美国国家公共电台 NPR New York's Museum Of Modern Art Acquires Original Emoji

New York's Museum Of Modern Art Acquires Original Emoji

play pause stop mute unmute max volume 00:0003:44repeat repeat off Update Required To play the media you will need to either update your browser¹ to a recent version or update your Flash plugin. ROBERT SIEGEL, HOST: 

Coming soon to the lobby of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, an acquisition announced this week - 176 Japanese pictographs from the very late 20th century. They are the original emojis - 176 symbols for such things as cloudy weather, dog, cat, golf, karaoke bar - all the basics of civilization.

Joining us all the way from India via Skype to talk about MoMA's acquisition is the museum's senior curator for architecture and design, Paola Antonelli. Good to talk with you again.

PAOLA ANTONELLI: Good to talk to you, Robert. And you forgot the martini glass.

SIEGEL: No, I didn't...

ANTONELLI: (Laughter).

SIEGEL: ...Because I didn't notice it. What is the - how would you measure the significance of the original emojis?

ANTONELLI: It is hard to overstate it. I mean if you think about it, we cannot live without emojis today. We've become used into condensing our thoughts and our kind of emotions in them. And that's why they were made.

SIEGEL: Why were these created in the first place in Japan?

ANTONELLI: They were created because of a necessity the Japanese had to sometimes have convoluted² formal expressions condensed into a very, very quick message.

And also it was created because DoCoMo, the original producer and telecommunications company, wanted to be able to deliver to the audiences messages such as the weather forecast or other commercial constraints³.

SIEGEL: The originals are - each one is I believe 12 pixels by 12 pixels.

ANTONELLI: That's correct.

SIEGEL: That they're very rudimentary then, much more so than the emojis of today. Should today's smiley faces wearing shades or dollar signs for eyes - do they also belong in the MoMA?

ANTONELLI: Maybe one day, and it depends on which ones. But you know, the funny thing is that we think they're rudimentary. But at the time, they were amazingly advantaged. And right now they kind of feel nostalgic, but they were making the best out of what they had at that time. And it was really remarkable⁴. Some emojis of today are definitely deserving of their place in our museum, and we'll consider them later on.

SIEGEL: We talked in the past about the ingeniously designed Kikkoman soy sauce bottle. You very publicly also brought Pac-Man to MoMA. How do you sum up your approach to design, culture and the Museum of Modern Art?

ANTONELLI: Well, the philosophy is that we're trying to document the art of our time and the design of our time. And these three particular items that you talked about are really about our time. Not only that, but also they're quite humble⁵.

You know, both Pac-Man, the Kikkoman soy sauce and the emojis have become a - really a part of our life, so much so that we hardly notice them. And we use them all the time. That's why they are so important as items of design. They're humble masterpieces.

SIEGEL: That's an odd measure for the importance of design - that we hardly notice them. They're part of the wallpaper pattern of life. Shouldn't something that noteworthy stand out to us?

ANTONELLI: Well, they do stand out the moment I as a curator point the finger at them. It's very funny. My job is to let people understand that these objects are fantastic universes unto themselves. And you know, it takes nothing. It's as if I were waking people up with these exhibitions and with these acquisitions.

SIEGEL: It's Paola Antonelli, who is senior curator for architecture and design at the Museum of Modern Art. She spoke⁶ to us from Mumbai in India. Enjoy the Diwali festivities.

ANTONELLI: Thank you very much, Robert. Happy Diwali to you.

1 browser   

n.浏览者

参考例句：

• View edits in a web browser.在浏览器中看编辑的效果。
• I think my browser has a list of shareware links.我想在浏览器中会有一系列的共享软件链接。

2 convoluted   

adj.旋绕的；复杂的

参考例句：

• The snake slithered through a convoluted path.蛇在羊肠小道上爬行。
• The policy is so convoluted even college presidents are confused.这项政策太令人费解，甚至连大学校长们也是一头雾水。

3 constraints   

强制( constraint的名词复数 )； 限制； 约束

参考例句：

• Data and constraints can easily be changed to test theories. 信息库中的数据和限制条件可以轻易地改变以检验假设。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• What are the constraints that each of these imply for any design? 这每种产品的要求和约束对于设计意味着什么？ 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

4 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

5 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。