摘自：21世紀英語網(wǎng)

In the best-selling novel The Goldfinch by American writer Donna Tartt， leading character Theo developed a special relationship with a small oil painting of a chained1 goldfinch created by Dutch master Carel Fabritius. The painting touches him， makes him lose himself， brings back his memories of the past， and even seems to be communicating with him whenever he looks at it. Of course， not all of us art lovers can have a famous painting in our private possession2 like Theodoes， but when we go to a museum， how many of us truly spend time marveling3 at pieces of art？

在美國作家唐娜·塔特所著的暢銷小說《金絲雀》中，主人公西奧與一幅小小的油畫產(chǎn)生了特別的感情。這幅油畫出自荷蘭畫家大師卡爾·法布里蒂烏斯之手，畫中是一只被拴住的金絲雀。這幅畫觸動了西奧的內(nèi)心，令他如癡如醉，勾起了他種種的回憶，甚至不論西奧何時看到它，都覺得這畫在和自己說話。當(dāng)然，我們這些藝術(shù)愛好者并非人人都能像西奧一樣擁有如此有名的私藏。但是，當(dāng)我們走進博物館的時候，又有多少人真正駐足于每一幅作品，花時間感受它帶來的震撼呢？

The typical museumgoer gets hold of a map and spends the next two or three hours tracking down each exhibit’s highlights. They move quickly from one masterpiece to the next， getting through the crowd for a better view， maybe taking a selfie4 or two， and then checking the item5 off their list.

博物館游覽者最典型的形象就是：手握地圖，用一兩個小時苦苦尋找每個展區(qū)的“亮點”，然后在名作之間飛奔，從擁擠的人群中努力尋得一處尚佳的角度，留下一兩張自拍，最后在自己的清單上劃掉此項。

But once they’ve left the museum， can they really say much about the artwork they’ve seen？ Do they have any lasting impressions？

但是，當(dāng)他們離開博物館時，誰又能真的對自己看過的藝術(shù)作品說出一二或者對哪幅作品印象深刻呢？

A recent New York Times article suggests we slow down and truly spend time appreciating artwork that draws us in， not analyzing6 so-called masterpieces just for the sake of appearances.

《紐約時報》最近的一篇文章就建議人們真正花點時間來慢慢品味藝術(shù)作品，而不只是對那些所謂名作的外觀評頭品足。

According to museum researchers， the article says， the average museumgoer spends only 15 to 30 seconds in front of a work of art.

在這篇文章中，研究人員指出，參觀博物館的人在每幅作品前停留的平均時間只有15至30秒左右。

The New York Times interviewed James Pawelski， a professor at the University of Pennsylvania who studies connections between psychology7 and the arts.

《紐約時報》為此采訪了賓夕法尼亞大學(xué)的教授詹姆斯·帕維斯基，他專門從事研究心理學(xué)與藝術(shù)作品之間的聯(lián)系。

“When you go to the library， you don’t walk along the shelves looking at the spines8 of the books and on your way out tweet to your friends， ‘I read 100 books today！’”， Pawelski said.

帕維斯基教授說，“當(dāng)你走進圖書館時，你匆匆走過一座座書架，都來不及瀏覽架上圖書的書脊，但是當(dāng)你走出圖書館時，你會立刻在微博上告訴你的好友們，并寫到‘我今天又讀了100本書！’”

Yet that’s exactly how many of us experience museums. “They see as much of the art as you see spines on books，” said Pawelski， “You can’t really see a painting as you’re walking by it.”

我們中的很多人也正是這樣參觀博物館的。帕維斯基教授說，“他們看藝術(shù)作品就像看書架上的書脊一樣，如果你只是匆匆走過，你是不可能真正看懂一幅畫的。”

Pawelski said that if you do choose to slow down—to find a piece of art that speaks to you and observe it for minutes rather than seconds—you are more likely to connect with the art， and maybe even with yourself.

他還說，如果你能放慢腳步，找到一幅對與你胃口的作品，細細欣賞幾分鐘而不是幾秒鐘的匆匆一瞥，那么你也許會與藝術(shù)作品有更多的交流，甚至與自己能有更多的溝通。