Passage 1
All of Francoise Duparc's surviving paintings blend portraiture and genre.
Her subjects appear to be acquaintances whom she has asked to pose; she has
captured both their self-consciousness and the spontaneity of their everyday
activities, the depiction of which characterizes genre painting. But genre
painting, especially when it portrayed members of the humblest classes, was
never popular in eighteenth-century France. The Le Nain brothers and Georges
de La Tour, who also chose such themes, were largely ignored. Their present
high standing is due to a different, more democratic political climate and to
different aesthetic values: we no longer require artists to provide ideal images
of humanity for our moral edification but rather regard such idealization as a
falsification of the truth. Duparc gives no improving message and discretely
refrains from judging her subjects. In brief, her works neither elevate nor
instruct. This restraint largely explains her lack of popular success during her
lifetime, even if her talent did not go completely unrecognized by her
eighteenth-century French contemporaries.
1. According to the passage, modern viewers are not likely to value which of the following qualities in a
painting?
(A) The technical elements of the painting
(B) The spontaneity of the painting
(C) The moral lesson imparted by the painting
(D) The degree to which the painting realistically depicts its subjects
(E) The degree to which the artist's personality is revealed in the painting
2. If the history of Duparc's artistic reputation were to follow that of the Le Nain brothers and Georges
de La Tour, present-day assessments of her work would be likely to contain which of the
following?
(A) An evaluation that accords high status to her work
(B) Acknowledgment of her technical expertise but dismissal of her subject matter as trivial
(C) Agreement with assessments made in her own time but acknowledgments of the exceptional
quality of a few of her paintings
(D) Placement of her among the foremost artists of her century
(E) A reclassification of her work as portraiture rather than genre painting
3. It can be inferred from the passage that the term "genre painting" would most likely apply to which of
the following?
(A) A painting depicting a glorious moment of victory following a battle
(B) A painting illustrating a narrative from the Bible
(C) A portrayal of a mythological Greek goddess
(D) A portrayal of a servant engaged in his work
(E) A formal portrait of an eighteenth-century king
4. The argument of the passage best supports which of the following contentions concerning judgements
of artistic work?
(A) Aesthetic judgements can be influenced by the political beliefs of those making the judgement
(B) Judgements of the value of an artist's work made by his or her contemporaries must be
discounted before a true judgement can be made
(C) Modern aesthetic taste is once again moving in the direction of regarding idealistic painting as
the most desirable form of painting
(D) In order to be highly regarded, an artist cannot be solely identified with one particular kind of
painting
(E) Spontaneity is the most valuable quality a portrait painter can have
All of Francoise Duparc's surviving paintings blend portraiture and genre.
Her subjects appear to be acquaintances whom she has asked to pose; she has
captured both their self-consciousness and the spontaneity of their everyday
activities, the depiction of which characterizes genre painting. But genre
painting, especially when it portrayed members of the humblest classes, was
never popular in eighteenth-century France. The Le Nain brothers and Georges
de La Tour, who also chose such themes, were largely ignored. Their present
high standing is due to a different, more democratic political climate and to
different aesthetic values: we no longer require artists to provide ideal images
of humanity for our moral edification but rather regard such idealization as a
falsification of the truth. Duparc gives no improving message and discretely
refrains from judging her subjects. In brief, her works neither elevate nor
instruct. This restraint largely explains her lack of popular success during her
lifetime, even if her talent did not go completely unrecognized by her
eighteenth-century French contemporaries.
1. According to the passage, modern viewers are not likely to value which of the following qualities in a
painting?
(A) The technical elements of the painting
(B) The spontaneity of the painting
(C) The moral lesson imparted by the painting
(D) The degree to which the painting realistically depicts its subjects
(E) The degree to which the artist's personality is revealed in the painting
2. If the history of Duparc's artistic reputation were to follow that of the Le Nain brothers and Georges
de La Tour, present-day assessments of her work would be likely to contain which of the
following?
(A) An evaluation that accords high status to her work
(B) Acknowledgment of her technical expertise but dismissal of her subject matter as trivial
(C) Agreement with assessments made in her own time but acknowledgments of the exceptional
quality of a few of her paintings
(D) Placement of her among the foremost artists of her century
(E) A reclassification of her work as portraiture rather than genre painting
3. It can be inferred from the passage that the term "genre painting" would most likely apply to which of
the following?
(A) A painting depicting a glorious moment of victory following a battle
(B) A painting illustrating a narrative from the Bible
(C) A portrayal of a mythological Greek goddess
(D) A portrayal of a servant engaged in his work
(E) A formal portrait of an eighteenth-century king
4. The argument of the passage best supports which of the following contentions concerning judgements
of artistic work?
(A) Aesthetic judgements can be influenced by the political beliefs of those making the judgement
(B) Judgements of the value of an artist's work made by his or her contemporaries must be
discounted before a true judgement can be made
(C) Modern aesthetic taste is once again moving in the direction of regarding idealistic painting as
the most desirable form of painting
(D) In order to be highly regarded, an artist cannot be solely identified with one particular kind of
painting
(E) Spontaneity is the most valuable quality a portrait painter can have
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