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There’s a blue house in central Florida that’s hard to miss. It’s somewhat famous among people who l...
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There’s a blue house in central Florida that’s hard to miss. It’s somewhat famous among people who live nearby — it’s painted to look like Starry Night”, the iconic painting by Vincent van Gogh — but not everyone is a fan of the larger-than-life artwork.
“We had not originally intended to paint the house like this,” Nancy Nemhauser, who lives there with her husband, Lubomir Jastrzebski, and their adult son, told TODAY. They started by painting the wall that runs outside of their home, because it was “in disrepair” and they wanted it to look nice. The couple said they even asked permission from the city to paint the wall, and were told it was OK.
“So we went ahead and started having the wall painted by an artist who has his work shown throughout South America,” Nemhauser said. They chose Van Gogh because their son, who has autism (自闭症), is a fan — and they hoped that the mural would come in handy if he ever wandered far from home.
“God forbid he were to be in a situation where he did not have the ability to tell people his address clearly. We’re hoping that he would have the ability to at least say that he belongs at the Van Gogh house,” Nemhauser said. The couple added that their son loves the look of the house. “There’s some magical connection I think between Van Gogh and autistic kids, because Van Gogh was possibly also autistic,” Jastrzebski said.
After the couple painted the wall, they got a citation (传票) from the city stating that the wall painting was considered graffiti (涂鸦), and that the wall must match the house. That’s when they decided to paint the entire house to look like “Starry Night” — knowing that’s not quite what the city had in mind, but confident that they weren’t breaking any law.
Since then, they’ve been fined $10,600. In February, they filed a federal lawsuit against the city, claiming the city is violating their right to freedom of expression.
Neither Mount Dora city officials nor their lawyer would comment on the issue. But in February, they did say in a statement that they were trying to preserve the residential character of our neighborhoods, and that the house “may present a distraction to safe vehicle operation along the street which fronts the home”.
Nemhauser and Jastrzebski add that many neighbors love the house, and thousands of people have signed an online petition (请愿) in support of keeping the painting. While both sides are in settlement talks, the fate of the mural is still up in the air. The family said they were ready to battle for what they believe in.
1.What was the couple’s initial intention to paint the wall?
A.To beautify the damaged wall.
B.To respond to the call of the city.
C.To assist an artist to show his work.
D.To express their son’s admiration to Van Gogh.
2.What does the underlined phrase “God forbid” in Paragraph 4 mean?
A.May God forgive us.
B.It’s forbidden by God.
C.Even God can’t help it.
D.We hope it does not happen.
3.What’s Mount Dora city officials’ attitude towards the unique house?
A.Supportive. B.Disapproving.
C.Ambiguous. D.Understanding.
4.What is the text mainly about?
A.“Starry Night” house in Florida arouses a heated debate.
B.Neighbors sign an online petition in support of “Starry Night” house.
C.The magical connection between Van Gogh and autistic kids.
D.Homeowners battle for their “Starry Night” house in Florida.
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