MG Car Enthusiasts Put-up a Classic Car Show at FGY Art Gallery Christchurch
On 21st July 2021, the carpark of Fo Guang Yuan (FGY) Art Gallery Christchurch welcomed 25 MG classic cars. These cars were owned by members of MG Car Club (Canterbury Centre) who drove them to the Art Gallery to share with the public their popular and fashionable, classic and eye-catching, 20th century possessions.
The vast fleet of classic cars was warmly welcomed by the Curator of FGY Art Gallery New Zealand Venerable Abbess Manshin, the Director of FGY Art Gallery Christchurch Venerable Jue Xi, and the Directors of Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA) South Island. Retired Detective Superintendent of the New Zealand Police, Virginia Le Bas, was invited as the Special Guest of Honour. This spectacular event caught the eyes of more than 30 Temple visitors and Friends of FGY.
At the Car Show, Gallery Curator Abbess Manshin delivered a welcoming speech expressing her delight that the visit of the classic cars had brought colour and joy to the Art Gallery, and that the holding of this unique Classic Car Show would inject positive energy onto Christchurch, which was needed to revive the morale of the City after the 2011 Earthquake. Virginia Le Bas said in her speech: "I am very impressed that the FGY Art Gallery Christchurch has often hosted activities that are beneficial to the community and the interesting events always bring joys and surprises to the public. Today’s Classic Car Show is indeed rare and not easy to come by and should be treasured". Ted Clarke, President of MG Car Club (Canterbury Centre), delivered a speech: "I would like to thank FGY Art Gallery for the very warm hospitality extended to us, the degree of which has surprised and delighted all of us. We are all classic car enthusiasts and are very happy to drive our favourite cars to FGY Gallery to share with the public. In addition to the Car Show, we are looking forward to visiting the Embroidery Exhibition at the FGY Exhibition Hall, and to enjoying the vegetarian meals at the Water Drop Café".
The MG Car Club members later visited the Magnificence of Embroidery Exhibition, and FGY Gallery staff Ella O'Donoghue was there to introduce to them the famous embroidery artist Yao Hong-Ying and her philosophy on embroidery art. To most MG Club members, this was their first visit to the Embroidery Exhibition. They were amazed by Yao Hong-Ying's excellent embroidery skills, and were mesmerized by Yao’s meticulous and brilliant embroidery works. Later, the members adjourned to the Water Drop Cafe for lunch.
Di Dren Errington, a member of the MG Club, and her husband, were very happy after their visit to the Embroidery Exhibition last month. They then suggested to the Club to visit the FGY Art Gallery. Today’s visit brought many surprises to the members. The members were very grateful to the Gallery for the warm welcoming ceremony and the souvenirs presented to them. They were especially happy to enjoy the delicious vegetarian food at the Water Drop Café and were deeply impressed by the Café staff’s friendly and excellent services. The MG Car Club organises a gathering for its members once a month and they have been to countless places. But they have never received such a warm and friendly reception as this one. The Club has its own Monthly Publication. President Ted Clarke stated that the Club will publish a report on today's visit in their Monthly Publication, and will also publish news on future exhibitions or events of FGY Art Gallery there.
MG is a car brand and is an abbreviation of Morris Garages. It was a tribute to British car giant William Richard Morris. The brand was founded in 1924 and MG has been making changes with times. Be they 90 year-old antique cars, or present day modern and novel cars, MG cars have been very popular. After a passage of 90 years, MG antique cars still attract a large number of owners. There are also specific MG Car Clubs in various parts of New Zealand, such as Wellington and Dunedin. Large gatherings are held from time to time for members to communicate and connect with each other. The ages of the classic cars that were on show that day ranged from 40 years to 50 years to 60 years. Not only the exterior of the cars remained fresh and beautiful, but their performances also remained quite good.
Later, Gallery Curator Abbess encouraged the staff of FGY Art Gallery Christchurch with the following words: Master Hsing Yun has taught us to practise “3 Good Deeds” and “4 Givings”. The sincere attitude of the Gallery staff has been affirmed by the local populace. The good and solid results from the collective efforts of the Gallery Team are difficult to come by and should be cherished. We must seize this rare opportunity to serve the local community and inject more vigour into the propagation of Humanistic Buddhism via Arts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SZhNATD--M&ab_channel=%E4%BD%9B%E5%85%89%E5%B1%B1%E4%BA%BA%E9%96%93%E8%A1%9B%E8%A6%96