Diego Velázquez was the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV of Spain during the seventeenth century, but his
inﬂuence was hardly ______ Spain: realist and impressionist painters around the world employed his techniques and echoed
elements of his style.
derived from
recognized in
conﬁned to
repressed by
Choice C is the best answer because it most logically completes the discussion of the artist Diego Velázquez’s inﬂuence
outside Spain. As used in this context, “conﬁned to” means restricted to. The text says that Velázquez was the leading artist
in the Spanish court during the seventeenth century, but it also notes that other painters around the world were inﬂuenced by
his techniques and style. Thus, Velázquez’s inﬂuence was hardly (or almost not) conﬁned to, or restricted to, Spain.
Choice A is incorrect because if Velázquez was a leading artist in Spain, it doesn’t make logical sense to claim that his
inﬂuence was hardly (or almost not) derived from, or obtained from, Spain. Moreover, the other painters around the world
who employed Velázquez’s techniques would by deﬁnition be inﬂuenced by Spanish style. Choice B is incorrect because if
Velázquez was a leading artist in the court of King Philip IV of Spain, then his inﬂuence must have been widely recognized, or
acknowledged, rather than being hardly (or almost not) recognized. Choice D is incorrect because the text gives no
indication that deliberately limiting Velázquez’s inﬂuence outside Spain was ever considered by anyone. Thus, even if it is
true that his inﬂuence was not repressed, or restrained, it doesn’t make logical sense to say so in this context.