For Several Years before the Outbreak of World War I, A Number of Painters in Various European Countries Created Works of Art

Reading Passage Question

For several years before the outbreak of World War I, a number of painters in various European countries created works of art that have been described as prophetic: paintings that, by challenging viewers' habitual ways of perceiving the world of the present, are said to anticipate a very different future world. The artistic styles that they created varied greatly, but they all shared a significant break with representational art traditions that dated back to the Renaissance.

This break with tradition is so fundamental that these artists, including Picasso and Braque in France, Kandinsky in Germany, and Malevich in Russia, are frequently credited with foreseeing not only subsequent developments in the arts, but also the political and social upheavals and disruptions of the modern world that emerged during and after the war. One art critic even claims that the main attraction and value of these works is their prophetic power, rather than their departure from traditional artistic techniques.

No one will deny that an artist may, just as much as a writer or a politician, speculate about the future and then try to express a vision of that future through the use of a particular style or choice of imagery. Speculation about the possibility of war in Europe was certainly widespread during the early years of the twentieth century. However, the foresight attributed to these artists should be attributed to their exceptional aesthetic innovations rather than any ability to make astute predictions about political or social trends. For example, the clear impression we get of Picasso and Braque, the co-founders of Cubism, from their contemporaries as well as later statements made by the artists, is that they were primarily concerned with problems of representation and form, as well as efforts to create a far more "real" reality than that which was visible to the eye. As artists, they were uninterested in social reformation. It's also important to remember that not all significant changes in art are immediately followed by dramatic events in the outside world. The case of Delacroix, the nineteenth-century French painter, is particularly revealing. His stylistic innovations startled his contemporaries—and still retain that power over modern viewers—but most art historians have decided that Delacroix adjusted himself to new social conditions that were already coming into being as a result of political upheavals that had occurred in 1830, as opposed to other artists who supposedly predicted changes still to come.

“For several years before the outbreak of World War I, a number of painters in various European countries created works of art”- is a GMAT reading comprehension passage with answers. Candidates need a strong knowledge of English GMAT reading comprehension. This GMAT Reading Comprehension consists of 4 comprehension questions. The GMAT Reading Comprehension questions are designed for testing candidates’ abilities in understanding, analyzing, and applying information or concepts. Candidates can actively prepare with the help of GMAT Reading Comprehension Practice Questions.

Solution and Explanation

1. Which one of the following most accurately states the main idea of the passage?

1. Despite their independence, pre-World War I European painters who developed new ways of seeing the world shared a desire to break away from representational art traditions.
2. The work of pre-World War I European painters who developed new ways of seeing the world cannot be said to have foreseen social changes, but rather to have anticipated new directions in artistic perception and expression.
3. The work of pre-World War I European painters who pioneered new ways of seeing the world was significant for its ability to forecast social changes and anticipate new artistic directions.
4. Art critics who believe that the work of certain pre-World War I European painters predicted impending social changes are mistaken, because art is incapable of expressing a vision of the future.
5. Art critics who believe that the work of some pre-World War I European painters predicted impending social changes are mistaken, because the social upheavals that followed World War I were unforeseeable.

2. According to the passage, the statements of Picasso and Braque indicate that

1. they had a lifelong interest in politics
2. they actively worked to effect social change
3. their formal innovations were the result of pure chance.
4. Their work was a concerted effort to transcend visual reality.
5. they were uninterested in the formal aspects of their work.

3. The author presents the example of Delacroix in order to illustrate which one of the following claims?

1. Significant artistic innovations are usually the result of social or political changes.
2. Artistic innovations do not always foresee social or political upheavals.
3. Some European painters have used their work to forecast social or political changes.
4. Significant stylistic innovations are best achieved by breaking with past conventions.
5. Innovative artists are capable of adapting to social or political changes.

4. Which one of the following most accurately describes the contents of the passage?

1. The author describes an artistic phenomenon, introduces one interpretation of it, proposes an alternative interpretation, and then defends it by criticising the original interpretation.
2. The author describes an artistic phenomenon, identifies its causes, illustrates some of its consequences, and then speculates on the significance of these consequences.
3. The author describes an artistic phenomenon, articulates the traditional interpretation of this phenomenon, identifies two common criticisms of this view, and then dismisses each criticism with an example.
4. The author describes an artistic phenomenon, presents two competing interpretations of the phenomenon, dismisses both interpretations with an example, and then introduces a third interpretation.
5. The author describes an artistic phenomenon, identifies the causes of the phenomenon, makes a case for the phenomenon's importance, and then advocates for an attempt to recreate the phenomenon.

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