On Thursdays, we read reviews or news stories about art or design and study the language used in them. This week’s article is about muralist Mona Caron.
Here are the first three paragraphs from Colossal, in italics.
Muralist Mona Caron (previously) has continued her worldwide Weeds series, with colorful renderings of humble plants growing ever taller on buildings from Portland and São Paulo to Spain and Taiwan. The San Francisco-based artist often partners with local and international social and environmental movements for climate justice, labor rights, and water rights, and selects plants, both native and invasive, that she finds in the cities where she paints. Caron also integrates tiny details into the main visual elements of her murals:
Several of these murals contain intricate miniature details, invisible from afar. These typically narrate the local history, chronicle the social life of the mural’s immediate surroundings, and visualize future possibility, and are created in a process that incorporates ideas emerging through spontaneous conversations with the artwork’s hosting communities while painting.
Caron regularly shares process videos and photos of completed works on Instagram, and she delves into the narratives behind several of her murals on her website.
My comments:
In the first paragraph, we learn that Caron has added to a series of murals that she began in the past. A series means a group of artworks with the same subject or style, and in this article, (previously) means this website has written other articles about Caron in the past. The plants are described as humble because usually people don’t really like weeds and try to remove them. The writer calls this a worldwide series because she has painted weeds on buildings all over the world.
As we’ve discussed before, -based after a city name means it is the city the artist lives and works in. In this situation, partners with means works with, and movements are groups of people fighting for a good cause or trying to achieve a goal, such as climate justice, labor rights, and water rights. Climate justice means caring for the environment, and rights are things that every person should have, like the chance to work (labor) or have clean water. Native means something that comes from that place and invasive means something that comes from another place, so Caron paints plants that she finds in the cities she works in, even if they originally come from other places.
In the second paragraph, she talks about the little details she includes in her murals. Intricate means something with many parts, miniature means very small, and from afar means from a great distance. These little details give us information about the local history, chronicle (describe) the life of the people nearby (immediate surroundings), and show (visualize) what is possible in the future. She creates them in a process that comes from the ideas she gets through spontaneous (not planned) conversations with the people in the communities where she works.
In the third paragraph, we learn that this artist shares videos and photos of her work on social media. Delves means to go into something, so the phrase she delves into the narratives means she explains the stories behind some of her murals on her website.
Many teachers say that reading is the best way to become a better writer. Reading gives you the chance to learn new vocabulary and see how words and phrases are used in context. A good language coach can help you learn to read more quickly and effectively by using different strategies.
At Artglish, we help artists and designers to describe their work with the best vocabulary and language possible. Every Thursday we study reviews and articles to share useful words and phrases to help you improve your reading and writing skills. If you want to learn more, click here to join The Studio and try some free ways to improve your English, or check out our Lessons page.
I’ve chosen 5 words or phrases for you to focus on today. They are in bold. If you don’t know them, look up the meaning, synonyms, antonyms, and other forms of these words. You can find links to Merriam-Webster dictionary sites at the bottom of this page.
To read the original article, written by Laura Staugaitis on February 1, 2018, click the link below:
http://www.thisiscolossal.com/2018/02/murals-of-plants-mona-caron/
To see Mona Caron’s website, click the link below:
https://monacaron.com/