Ielts 雅思 口语全攻略 Ideas and Examples for ielts speaking Jeremy Chiron

AWork of Art You Have Seen or Heard about

Tell me about a work of art you have seen or heard about.
You should say: what the work of art is
where it is and where you saw it whether you are generally interested in works of art
and explain what particularly interests you about this work of art.

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  Da Vinci's Mona Lisa: most famous painting ever
  
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  Da Vinci's work +background to the painting
  
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  The enigmatic smile
  
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  It was stolen for patriotic reasons.
  
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  Future: I hope to get to see it in Paris someday.
  

I will attempt to describe Leonardo Da Vinci's famous Mona Lisa. It is without a doubt the most prestigious painting in the world, and everyone can easily recognize the portrait.
This masterpiece was painted in the 16th century, during the Italian Renaissance. It is an oil painting, and it represents a half-length portrait of a woman. The sitter was the wife of a rich merchant of Florence. Her first name was Lisa, and Mona is a contraction of ma Donna, which means "my lady" in Italian. They say that Da Vinci worked on the portrait for3 years, and then put it away for a couple of years before finishing it right before his death.
The amazing amount of time he spent on the painting explains why there are so many details to her facial expression. Everyone knows that Mona Lisa displays an enigmatic smile. Her eyes are also quite stunning. I have heard people say that they seem to follow you wherever you are standing looking at her. Her face is very bright compared to the dark clothes she's wearing. Da Vinci said that he wanted to represent eternal femininity (=womanliness). I guess he succeeded, because she has been one of the most famous women in the world for more than 500 years!
The painting also comes with some amazing stories. I learned that at the beginning of the 20th century, the painting was stolen from the Louvre museum in Paris. It took the police 2 years to recover it, although the theft was very simple: an Italian man, who was employed at the museum, hid it in a broom closet and walked out with the painting under his coat. He was a patriot, and he thought that the painting should be returned to Italy. Oh yeah, I forgot to say that many people who have never seen the painting might believe it to be a large frame, but actually it's pretty small in size.
Although I don't know much about art, I truly hope to get a chance to travel to Europe in the future. I would love to get a chance to visit art museums in Italy and France. The architecture, the fountains, the statues, the old buildings; it must be breathtaking. I will also definitely stop in Paris to admire the Mona Lisa. It must be a once-in-a-life-time experience.
Vocabulary

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  Contemporary art is very different from what used to be considered art 100 years ago.
  
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  This kind of art is very abstract. I find it very hard to understand what the painters want to express.
  
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  I love the way the artist uses perspective in this painting. It really seems to give some depth to the painting. It's a great illusion.
  

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