable shortcuts by the ’senior 1 arts. Their virtues of speed and unwavering realism also implied their limitations; they left little or no room for the imagination.
   
   
3. For many, life-casting was an insult to the sculptor’s creative genius. In an infamous lawsuit of 1834, a molder whose mask of the dying French emperor Napoleon had been reproduced and sold without his permission was judged to have no rights to the image. In other words, he was specifically held not to be an artist. This judgment reflects the view of established members of the nineteenth-century art world such as Rodin, who commented that life-casting ‘happens fast but it doesn’t make Art’. Some even feared that ‘if too much nature was allowed in, it would lead Art away from its proper course of the Ideal.
   
   
4. The painter Gauguin, at the end of the nineteenth century, worried about future developments in photography. If ever the process went into color, what painter would labor away at a likeness with a brush made from squirrel-tail? But painting has proved robust. Photography has changed it, of course, just as the novel had to reassess the narrative after the arrival of the cinema. But the gap between the senior and junior arts was always narrower than the traditionalists implied. Painters have always used technical back-up such as studio assistants to do the boring bits, while apparently, lesser crafts involve great skill, thought, preparation, and, depending on how we define it, imagination.
   
   
5. Time changes our view in another way, too. Each new movement implies a reassessment of what has gone before. What is done now alters what was done before? In some cases, this is merely self-serving, with the new art using the old to justify itself. It seems to be saying, look at how all of that points to this! Aren’t we clever to be the culmination of all that has gone before? But usually, it is a matter of re-alerting the sensibility, reminding us not to take things for granted. Take, for example, the cast of the hand of a giant from a circus, made by an anonymous artist around 1889, an item that would now sit happily in any commercial or public gallery. The most significant impact of this piece is on the eye, in the contradiction between unexpected size and verisimilitude. Next, the human element kicks in. You note that the nails are dirt-encrusted, unless this is the caster’s decorative addition, and the fingertips extend far beyond them. Then you take in the element of choice, arrangement, and art if you like, in the neat, pleated, buttoned sleeve-end that gives the item balance and variation of texture. This is just a molded hand, yet the part stands utterly for the whole. It reminds us slyly, poignantly, of the full-size original.
   
   
6. But is it art? And, if so, why? These are old tediously repeated questions to which artists have often responded, ‘It is an art because I am an artist and therefore what I do is art. However, what doesn’t work for literature works much better for artworks of art to float free of their creators’ intentions. Over time the “reader” does become more powerful. Few of us can look at a medieval altarpiece as its painter intended. We believe too little and aesthetically know too much, so we recreate and find new fields of pleasure in the work. Equally, the lack of artistic intention of Paul Richer and other forgotten craftsmen who brushed oil onto flesh, who molded, cast, and decorated in the nineteenth century is now irrelevant. What counts is the surviving object and our response to it. The tests are simple: does it interest the eye, excite the brain, move the mind to reflection, and involve the heart? It may, to use the old dichotomy, be beautiful but it is rarely true to any significant depth. One of the constant pleasures of art is its ability to come at us from an unexpected angle and stop us short in wonder.

Questions

Questions 1-5

Reading Passage has six paragraphs, A-F.

Which paragraph contains the following information?
Write the correct letter, A-F, in boxes 1-5 on your answer sheet.

1. an example of a craftsman’s unsuccessful claim to ownership of his work
2. an example of how trends in the art can change attitudes to an earlier work
3. the original function of a particular type of art
4. ways of assessing whether or not an object is an art
5. how artists deal with the less interesting aspects of their work

Questions 6-11

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage?
In boxes 6-11 on your answer sheet, write

YES                    if the statement agrees with the information
NO                      if the statement contradicts the information
NOT GIVEN        if there is no information on this

6. Nineteenth-century sculptors admired the speed and realism of life-casting

7. Rodin believed the quality of the life-casting would improve if a slower process were used

8. The importance of painting has decreased with the development of color photography

9. Life-casting requires more skill than sculpture does

10. New art encourages us to look at earlier work in a fresh way

11. The intended meaning of a work of art can get lost over time

Questions 12-13

Choose the correct letter, A, B, C, or D.
Write the correct letter in boxes 12-13 on your answer sheet.

12. The most noticeable contrast in the cast of the giant's hand is between the

1. dirt and decoration
2. size and realism
3. choice and arrangement
4. balance and texture

13. According to the writer, the importance of any artistic object lies in

1. the artist’s intentions
2. the artist’s beliefs
3. the relevance it has to modem life
4. the way we respond to it

Answers for Life-casting and Art with Explanations

Life-casting and Art Reading Answers with explanation are given below for your reference and knowledge.

(Note: The text in Bold mentions the location and referring lines written in the reading passage. The lines in italics show the explanatory lines for the correct answer.)

 1. Answer: C

Explanation: 2nd line of paragraph C states that In an infamous lawsuit of 1834, a molder whose mask of the dying French emperor Napoleon had been reproduced and sold without his permission was judged to have no rights to the image. As per paragraph C, it has been mentioned that in a notorious court case from 1834, it was decided that a molder had no legal claim to a mask of the ailing French emperor Napoleon that had been copied and sold without his consent. In other words, it was explicitly believed that he was not an artist. 

2. Answer: E

Explanation: 5th line of paragraph E depicts that Take, for example, the cast of the hand of a giant from a circus, made by an anonymous artist around 1889, an item that would now sit happily in any commercial or public gallery. As per paragraph E, it has been stated that for instance, the cast of a colossal circus performer's hand was done by an unknown artist around 1889; this object would now be at home in any shop or public gallery. The piece's eye-catching contrast between unexpected scale and realism has the greatest visual impact. 

3. Answer: B

Explanation: 5th line of paragraph B explains that At the time, the casts were used for medical research and, consequently, in the nineteenth-century life-casting was considered inferior to sculpture in the same way that, more recently, photography was thought to be a lesser art than painting. As per paragraph B, it has been mentioned that because the casts were being utilized for medical study at the time, life-casting was viewed as less of an art form than the sculpture in the nineteenth century, much like photography was in the twentieth. The "senior 1 arts" rejected both as unacceptable shortcuts.

4. Answer: F

Explanation: 1st line of paragraph F notifies that But is it art? And, if so, why? These are old tediously repeated questions to which artists have often responded, ‘It is an art because I am an artist and therefore what I do is art. Section F, which focuses on defining what constitutes art and provides a number of solutions as well as tests for it, contains this material. The author provides simple criteria for judging art, such as whether it catches the eye, engages the brain, moves the heart, and elicits reflection, by offering a series of questions.

5. Answer: D

Explanation: The last line of paragraph D justifies that Painters have always used technical back-up such as studio assistants to do the boring bits, while apparently, lesser crafts involve great skill, thought, preparation, and, depending on how we define it, imagination. As per paragraph D, it has been mentioned that the distinction between senior and junior arts was never as wide as traditionalists suggested. While seemingly less important skills need significant ability, thought, planning, and, depending on how we define it, imagination, painters have always relied on technical support, such as studio assistants, to handle the tedious tasks.

6. Answer: No

Explanation: 5th line of paragraph B indicates that At the time, the casts were used for medical research and, consequently, in the nineteenth-century life-casting was considered inferior to sculpture in the same way that, more recently, photography was thought to be a lesser art than painting. As per paragraph B, it has been mentioned that because the casts were being utilized for medical study at the time, life-casting was viewed as less of an art form than the sculpture in the nineteenth century, much like photography was in the twentieth. The "senior 1 arts" rejected both as unacceptable shortcuts. So, the question statement is contradictory to the actual information provided in paragraph B.

7. Answer: No

Explanation: 4th line of paragraph C represents that This judgment reflects the view of established members of the nineteenth-century art world such as Rodin, who commented that life-casting ‘happens fast but it doesn’t make Art’. As per paragraph C, it has been clearly stated that the conclusion echoes the opinions of prominent figures in the nineteenth-century art world like Rodin, who said that life-casting "happens quickly but it doesn't make Art." Some even believed that "allowing too much nature in" would cause art to veer off its intended direction and lose its connection to the Ideal. So, the question statement is contradictory to the actual information provided in paragraph C.

8. Answer: No

Explanation: 3rd line in paragraph D suggests that But painting has proved robust. Paragraph D mentions worries about how photography would develop in the future. Painter Gauguin thought that adding color would diminish the value of paintings, but this wasn't the case. The meaning of painting hasn't changed at all despite how photography has affected it. As a result, the assertion conflicts with the paragraph. So, the question statement is contradictory to the actual information provided in paragraph D. 

9. Answer: Not given

Explanation: There has been no relevant information provided in the paragraph associated with the question statement.

10. Answer: No

Explanation: 4th line of paragraph E describes that In some cases, this is merely self-serving, with the new art using the old to justify itself. As per paragraph E, it has been mentioned that sometimes just be self-serving, where the new art uses the old to support it. See how everything points to this, it seems to be saying. But most of the time, it only involves reawakening our senses and reminding us not to take anything for granted. So, the question statement is contradictory to the actual information provided in paragraph E.

11. Answer: Yes

Explanation: 3rd and 4th line of paragraph F says that However, what doesn’t work for literature works much better for artworks of art to float free of their creators’ intentions. Over time the “reader” does become more powerful. As per paragraph F, it has been mentioned that it doesn't work for literature, nevertheless, works far better for art since works of art actually float free of the intents of their creators. The "reader" does increase in strength with time. Few of us have the ability to view a medieval altarpiece as the artist intended. We reinvent and discover new pleasures in art because we think too little and know too much about aesthetics. So, the question statement is correct.

12. Answer: B

Explanation: 8th line of paragraph E narrates that The most significant impact of this piece is on the eye, in the contradiction between unexpected size and verisimilitude. As per paragraph E, it has been clearly mentioned that the piece's eye-catching contrast between unexpected scale and realism has the greatest visual impact. The human factor then comes into play. The nails are covered in filth unless the caster added this as a decorative touch, and the fingertips reach well beyond the nails.

13. Answer: D

Explanation: 8th line of paragraph F reveals that What counts is the surviving object and our response to it. As per paragraph F, this is the greatest option since the significance of the piece of art is in the way we respond to it, which can be easily measured by asking a series of questions. The author emphasizes the importance of which items survive and how we respond to them when determining what may be deemed art.

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