VOA慢速英语2017 旧书的新用途

 A New Use for Old Books

Some people are using old books to create works of art, including sculptures.

有人用旧书来做艺术品，比如雕塑。

They can change the shape of a hardcover book so it becomes three-dimensional, for example. The resulting sculpture has not only a length and width, but depth.

比如，他们可以改变一本精装书的形状，让其变得立体化。做出来的雕塑不仅有长度和宽度，亦有深度。

The process can be very simple, and the result is often beautiful.

过程可能十分简单，但作品却十分美观。

There are many kinds of book folding. Artists fold, bend, and sometimes cut, a book’s pages while keeping them together. The art work can be hung on a wall or placed on a table.

折书的方式有很多种。艺术家会折叠、弯曲或者裁剪书页而同时保持书不会散架。成品可以挂在墙上或者放在桌子上。

“They look impressive on the wall,” says writer Candice Caldwell. “A group of six of these on the wall together can look really beautiful, and they’re just really simple folds.”

作家坎蒂丝 考德威尔表示，这些艺术品挂在墙上特别美。六个这样的作品一起挂在墙上会非常好看，但他们只是非常简单的折叠品。

Caldwell operates a blog called the "ReFab Diaries.” She writes about re-purposing everyday objects like books for uses other than what they were designed for.

考德威尔经营着一个名作ReFab Diaries的博客。博客上的内容有关将日常物品（比如书）用作并非其本来性能的其他用途。

In 2003, Caldwell was making clocks from old books when she saw plans for a simple book-folding project in a do-it-yourself magazine. She tried it. She has since taught several friends and her mother how to create wall art from books.

2003年，考德威尔她开始用旧书做钟表，因为她在一份DIY杂志上看到了一个简单折书项目的计划。于是她开始尝试做。自那时起，她已经叫了几个朋友和自己的母亲如何用书来制作墙面的艺术。

Clare Youngs has written a book called “Folded Book Art.” She says book folding is easy.

克莱尔 扬斯写了一本书，名为《折书的艺术》。书中，她写道，折书是件容易事。

From her home in England, she told the Associated Press by email that “it looks as if it is complicated and unachievable, but it is really easy to do. You just don’t tell anyone how easy it is and they will be amazed at your creations.”

她从故乡英格兰给美联社写邮件说这件事看似复杂而又不可实现，但其实真的很容易做。你需要做的只是不告诉任何人这件事有多么容易，然后你就可以做出令人惊讶的作品。

Youngs began making art from book pages several years ago when she saw pictures of folded books at the website Pinterest.com. She also watched some videos on YouTube that tell how to create art from books.

几年前，扬斯开始用书页做艺术品，那时候她在Pinterest.com网站上看到折书的图片。她还在YouTube上看了一些视频，视频教人们如何用书来制作艺术品。

“It is quite a therapeutic 1 activity,” says Youngs. “…it’s very satisfying to see the shape develop.”

这件事很治愈，扬斯如是说道……看着作品一点点成型，给人很大的满足感。

An American book folder 2 defends the activity against those who say it is an act of destruction.

有一位折书的美国人为这种艺术行为站队，反对有些人说这种行为具有毁灭性的说法。

Ann Martin of Delaware has written a book called “All Things Paper.” She says “sometimes old books are better-suited for a new purpose. I feel it’s OK to go ahead and take that old, unused book that’s going to be tossed anyway and turn it into a work of art.”

特拉华州安 马丁写了一本书叫《纸的世界》。书中她写道，有时候，旧书更适合新用。我觉得可以大胆地将要扔掉的废旧书做艺术品。

Caldwell suggests folding cooking recipe and photography books. She says that “if it’s really visual and really colorful when you start to fold it, you get a whole new look on the wall.”

考德威尔建议用菜谱和摄影书来做原材料。她表示，这样的书视觉感更强，颜色更丰富，齐跌之后挂在墙上的效果会完全不一样。

I’m Anne Ball.

Words in This Story

sculpture – n. the action or art of shaping plastic or hard materials into works of art; a piece of art

folding – n. the act of bending an object into a smaller shape

clock – n. a device or instrument for keeping time

complicated – adj. complex

unachievable – adj. resulting in failure; of or related to something you are unable to complete

therapeutic – adj. of or related to the treatment of a disorder 3

suited – v. to meet the needs or desires of something or someone

tossed – v. to throw