文章主旨：
文章以“达米恩 •赫斯特作品的成功拍卖”引出;世果艺术品市场由盛转衰的现象，并具体介绍了其衰退前后的发展情况。
篇章结构：
世界艺术品市场的衰退
第一段：引出话题——世界艺术品市场的牛市走向终结
第二、三段：介绍艺术品市场由盛转哀的情况
第二段：介绍艺术品市场衰退之前的发展历程及其市场价值
第三段：介绍世界金融危机对艺术品市场的直接影响-一市场消费低迷，艺术品销售额下降
第四、五段：说明并评估艺术品市场现状
第四段：说明此次艺术品市场衰退之严重，但业内专家判断其已经触底
第五段：承接四段，指出此次艺术品市场衰退与以往的不同之处——仍有购买需求，并总结说明大多数人对艺术品市场的谨慎乐观态度
无译文全文：
[1]The longest bull run in a century of art-market history ended on a dramatic note with a sale of 56 works by Damien Hirst, Beautiful Inside My Head Forever, at Sotheby's in London on September 15th 2008. All but two pieces sold, fetching more than £70m, a record for a sale by a single artist. It was a last victory. As the auctioneer called out bids, in New York one of the oldest banks on Wall Street, Lehman Brothers, filed for bankruptcy.
[2]The world art market had already been losing momentum for a while after rising bewilderingly since 2003. At its peak in 2007 it was worth some $65 billion, reckons Clare MeAndrew, founder of Arts Economics, a research firm double the figure five years earlier. Since then it may have come down to $50 billion. But the market generates interest far beyond its size because it brings together great wealth, enormous egos, greed, passion and controversy in a way matched by few other industries.
[3]In the weeks and months that followed Mr Hirst's sale, spending of any sort became deeply unfashionable. On the art world that meant collectors stayed away from galleries and salerooms. Sales of contemporary art fell by two-thirds, and in the most overheated sector, they were down by nearly 90% in the year to November 2008. Within weeks the world's two biggest auction houses, Sotheby's and Christie's, had to pay out nearly $200m in guarantees to clients who had placed works for sale with them.
[4]The current downturn in the art market is the worst since the Japanese stopped buying Impressionists at the end of 1989. This time experts reckon that prices are about 40% down on their peak on average, though some have been far more fluctuant. But Edward Dolman, Christie's chief executive, says: "I'm pretty confident we're at the bottom."
[5]What makes this slump different from the last, he says, is that there are still buyers in the market. Almost everyone who was interviewed for this special report said that the biggest problem at the moment is not a lack of demand but a lack of good work to sell. The three Ds death, debt and divorce still deliver works of art to the market. But anyone who does not have to sell is keeping away, waiting for confidence to return.
带译文全文：
[1]The longest bull run in a century of art-market history ended on a dramatic note with a sale of 56 works by Damien Hirst, Beautiful Inside My Head Forever, at Sotheby's in London on September 15th 2008. All but two pieces sold, fetching more than £70m, a record for a sale by a single artist. It was a last victory. As the auctioneer called out bids, in New York one of the oldest banks on Wall Street, Lehman Brothers, filed for bankruptcy.
2008 年9月15日，伦敦苏富比拍卖行举行了一场以“美丽永驻脑海”为主题的拍卖会，在此次拍卖会上，达米恩•赫斯特的 56件作品被售出，艺术品市场一个世纪以来最长的牛市也随之戏剧性地落幕了。除两件作品以外，其余作品全部售出，总成交额超过7000 万英镑，创下单个艺术家作品拍卖的最高纪录。这是最后的一场胜利。拍卖师喊出报价的同时，红约华尔街上最古老的银行之一——雷曼兄弟——提出了破产申请。
dramatic a.戏剧性的；激动人心的
note n.气氛；笔记；注释vt.注意
fecth vt.售得,卖得(某价)；(去)拿来
record n.纪录；唱片
auctioneer n.拍卖商：拍卖人
bid n. 喊价；出价；投标
file for提出(申请)；提起(诉讼)
bankruptcy n. 破产；倒闭事件
[2]The world art market had already been losing momentum for a while after rising bewilderingly since 2003. At its peak in 2007 it was worth some $65 billion, reckons Clare MeAndrew, founder of Arts Economics, a research firm double the figure five years earlier. Since then it may have come down to $50 billion. But the market generates interest far beyond its size because it brings together great wealth, enormous egos, greed, passion and controversy in a way matched by few other industries.
自2003 年以来，经历了令人困惑的上涨之后，世界艺术品市场的发展势头已经持续减弱一段时间。“艺术经济学” 研究公司的创始人克菜尔•麦克安德鲁估算，在2007年的顶峰时期，艺术品市场的价值约为 650化美元，是五年前的两倍。从那之后，艺术品市场的价值可能已降至 500亿美元。但是艺术品市场产生的利益远远超出它本身的规模，因为它把巨额财富、强烈的自我意识、贪婪、激情和争议以一种其他多数行业难以比拟的方式汇聚在了一起。
momentum n.势头；动力
bewilderingly ad. 令人困惑地
worth a.值...钱；有...价值
reckon vt. 估算；预计，v.认为
generate vt.产生；引起
enormous a.极大的；巨大的
controversy n.争议；辩论
match vt.与…相匹敌；配对
[3]In the weeks and months that followed Mr Hirst's sale, spending of any sort became deeply unfashionable. On the art world that meant collectors stayed away from galleries and salerooms. Sales of contemporary art fell by two-thirds, and in the most overheated sector, they were down by nearly 90% in the year to November 2008. Within weeks the world's two biggest auction houses, Sotheby's and Christie's, had to pay out nearly $200m in guarantees to clients who had placed works for sale with them.
在林斯特先生的作品拍卖之后的数周乃至数月里，任何种类的消费都变得极其不合时宜。在艺术界，这意味着收藏家们远高工画廊和拍卖场。在截至2008年11月的一年里，当代艺术品的销售额下降了三分之二，而在其最热门的领域，下降了近90%。几周之内，全球最大的两家拍卖行——苏富比和佳士得——不得不向委托共拍卖艺术品的客户支付近2亿美元的保证金。
follow v.在...后发生；跟随
unfashionable a.过时的；不时髦的
collector n.收藏家；收集者
gallery n.画廊：展览馆：长廊
contemporary a.当代的；同一时代的
sector n.领域：区域：部门
guarantee n.保证金vt.确保；担保
client n.客户：委托人;当北人
[4]The current downturn in the art market is the worst since the Japanese stopped buying Impressionists at the end of 1989. This time experts reckon that prices are about 40% down on their peak on average, though some have been far more fluctuant. But Edward Dolman, Christie's chief executive, says: "I'm pretty confident we're at the bottom."
当前艺术品市场的衰退是自1989年年底日本买家停止购买印象派作品以来最为严重的一次。此次专家们估计，艺术品价格比顶峰时期开均下降约 40%，不过有些艺术品价格的波动幅度更大。但是佳士得拍卖行的首席执行官爱德华 •多尔曼表示：“我很确信我们现在已处于谷底。”
downturn n.衰退；下降
Impressionist n.印象派画家
peak n.项峰；山峰vi.达到最高值
fluctuant a. 变动的；不稳定的
[5]What makes this slump different from the last, he says, is that there are still buyers in the market. Almost everyone who was interviewed for this special report said that the biggest problem at the moment is not a lack of demand but a lack of good work to sell. The three Ds death, debt and divorce still deliver works of art to the market. But anyone who does not have to sell is keeping away, waiting for confidence to return.
他谈到，与上次衰退不同的是，此次市场上仍然有买家。几乎所有接受这次特別报道的受访者都说，目前最大的问题不是需求不足，而是缺乏可以售卖的好作品。3D——死亡、债务和离婚——依旧是将艺术品推向市场的三大因素。但那些不是非卖不可的人却都在远离市场，等待着市场信心的回归。
slump n.衰退：暴跌：萧条vi. 骤降
buyer n.买家;买方
interview vt.采访，对...进行面试
demand n. 需求，需要
重点词汇：
dramatic ,note ,fecth ,record ,auctioneer ,bid ,file for ,bankruptcy ,momentum ,bewilderingly ,worth ,reckon ,generate ,enormous ,controversy ,match ,follow ,unfashionable ,collector ,gallery ,contemporary ,sector ,guarantee ,client ,downturn ,Impressionist ,peak ,fluctuant ,slump ,buyer ,interview ,demand
重点单词助记——ChatAi
1. dramatic - involving intense emotions or striking events.
2. note - a brief written record or reminder.
3. fetch - to go and bring back.
4. record - a written account or collection of information.
5. auctioneer - a person who conducts auctions.
6. bid - an offer to pay a certain amount for something.
7. file for - to officially request or apply for something (e.g., bankruptcy).
8. bankruptcy - a legal status of being unable to repay debts.
9. momentum - the strength or force of movement or progress.
10. bewilderingly - in a confusing or perplexing manner.
11. worth - the value or importance of something.
12. reckon - to calculate or estimate.
13. generate - to produce or create.
14. enormous - very large in size, quantity, or extent.
15. controversy - disagreement or dispute.
16. match - a competition or contest between two individuals or teams.
17. follow - to go after or come after someone or something.
18. unfashionable - not currently popular or trendy.
19. collector - a person who gathers or collects items of a particular type.
20. gallery - a place where works of art are displayed.
21. contemporary - belonging to the present time or modern.
22. sector - a particular area or division within a larger whole.
23. guarantee - a promise or assurance of something.
24. client - a person or company that uses the services or advice of a professional.
25. downturn - a decline or decrease in economic or business activity.
26. Impressionist - a style of art characterized by the depiction of light and color.
27. peak - the highest point or level.
28. fluctuant - changing or varying irregularly.
29. slump - a sudden and prolonged decline or decrease.
30. buyer - a person who purchases goods or services.
31. interview - a formal meeting or conversation to evaluate someone.
32. demand - a strong or urgent request or requirement.
