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Painting
Painting

Learn English with this painting English lesson

Date: Apr 03 2018

Themes: Hobbies, How To

Grammar: Comparing Quantity

Intro

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2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

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Painting is a way we bring color into our lives. We paint houses and walls cheerful colors to make us smile. And we paint pictures that remind us of beautiful places or people to hang on our walls. Museums are full of paintings that were done by famous artists.

But does that mean everybody is artistic? Can everybody paint? Or do you need a special kind of talent to take a blank canvas and turn it into a masterpiece?

People use different colors for different feelings. Warm colors, like red and yellow, show love and passion. Cold colors, like blue and green, can either show sadness or quiet. Sometimes it’s therapeutic to paint your feelings. But if you don’t like painting, all the colors might be overwhelming.

Amanda and Marni both paint, but one of them doesn’t like painting at all. Learn about their experiences in this English lesson about art.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Marni

Marni

Amanda

Amanda

Marni:  I just went to this art class. I am just the worst painter. I’m so talentless.

Amanda:  Wow, Marni, you’re kind of down in the dumps right now. I love painting.

Marni:  You do?

Amanda:  Yeah, do you know that I fired my counselor because I just picked up painting? It’s so therapeutic!

Marni:  I just wish I was more artistic. I mean, I have no vision. I look at a blank canvas, and it just is a blank canvas to me.

Amanda:  I don’t think it’s really about skill set. I think it’s about the flow and the energy, and everything kind of comes together.

Marni:  Wow, I wish I had your vision. Man, I just feel stuck.

Amanda:  So you don’t get excited when you see a palette in front of you? All colors of the rainbow.

Marni:  No, it just feels overwhelming. It’s like, which colors do I choose? What is speaking to me? How am I going to make this come together on the canvas? And the canvas just feels like it gets bigger and bigger and bigger.

Amanda:  I just think it’s kind of a party for my eyes.

Marni:  Wow.

Amanda:  And my hands.

Marni:  You know, I just think you probably have a lot more talent than I do, and it’s OK. We all have our talents, and clearly, painting is not one of mine.

 

Grammar Point

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Discussion

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Marni meets Amanda after a painting class. She’s clearly upset by her experience with art. Marni doesn’t think she has any talent for painting, so spending time in front of a blank canvas just makes her unhappy.

Amanda, on the other hand, loves painting. Filling her canvas with different colors is a really relaxing experience for her. She says she loves seeing how the finished piece comes together. She doesn’t follow any rules for painting, she just lets her ideas come naturally.

Marni doesn’t agree with Amanda. She still thinks it’s too much trouble to pick out colors or decide what to paint. Marni says Amanda has more talent than she does, but that’s OK with her. Not everybody can paint a masterpiece.

Do you like painting? Do you think painting is relaxing or stressful? Should Marni keep trying to paint?

 

Comments

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SÉRGIO

SÉRGIO

Brazil

Yes i do, but i don’t paint anymore…it’s a very nice kind of art, then Marni don’t give up painting!!!


 Salvador Dali is one of my favorite painters!

05:59 PM Jan 22 2014 |

1 person likes this

Besarta

Albania

Unfourtunately I am talentless on painting a picture.But I do love watching and visiting art museums.

04:40 PM Jan 22 2014 |

blueginger

Viet Nam

Same here. Painting is not my talent.

03:50 PM Jan 22 2014 |

1 person likes this

naira71

naira71

Azerbaijan

painting is a good way of developing of fantasy and expressing of your feelings.

11:09 AM Jan 22 2014 |

Hazelgirl

Hazelgirl

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

yeah, one of my passion is painting, you know my grandfather was an skilled artist, he could make potteries in different shapes with a colorful painting on them in very beautiful designs, my cousin is also a professional miniaturist, so i can conclude the soul of art runs in our blood!!  well, Im not sure that you know what “miniature painting” is or not!! anyway you can see some pics of it here, I love it so much!! esp some pictures in which we can see beloved couples ,besides feeling the beauty of nature in mixture of color in the background… I like this sense of imagination and emancipation of mind …



 





An innovative idea I’ve seen recently is stone painting, really astonishing and novel, when I see those shiny colors on a dark stone, I remember some people with a harsh face but with a very kind heart inside innocent emotions can be like colorful stones showing their inside, their souls, beautiful colors can delight anyone, painters are like a mirror who can reflect the pieces of the beauty of god and nature with their magical hands…god bless them all…  



and for more pictures you can visit this weblog:


http://honarsarayetalaye.persianblog.ir/post/198/





http://www.asrehamoon.ir/vglh-qni.23nkv2yttzfd2.u.txt



Moriza

Moriza

Ukraine

“There are painters who transform the sun to a yellow spot,but there are others who with the help of their art and their intelligence transform a yellow spot into the sun”.


 For ones painting is relaxing,for others-stressful.It depends from their likes,talants,desires,skills,vision and style of life…


I wish you to enjoy the life and its beauty.Transform a yellow spot into the sun,a green spot into the grass,a blue color to paint the sky blue.


Express yourself using all colors of rainbow and make your life  colorful!

Eric_

Eric_

China

Painting…..................................................... ><


But I do admire the people who paints well,,


06:37 AM Jan 22 2014 |

S&W

S&W

China

Oh,Ola,i like the painting you posted ,It’s very beatiful.

04:21 AM Jan 22 2014 |

ola33

ola33

Japan

I agree the play of colors is very theraputic. Like I saw today handbag and I really liked the color. It’s something between lilac and violet and now this handbag haunts me. I like it so much.


I also find Wassily Kandinski abstract paintings a party for my eyes. He knew, for sure, the meanings of colors and their match with each other.


I think also every personality has her/his own color. I like actress Julia Roberts. She’s always smiling, straighforward, full of life but, honestly, don’t understand her choice for the second time of black and white dress. I see her in orange, yellow, red, but not in black and white, the colors of Coco Chanel.


But you can experiment, I agree, there’re  the most matching colors as there’re less mathing ones. But there’re colors that totally not yours. For example grey color doesn’t suit me. If I wear it, I need to add something bright as magenta to it. Anyway, colors are a big fun, I agree.


Wassily Kandinsky, Seeschlacht, 1913

04:06 AM Jan 22 2014 |

madelineming89

Malaysia

Yeah..painting is not my talent too. I know since i was a kid. I can’t paint…><

01:17 AM Jan 22 2014 |

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