Difficulty: Easy

Average Score: 85%

Joseph Mallord William Turner (1775 - 1851) was a successful painter in his own day. After his death, his reputation grew even greater, but many of his paintings remained unhoused. In his will, Turner bequeathed his work to his homeland, Great Britain. He will demanded that the collection remain together in special rooms to be added to Britain's National Gallery. This may not appear to be an unreasonable request, but Turner's collection included 300 oil paintings, 19,000 drawings, almost 300 sketchbooks, model ships, and other odds and ends. It was not until the 1980's, when a private donor gave the British government close to $14 million for the project, that the new rooms were finally built.

The passage suggests that special rooms for Turner's collection were not built immediately after his death because

Rationale

there were so many works in the collection that special rooms would be very expensive to build.

The passage indicates that Turner's collection was extensive, consisting of 300 oil paintings, 19,000 drawings, and other items, which suggests that constructing adequate special rooms to house such a vast collection would require significant financial investment and planning, leading to delays in their establishment.

A (Turner was not a respected painter when he died) YOUR ANSWER

The passage states that Turner was a successful painter during his lifetime and that his reputation grew after his death. This implies that his respect as an artist was not a barrier to the establishment of special rooms for his collection, making this choice incorrect.

B (Turner's heirs wanted to retain ownership of the paintings) YOUR ANSWER

The text does not mention any conflict regarding ownership of the paintings by Turner's heirs. Instead, it emphasizes that Turner bequeathed his work to Great Britain. Therefore, this option does not align with the details provided in the passage.

C (there were so many works in the collection that special rooms would be very expensive to build) CORRECT

The passage explicitly outlines the large number of items in Turner's collection, which would necessitate significant resources to create appropriate exhibition spaces. This makes it clear that the extensive nature of the collection contributed to delays in building the special rooms.

D (private donors were reluctant to contribute funds for such an unusual purpose) YOUR ANSWER

While the passage mentions that a private donor eventually contributed funds for the project, it does not suggest that reluctance was a significant factor immediately after Turner's death. Thus, this choice does not accurately reflect the information given.

E (many of the works had to be retrieved from private collections and museums around the world) YOUR ANSWER

The passage does not indicate that retrieval of the works from various places was a reason for the delay. It primarily focuses on the size of the collection and the eventual funding, making this choice incorrect.

Conclusion

The passage clearly suggests that the sheer volume of Turner's collection made the construction of special rooms a costly endeavor, which explains the delay in their establishment. Other choices either misinterpret the context or introduce irrelevant factors, reinforcing that the extensive nature of Turner's works was the primary reason for the postponement in creating dedicated exhibition spaces.

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