Explanation
Correct answer: C.
Choice C is the best answer because it presents the statement about the use of painted frames in Impressionist painting that both authors would be most likely to agree with. Text 1 discusses painter Edgar Degas’s insistence that his works remain in their original painted frames, which contrasted with the gold frames that were typical of the Paris art scene at the time. The text then argues that the preference of Degas and other French Impressionist painters for colorful frames can likely be attributed to their desire "to distinguish themselves from what was considered conventional at the time." Text 2 also notes that Impressionist painters "placed their works in painted frames" but argues that they probably did so for a purely aesthetic reason: to ensure that "the frame’s color...would harmonize with the colors or subjects in a painting." Though differing on Impressionist painters’ rationale for using painted frames, the authors of both texts would agree that many Impressionist painters were intentional about the frames they selected for their works.
Why the other choices are wrong
Choice A
Choice A is incorrect because neither text suggests that gold frames were considered desirable by those purchasing Impressionist works. Indeed, it can be inferred from the fact that Impressionist painters used painted frames that those who purchased those works wouldn’t have had a strong preference for gold frames.
Choice B
Choice B is incorrect because neither text suggests that Impressionist painters chose colors for their paintings based on planned frame colors. Indeed, Text 2 states that frame colors were chosen to "harmonize with the colors or subjects in a painting," implying that the color scheme of paintings predated and took precedence over the choice of the colors of frames.
Choice D
Choice D is incorrect because Text 1 presents Degas’s preference for painted frames as being typical of Impressionist painters’ attitudes toward the framing of their works. Moreover, although Text 2 doesn’t specifically discuss Degas, it concurs with Text 1’s assertion that these painters preferred painted frames. Thus, both texts position painted frames as a hallmark of French Impressionist painting, not as a deviation from it.