Mona Lisa

　　Mona Lisa is a 16th­century portrait painted by Leonardo da Vinci during the Italian Renaissance (文艺复兴), which now is under the care of Louvre in Paris. It is perhaps the most famous painting in the world. But who was the heroine and what is the story behind the mysterious smile?

　　Its identity remains uncertain.Some researchers say that she was the widowed (寡居的) Duchess of Milan. Others say it is possible that she was Mona Lisa Gherardini, the third wife of the wealthy silk merchant Francesco.

　　The smile of Mona Lisa has kept people guessing. Someone says that the smile originated (起源，发端) from Leonardo da Vinci's mother, Caterina. Others say the smile is quite simple because women were taught to smile so as to add an air of mystery and elegance at that time. The truth is that this style of smile was not invented by Leonardo da Vinci. It can be found in a number of sculptures (雕塑) from the 15th century.

　　No one knows the truth behind this famous painting except Leonardo da Vinci himself, but people are so fond of it and would enjoy guessing.

　　In fact, there are many fine art forms in western countries and China as well. It's these fine arts and pop arts that make our life colourful. Now let's step into this module to learn more about them.

　　Section_ⅠWelcome to the unit & Reading - Pre­reading

　　[原文呈现]

　　Visiting the masters

　　Hi Yang Yan

　　Here I am in Amsterdam. This trip has been fantastic①！ As you know, I am with my aunt and grandmother. They are both good artists, and I'm thinking about starting painting myself after I get back. Let me tell you all about our trip.

My grandmother really likes Picasso's paintings and thinks he is the greatest artist ever, so we started in Spain② and went to the city of Málaga, the birthplace③ of Picasso. Near the house where Picasso was born is a museum full of his art. Málaga is a lovely city and the architecture④ is beautiful. I was amazed to learn that Picasso had an output⑤ of more than 20,000 pieces of art. He did not just paint, but made sculptures and worked with all kinds of media⑥. He experimented with⑦ different styles of painting, but was most famous for his work in Cubism⑧， which often uses acute angles⑨ and where the world is represented as⑩