[originaltext] M: Good evening, everyone. Tonight, we will share something th

M: Good evening, everyone. Tonight, we will share something that catches our eyes. Sculptors traditionally use bronze or marble or even wood. But one Israeli artist works with a rather striking material. Let’s welcome the artist Ethel Landau to join us now.
   W: Thank you.
   M: From the waters of the Dead Sea recently emerged the glistening, dripping form of a ballerina’s skirt. It wasn’t weighted down by water, but crystallized in salt, a dancer’s costume frozen in time. How does that happen?
   W: This mineral is really like rocks. You put something weightless into the sea, and after the crystal accumulation, you’re raising something which has multiplied its weight times 10, times 20.
   M: You are an Israeli sculptor, video creator and installation artist. But, for nearly 15 years, the southern basin of the Dead Sea has been your studio.
   W: It’s not the easiest water. It’s not the nicest place in August. But I have a language going on there, definitely. In summer, temperatures in the area regularly top 100 degrees, and because heat speeds up the crystallization process, summer is when the Dead Sea becomes my artistic partner.
   M: Can anybody come and make a piece of art on spot?
   W: Anybody can just come and you can put your glasses in. And if you take good care and if you are lucky, you might end up with a beautiful piece of art. But there is a limit. And there’s a right size and there’s a right time of year.
   M: Tell me something about your artistic works.
   W: As a child, I spent many Saturdays with my family relaxing on the Israeli shore of the Dead Sea. After working indoors for years, I first experimented creating art using its hypersaline waters in 2003. Since then, I have placed nearly 100 handcrafted pieces and everyday items, such as shoes and musical instruments, underwater.
   M: I guess some of your objects, like the ballerina’s skirt, have biographical ties.
   W: Yes. I used to be a dancer. Others play off the water’s ability to transform, like this traditional Yiddish mourning gown, now a sparking wedding dress, or blue flags turned white. With a white flag, you can go to a president and say,  “Look, this is a kind of healing process.” A white flag says something about sharing, about water, about coping, about healing.
   M: I heard that your salt sculptures have traveled the world for museum exhibitions, yet you never lose the constant pull of the Dead Sea.
   W: I work in many mediums, but there is something about the Dead Sea. I’m proud of realizing that I chose to stay close to it.
   M: I see. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us.
   Questions 6 to 10 are based on Conversation Two.
   6. Which is the unusual material for sculptors?
   7. Why does the woman say the Dead Sea becomes her artistic partner in August?
   8. What does the woman say about her personal experience?
   9. What can we learn about the woman?
   10. How does the woman feel about the Dead Sea?