Optimise. Unit 7

You will hear people talking in five different situations. For questions 1–5, choose the best answer.

You hear two people talking about a present. What do the two people decide about the pottery?

You hear a radio programme about an exhibition. How does the presenter feel about the Bimbies?

You hear part of an interview with an opera singer. What does Natasha say about singing when she was younger?

You hear two friends talking about an art exhibition. What aspect of the exhibition surprised them?

You hear a conversation in a photography shop. What is the advantage of printing the photo in black and white?

Complete the dialogues with a reflexive pronoun.

A: Have you got any biscuits?

B: They’re on the table. Help...

A: What happened to Julio? His finger’s bleeding.

B: He cut ... on a broken glass.

A: The children’s bedroom looks very tidy. Did you tidy it?

B: No, they did it ...

A: Have you heard about that new car that’s being developed?

B: Do you mean the one that can drive ...?

A: I love that picture of the sunflowers.

B: Thank you. I painted it ...

Choose the words to complete the text.

If you asked          [anyone, anywhere, it, one, someone] to name a famous artist, you would probably be surprised to hear names like Congo the chimpanzee or Koko the gorilla. That is because most people think that art is only created by humans. Most of us think it is one important way in which we are different from animals. However,           [anyone, there, it, somewhere, anywhere] is now believed that there may be other species that share our creative instinct. Koko and Congo are the most famous and are known for their simplistic paintings and drawings, although critics would argue that           [someone, anyone, one, there, somewhere] could have produced them. However,           [it, one, there, somewhere, anywhere] is a type of bird called a bowerbird, which does seem to have authentic artistic talent. The male bowerbird creates unusual three-dimensional sculptures, which it uses to attract the female birds. I saw a picture of          [it, anyone, someone, everyone, one] on the internet.

Choose the correct words and phrases to complete the sentences.

I think you’ll need to take something out of your suitcase. It’s ... heavy to carry.

Kelly doesn’t know ... French to live in a French-speaking country.

We wanted to get our mum a new coat for her birthday but it was ... expensive for us.

I don’t like going into the city centre anymore. There are ... many tourists that you can’t move.

Theft is ... a big problem on the underground that there are now police on the trains.

Complete the sentences with one word in each gap. The first letter is there to help you.

I saw an unusual i_____ at the Haysmith Gallery. It was a pile of cardboard boxes that had been painted gold.

This book is an absolute m________ . I don’t think anyone has written a better novel.

The s_____ for the film Titanic was a 260-metre copy of the original ship.

There’s an e______ of ancient Egyptian art on at the museum. Would you like to come?

Colin Davis was a well-known c______ who led the London Symphony Orchestra several times.

Complete the sentences with one word in each gap.

We’re going to do a cycling tour of Europe in the summer so we’re just drawing ... our plans.

I know this tea doesn’t taste very nice at first, but it does grow ... you.

Mandy was so annoyed when he sent her that letter she tore it ... .

It was hard to follow his directions so I asked him to sketch the route ... on a piece of paper.

Most of the interview had been edited ... by the time it appeared on TV.

Choose the right option to complete the sentences.

My sister is a costume designer so we managed to get a look ... of the latest James Bond film.

I have to say that Bobbie certainly ... in making this event such a success.

I’m pleased that Angela decided to take ... because I didn’t feel like talking to them.

Matt George was a great presenter and he’ll be a tough ... on Stardom in Mind.

It’s been great fun creating my own blog. It was basically ... and I could write about anything I wanted.

Choose the correct answers to complete the text.

When I was a teenager, I knew I wanted to be an artist. I was more fascinated by the colours and shapes of            [impression, abstract, ideal, current] art, rather than images of real things. I would spend hours painting strange pictures that no one could understand. When I finished school, I wanted to carry on painting but I had to get a job to support myself. I worked as a builder during the day and I would paint for much of the night. It was a difficult balancing          [act, action, active, activity] but I didn’t want to stop painting. Eventually, people started to get interested in my paintings so I tried to sell a few of them in           [bargains, sell-offs, trades, auctions] . Surprisingly, the buyers were offering more money than I expected and I was able to give up my job. For the first time in my life, I was able to rent a        [set, stage, studio, scene] where I could concentrate on my art. It wasn’t easy to become a full-time artist but, after many years, everything has        [given, turned, come, gone] out well. Now I can spend all my time doing what I love best.

Write a form of the word in capitals in each gap to complete the text.

Fractal Art

Fractal art is considered a            (RELATE) new art form which first appeared in the 1980s. Fractals are created from complicated mathematical patterns which repeat themselves indefinitely, getting smaller every time they are repeated. Because of the complexity of the calculations, some           (EQUIP) such as a computer and specialist software is considered necessary for modern fractal art. However, something similar has             (DOUBT) been part of African culture for hundreds of years. This can be seen in the patterns on the traditional dresses of Ethiopian women. Unlike modern fractal art, these dresses were not made with computers. Instead, someone would           (PATIENCE) recreate these complex patterns by hand. Even more interesting though, is that fractals can also be seen throughout nature, such as in the repeated rings of a tree or in the lines on a leaf. Perhaps this connection between nature, science and art explains the            (ATTRACT) of fractal art.