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Jimmy: Illustrating Success 几米：温暖心灵的彩绘魔法师

课文朗读

课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

A person walking in Taiwan is wearing a T-shirt with an elaborate, complicated design. A picture book read by another person is chock-full of remarkable, fascinating images. And in the Nankang MRT station in Taipei, there are beautiful drawings on the wall. What do these works of art have in common? The original artworks were all created by arguably Taiwan’s most famous artist: Jimmy. And his creations can be found all over his home country.

在台湾，有人穿着设计精巧的T恤走在街上；另一个人读着充满迷人图样的绘本；台北南港捷运站的墙上装饰着美丽的图画，这些艺术作品到底有什么共同之处？原来这些原创作品全都是台湾最有名的绘本作家「几米」的创作，几米的作品在他的家乡随处可见。

Jimmy’s full name is Jimmy Liao, but he is so famous he only needs one name to be recognized. He doesn’t let his fame go to his head, however. Instead, he tends to lead a simple and tranquil life. Born in Taipei, Jimmy majored in art at Chinese Culture University and then worked in an advertising company for 12 years, leaving the industry in 1998. Now, Jimmy is mainly an illustrator and his illustrated work can be seen and enjoyed in both Taiwan and overseas. He has produced 37 books, some of which were turned into animated films. In fact, a company, Jimmy S.P.A., was set up in 2000 to promote his creations. It has introduced Jimmy to a great many people.

几米姓廖，不过光是「几米」就够有名了。然而，他不但没有被名气冲昏头，反而希望能过简单平静的生活。几米生于台北，并于1998年离开广告界。几米现在是位绘本作家，他的作品在台湾和海外都能欣赏得到，几米创作了37部绘本作品，部分作品曾被改编成动画影片。几米品牌经纪公司－墨色国际成立于2000年，使得更多的人认识几米。

Jimmy is a man who has completely dedicated himself to art. And his illustrated works have touched the hearts of people of all ages, as folks can’t seem to get enough of his brilliant products.

几米全心全意投身于艺术，他的绘本作品触动了各年龄层读者的心弦，读者即使拥有再多几米超棒的绘本，似乎仍嫌不够。

Vocabulary

单词发音

elaborate [ɪˋlæbə͵ret] adj. 精心制作的

chock-full [ˋtʃɑkˋfʊl]  adj. 塞满了的

remarkable [rɪˋmɑrkəb!]  adj. 非凡的；卓越的

arguably [ˋɑrgjʊəblɪ]  adv. 可以认为

tranquil [ˋtræŋkwɪl]  adj. 平静的

illustrator [ˋɪləs͵tretɚ] n. 插图画家

folk [fok]  n. 人们

Idiom

片语发音

go to someone's head 冲昏头脑 to affect someone's brain

major in 主修 to specialize in a certain subject in college

dedicate oneself to sth.  把毕生献给, 毕生致力于, 献身于…

课文朗读

课文讲解

Jimmy’s artwork emits charm and appeal through innovative originality and multi-dimensional narratives. And his works invite people to penetrate into his inner world. It’s his books that have perhaps attracted the greatest amount of attention. And these stories, mainly about people dealing with issues in the modern world, have been translated into many languages, including French, Japanese, Korean, and English.

几米的艺术作品散发出无比魅力，迷人之处在于它充满创意的原创性和多元角度的述说方式，几米的作品更带领读者进入他的内心世界。或许最吸引人的就是几米的绘本了，绘本里的故事几乎都和现代人遭遇的问题有关，这些故事还被翻译成多种语言，包括法文、日文、韩文和英文等。

One of Jimmy’s most famous artistic works is A Fish with a Smile. It’s a heartwarming illustrated book about a lonely man who finds solace in his pet fish, which was turned into a 10-minute short animation film. The film mainly explores the inner world of a man. And this film won the prize for best short film at the 56th Berlin International Film Festival in 2006. Another of Jimmy’s famous stories is The Sound of Colors, which is about the imaginative adventures of a blind girl on the subway. This was later turned into a play by a local theater group.

几米最知名的绘本作品《微笑的鱼》是一本温馨的绘本，内容讲述一个孤独的男人，在他的宠物鱼身上找到安慰，这部作品被改编为10分钟的动画短片，探索男人的内心世界。这部短片更在2006年第56届的柏林国际电影节中，获得最佳短片的殊荣。几米另一个广受欢迎的故事《地下铁》，则讲述一个眼盲的女孩在地下铁的幻想冒险故事，后来也被改拍成电影舞台剧。

To further promote storytelling, an exhibit inspired by Jimmy’s work was held in Taipei called “The Starry Starry Night.” After yet another of Jimmy’s stories, it brought together 14 artists from around the world and encouraged them to tell their own stories.

为了推广说故事这项活动，几米策划了以其绘本为灵感的「几米星空特展」，在台北展出。展中除了几米自己的故事之外，几米也聚集了来自世界各地的艺术家，鼓励他们说出属于自己的故事。

Jimmy has shared his works with the public through a full range of mediums. With such creative stories and designs, his creations will surely be stored in our memories for years to come.

几米藉由各式各样的媒介来与大众分享他的作品，在我们记忆中，一定会永远记得如此有创造力的故事与作品。

－by Ted Kirby

Vocabulary

单词发音

originality [ə͵rɪdʒəˋnælətɪ]  n. 创造力；独创性

dimension [dɪˋmɛnʃən] n. 方面 aspect; element

narrative [ˋnærətɪv]  n. 叙述，讲述

deal with 对待, 处理

heartwarming [ˋhɑrt͵wɔrmɪŋ]  adj. 暖人心房的; 温馨感人的

solace [ˋsɑlɪs]  n. 安慰，慰藉

medium [ˋmidɪəm]  n. 媒介物，媒体; 手段，工具

Reading Questions

1.    Which of the following statements is the best description of Jimmy?

(A)  He’s a brilliant artist who instructs people how to live their lives.

(B)  He’s a talented artist whose works are in many different places.

(C)  He’s a great artist who illustrates books for the Jimmy S.P.A. company.

(D)  He’s a successful artist with work as grand as his personality.

2.    What do we know about Jimmy’s early life?

(A)  He studied art at a university.

(B)  He ran a business that made ads.

(C)  He read a lot of illustrated books.

(D)  He liked to draw in MRT stations.

3.    Which of the following is NOT true about Jimmy’s creations?

(A)  His stories can be read in other languages besides Chinese.

(B)  One of his books won a prize at a famous Berlin festival.

(C)  Some of his drawings can be seen at a Taipei MRT stop.

(D)  At least one of his illustrated stories was made into a play.

4.    What is Jimmy’s relation with the recent Taipei exhibit?

(A)  The exhibit inspired Jimmy to illustrate more books.

(B)  The exhibit is based on a film version of one of Jimmy’s books.

(C)  The exhibit is full of works of art that Jimmy designed.  

(D)  The exhibit’s name comes from one of Jimmy’s stories.

Nangang Station Platform Art

向左走向右走- 几米

幾米．微笑的魚（動畫版）(A Fish with a Smile)

The Sound of Colors

Starry Starry Night「星空」－Behind the Scenes

Answer