Flower power
Alexandria in Virginia, USA, and particularly its well-tended Old Town section, is the sort of upscale suburb that rings most major American cities. From the array of pubs, sushi-restaurant chains and pasta joints that line its streets, you would never guess that within 20 minutes you can find some of the best Korean, Vietnamese, Chinese, Pakistani or Bolivian food in America. Its 18th-century homes have been carefully maintained; now that the nasty, dirty business of living in them is done, they are at last free to house upscale boutiques selling ornate pepper-shakers, local wine, birthday cakes for dogs and other essentials. Yet this suburb was a city before cars existed, making it especially dense, walkable and charming. It has also turned an instrument of war into an instrument of art.
The day after the armistice that ended the first world war in 1918, the United States Navy began building the US Naval Torpedo station on the waterfront across the Potomac and just downriver from the Naval Research Laboratory in south-west Washington, DC. After a brief period of production, it stored munitions between the wars. When the second world war broke out, it built torpedoes for submarines and aircraft; when that war ended, the building was again used for storage. In 1969, the local Alexandria government bought the site, which had grown to comprise 11 buildings, from the federal government.
Five years later, after all the debris was removed and walls erected, the main building was refitted to house artists’ studios. A quarter-century, and several extensive renovations, later the artists are still there: over 160 of them sharing 82 studios, six galleries and two workshops. The Art League School and the Alexandria Archaeology Museum also share the space, bringing in thousands more aspirants and students. All of this makes the Torpedo Factory, as it is now called, a low-key, family-friendly and craft-centred alternative to the many worthy galleries across the river.
The building is three-storeys tall; on the first floor the studios and galleries are laid out along a single long hall. The arrangement grows more warrenlike, and the sense of discovery concomitantly more pleasant, as you ascend. Artists work in a variety of media, including painting, fibre, printmaking, ceramics, jewellery, stained glass and photography.
Don't anticipate anything game-changing or jaw-dropping here. Expect plenty of cats and cows in different media, as well as watercolours of beach houses, ersatz Abstract Expressionist paintings, stained glass made for the walls of large suburban houses, baubles and knick-knacks and thingummies galore. All of it is skilfully done; most of it is pleasant.
The photography is an exception: the Multiple Exposures Gallery is first-rate, displaying not merely beautiful pictures but inventive techniques as well. On a recent visit the gallery showcased landscapes, including an especially arresting wide-angle aerial shot of a field in Fujian after a storm. Crops glinted in the rising sun like rows of wet sapphires, the scalloped grey clouds echoing the terraced farming beneath.
The Torpedo Factory’s biggest draw, however, particularly for visitors with children, is not on what is sold but in the demystifying access visitors have to artists. While the galleries function traditionally, the artists work and sell out of the same studio; their raw materials and works in progress, the artistry behind the art, are all on display. Many of them are happy and eager to talk; one was soliciting the help of passers-by to complete a work, she wished to know how to say and write a certain phrase in Hebrew vernacular, a quest that might take time to complete in a yachty southern suburb. A metal sculptor sat on a stool patiently working a piece of metal back and forth in his hands. The centre of his studio was filled with a huge hollow sphere made from hundreds of cylinders of perhaps anodised aluminium. It seemed we were witnessing the first step in a thousand-mile march.
When the second world war had finished the main purpose of the US Naval Torpedo station became .
A number of required over the last 25 years to make the Torpedo Factory what it is today.
The layout of the building becomes as you get higher.
The photograph of the Fujian field caught the writer’s attention.
One artist was asking visitors for with a Hebrew phrase.
The studio filled with remained the writer of starting a long march.
AI explanationShows the answer. Tap to open.
Question Focus: Synonym match - summary says 'main purpose became' and the passage explains how the building was used
Correct Answer: storage
Why this is correct: The passage clearly explains that after the second world war ended, the building was no longer producing weapons. It says it was used for storage, so the main purpose became storage.
Passage Reference: When the second world war broke out, it built torpedoes for submarines and aircraft; when that war ended, the building was again used for storage.
Common Mistake: Students may write munitions because this word appears earlier, but that refers to an earlier time. After the war ended, the function changed. This is a time/tense trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'used for storage' = Summary: 'main purpose ... became'
Tips: Always check the time phrase in the summary like 'after the war' and match it carefully to the passage.
Key Vocabulary:
- storage = keeping things
- munitions = weapons
Question Focus: Synonym match - summary says 'required over the last 25 years' and the passage explains what happened during that time
Correct Answer: extensive renovations
Passage Reference: . A quarter-century, and several extensive renovations, later the artists are still the
Why this is correct: The passage explains that over 25 years, there were several extensive renovations. The summary shortens this idea to 'required over the last 25 years', so the correct words are extensive renovations.
Common Mistake: Some students write only renovations and miss the key detail. Leaving out extensive loses meaning. This is a partial truth trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'several extensive renovations' = Summary: 'A number of ... required over the last 25 years'
Tips: If the summary says 'a number of', look for a plural noun phrase in the passage.
Key Vocabulary:
- extensive = large or major
- renovations = building improvements
Question Focus: Synonym match - summary describes change in layout as you go higher
Correct Answer: more warren like
Passage Reference: . The building is three-storeys tall; on the first floor the studios and galleries are laid out along a single long hall. The arrangement grows more warrenlike, and the sense of discovery concomitantly more pleasant, as you ascend.
Why this is correct: The passage says the arrangement grows more warrenlike as you go up. The summary paraphrases 'as you ascend' as 'as you get higher', so more warren like is correct.
Common Mistake: Students may write pleasant because it appears nearby, but that describes the feeling, not the layout. This is a context shift trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'grows more warrenlike' = Summary: 'becomes ... as you get higher'
Tips: Focus on what the summary is asking about. Layout words describe structure, not feelings.
Key Vocabulary:
- warrenlike = like a maze
- ascend = go up
Question Focus: Keyword match - the summary points to a specific type of photograph
Correct Answer: aerial
Passage Reference: ell. On a recent visit the gallery showcased landscapes, including an especially arresting wide-angle aerial shot of a field in Fujian after a storm.
Why this is correct: The writer describes an especially striking image as a wide-angle aerial shot. The summary shortens this to 'The ___ photograph', so the key word is aerial.
Common Mistake: Some students write wide-angle, but that describes the lens, not the viewpoint. The summary focuses on the type of photograph. This is a partial truth trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'wide-angle aerial shot' = Summary: 'aerial photograph'
Tips: When two adjectives appear together, choose the one that best matches the summary focus.
Key Vocabulary:
- aerial = taken from above
- shot = photograph
Question Focus: Synonym match - summary shortens a longer action
Correct Answer: help
Passage Reference: play. Many of them are happy and eager to talk; one was soliciting the help of passers-by to complete a work, she wished to know how to say and write a certain phrase in Hebrew vernacular, a quest tha
Why this is correct: The passage says the artist was soliciting the help of passers-by. The summary simplifies this to 'asking visitors for', so the missing word is help.
Common Mistake: Students may write translation or writing, but those ideas are inferred, not stated directly. This is a not given trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'soliciting the help of passers-by' = Summary: 'asking visitors for ...'
Tips: Do not add your own ideas. Only use what is directly stated in the passage.
Key Vocabulary:
- solicit = ask for
- vernacular = everyday language
Question Focus: Detail match - summary describes what filled the studio
Correct Answer: aluminium cylinders
Passage Reference: ands. The centre of his studio was filled with a huge hollow sphere made from hundreds of cylinders of perhaps anodised aluminium.
Why this is correct: The passage explains that the studio contained a sphere made from hundreds of cylinders of aluminium. The summary combines these details as aluminium cylinders.
Common Mistake: Some students write huge hollow sphere, but that is the object, not what it was made from. This is a context shift trap.
Paraphrasing: Passage: 'hundreds of cylinders of ... aluminium' = Summary: 'studio filled with aluminium cylinders'
Tips: If the summary asks 'filled with what', look for material words in the passage.
Key Vocabulary:
- cylinder = tube shape
- anodised = treated metal
General Tips:
- Summary completion questions follow passage order. Once you find one answer, keep reading forward for the next.
- Always copy the exact word or words from the passage. Do not use your own synonyms.
- Check the word limit carefully. More than the allowed number of words is automatically wrong.
- Use grammar clues around the gap to decide if you need a noun, verb, or adjective.
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