VOA标准英语2010年-Sculptor Brings African American Histo

Even as a child, Ed Dwight had a gift for art. But he set that talent aside to focus on careers that included engineer, test pilot, astronaut trainee¹ (the first African American in the program) and entrepreneur.

It was as the owner of a large construction company, Dwight says, that his childhood love for creating art reawakened. "What I was doing with the construction company was just taking scrap² material that was left over and I was bringing it home to my garage," he recalls. "I just taught myself to weld to make some art for my house."

A life-changing commission

The amateur artist turned professional 25 years ago, when Colorado's first African American lieutenant³ governor picked Ed Dwight to sculpt⁴ a major public statue.

 
VOA - S. Schlender
Ed Dwight at work in his studio, preparing the supports for a bronze casting.

At the time, Dwight says, he was making small flowers and other designs out of nails and scrap metal. "He asked me if I would do a sculpture of him for the capital, because they were honoring him as the first black lieutenant governor, and I told him I didn't know how to model. So he suggested I go to the library and get a book and teach myself how to weld."

So he did.

He learned to sculpt in bronze and delved⁵ into the history of African Americans. Because black history was seldom portrayed⁶ in U.S. statues, Dwight decided⁷ that his monument of the lieutenant governor would include bronzes of African American pioneers. The project won acclaim⁸, and launched Ed Dwight's new career.

Monumental works

Today he specializes in large public monuments that chronicle African American history. Dwight creates them in a former aircraft hanger⁹ that he's converted into a studio. It's filled with clay statues, bronze casting equipment and 10,000 history books.

 
Courtesy Ed Dwight
This detail from Dwight's memorial to the Underground Railroad depicts¹⁰ a mother comforting her child as they prepare to cross the Detroit River to freedom.

Waving his arm to encompass¹¹ the studio, he explains, "This whole place is just filled with books and all of it's on black history. A section on music and a section on athletics¹² and a section on all the famous sports figures and there's a whole section on black religion." The monuments Dwight has created span the entirety of African American history: from enslaved Africans arriving in America to slaves on the Underground Railroad about to escape to freedom in Canada to 20th century jazz musicians and leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dwight says commemorating¹³ African American history this way fills an important gap for all Americans. "There's so many other people doing white American history," he points out. "So we're doing a catch-up thing." Dwight's larger-than-life statues command public spaces throughout the country and he is working on commissions for eight more memorials.

 
VOA - S. Schlender
Life-size sculptures of the four Obama family members comprise "The Inauguration¹⁴ of Hope"

 

Historical sculptures

One of Dwight's latest works was just unveiled at the Colorado History Museum in Denver. It depicts President Barack Obama at his inauguration, standing¹⁵ with his wife and daughters. Ed Nicholsm, president of History Colorado, which runs the museum, says they're historically accurate, down to the box daughter Sasha stood on at the ceremony to give her a lift.

Nichols says the detail of the work illustrates¹⁶ how Dwight incorporates skills of his earlier careers into creating historical sculpture. "When you think about that, the engineering mind, the precision of what he has, leads to talking about the factual detail of history."

 
VOA - S. Schlender
Ed Dwight's sculpture of Coretta Scott King.

For other admirers, Ed Dwight's art shows what a person can achieve if they get encouragement, then follow through. Standing in front of the Obamas in bronze, one museum visitor mused¹⁷, "I think it just shows that a lot of people have these amazing hidden talents that you just don't know. How would he have ever become this person and produced all these works if somebody hadn't just asked him?" Then she added with a laugh, "And also I thought to myself, 'My gosh, look at the things you can learn from books at the Denver Public Library.'"

High school student Meshea McCabe is also a fan of the new Obama monument. "Just to see it made me feel like I was there," she says.

The sculptor¹⁸ is especially happy when young people appreciate his artwork. "When these kids come through here and see stuff like this, it changes their whole perspective about what they can do. They wonder, 'Why don't I know about that and how did that woman get a statue made of her, and what can I do to have that happen to me?'"

Ed Dwight calls his latest sculpture "The Inauguration of Hope". After its debut¹⁹ in Denver, the piece goes on tour throughout the nation. Meanwhie, while the artist turns his attention to his many other monumental projects that will bring black history to life.
 

1 trainee   

n.受训练者

参考例句：

• The trainee checked out all right on his first flight.受训者第一次飞行完全合格。
• Few of the trainee footballers make it to the top.足球受训人员中没有几个能达到顶级水平。

2 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

3 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

4 sculpt   

n.雕刻，雕塑，雕刻品，雕塑品

参考例句：

• When I sculpt,my style is expressionistic.我的雕刻风格是表现主义。
• Then,sculpt the remaining fringe parting.然后雕刻剩余的边缘部分。

5 delved   

v.深入探究，钻研( delve的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She delved in her handbag for a pen. 她在手提包里翻找钢笔。
• He delved into the family archives looking for the facts. 他深入查考这个家族的家谱以寻找事实根据。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 portrayed   

v.画像( portray的过去式和过去分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• Throughout the trial, he portrayed himself as the victim. 在审讯过程中，他始终把自己说成是受害者。
• The author portrayed his father as a vicious drunkard. 作者把他父亲描绘成一个可恶的酒鬼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 acclaim   

v.向…欢呼，公认；n.欢呼，喝彩，称赞

参考例句：

• He was welcomed with great acclaim.他受到十分热烈的欢迎。
• His achievements earned him the acclaim of the scientific community.他的成就赢得了科学界的赞誉。

9 hanger   

n.吊架，吊轴承；挂钩

参考例句：

• I hung my coat up on a hanger.我把外衣挂在挂钩上。
• The ship is fitted with a large helicopter hanger and flight deck.这艘船配备有一个较大的直升飞机悬挂装置和飞行甲板。

10 depicts   

描绘，描画( depict的第三人称单数 )； 描述

参考例句：

• The book vividly depicts French society of the 1930s. 这本书生动地描绘了20 世纪30 年代的法国社会。
• He depicts the sordid and vulgar sides of life exclusively. 他只描写人生肮脏和庸俗的一面。

11 encompass   

vt.围绕，包围；包含，包括；完成

参考例句：

• The course will encompass physics,chemistry and biology.课程将包括物理、化学和生物学。
• The project will encompass rural and underdeveloped areas in China.这项工程将覆盖中国的农村和不发达地区。

12 athletics   

n.运动，体育，田径运动

参考例句：

• When I was at school I was always hopeless at athletics.我上学的时候体育十分糟糕。
• Our team tied with theirs in athletics.在田径比赛中，我们队与他们队旗鼓相当。

13 commemorating   

v.纪念，庆祝( commemorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was presented with a scroll commemorating his achievements. 他被授予一幅卷轴，以表彰其所做出的成就。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The post office issued a series commemorating famous American entertainers. 邮局发行了一个纪念美国著名演艺人员的系列邮票。 来自互联网

14 inauguration   

n.开幕、就职典礼

参考例句：

• The inauguration of a President of the United States takes place on January 20.美国总统的就职典礼于一月二十日举行。
• Three celebrated tenors sang at the president's inauguration.3位著名的男高音歌手在总统就职仪式上演唱。

15 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

16 illustrates   

给…加插图( illustrate的第三人称单数 )； 说明； 表明； （用示例、图画等）说明

参考例句：

• This historical novel illustrates the breaking up of feudal society in microcosm. 这部历史小说是走向崩溃的封建社会的缩影。
• Alfred Adler, a famous doctor, had an experience which illustrates this. 阿尔弗莱德 - 阿德勒是一位著名的医生，他有过可以说明这点的经历。 来自中级百科部分

17 mused   

v.沉思，冥想( muse的过去式和过去分词 )；沉思自语说（某事）

参考例句：

• \"I wonder if I shall ever see them again, \"he mused. “我不知道是否还可以再见到他们，”他沉思自问。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• \"Where are we going from here?\" mused one of Rutherford's guests. 卢瑟福的一位客人忍不住说道：‘我们这是在干什么？” 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史

18 sculptor   

n.雕刻家，雕刻家

参考例句：

• A sculptor forms her material.雕塑家把材料塑造成雕塑品。
• The sculptor rounded the clay into a sphere.那位雕塑家把黏土做成了一个球状。

19 debut   

n.首次演出，初次露面

参考例句：

• That same year he made his Broadway debut, playing a suave radio journalist.在那同一年里，他初次在百老汇登台，扮演一个温文而雅的电台记者。
• The actress made her debut in the new comedy.这位演员在那出新喜剧中首次登台演出。